Welcome to Family Drug Support Aotearoa New Zealand

Assisting families/whānau & friends to deal with alcohol and other drug use in a way that strengthens relationships and achieves positive outcomes.

Family Drug Support Aotearoa is a New Zealand wide organisation set up to support family/whānau & friends impacted by the alcohol and other drug use of people they care about. The aim is to provide support based on science, compassion and human rights. We support a harm reduction model.

We are here to support you while you support your loved one through their drug and/or alcohol use. Our 5-Step Programme includes five private counselling sessions with a highly skilled Accredited Practitioner and has world leading results, with a reported 92% reduction in family burden. Learn more.

Request a call back from our Support Line from anywhere in New Zealand or fill out our contact form for the 5-Step Family/Whanau Programme here

Need Help?

Our website provides a wide range of resources to help family/whānau and friends to stay involved and support people they care about who have alcohol and other drug misuse. Articles, books and videos are available to support yourself and to help you support those that are experiencing challenges.

Supporting Yourself

Supporting Someone Else

Who are we?

Here at FDS we aim to assist in any way possible to empower families to cope with the realisation of their situation and to survive it intact. To this end we offer an 0800 telephone line New Zealand -wide, manned by volunteers offering help to diffuse crisis, proffering strategies for coping and giving any information required. We believe families are important.

They are the ones who understand their family member more so than anyone else. If left to work through issues in isolation, families can become exhausted and give up. However, when supported they can become a vital force for positive change. FDS is committed to working with professional organisations and forming constructive partnerships. Armed with collective wisdom, FDS has adopted a view of harm reduction.

We are built on the Te Whare Tapa Whā model

Te Whare Tapa Wha (four cornerstones of health) was developed by leading Maori health advocate and researcher Professor Sir Mason Durie in 1984. It is a useful way to think about our health as a whare. The whare, has four walls with each wall representing a different dimension of health. All four walls are needed and must be in balance for the house, (or our health), to be strong.

Taha Tinana

physical health

Having optimal physical health provides a good base from which we can respond to our normal everyday activities.

Taha Wairua

spiritual health

Who we are, our sense of belonging and our ability to have faith in a higher power all contribute to a strong wairua.

Taha Whānau

family health

Our families provide a sense of belonging, and support & are the backbone to strong resilient individuals.

Taha Hinengaro

mental health

Our mental health and emotional health are often what others notice first when things aren’t going so well.

Become a volunteer

Interest in volunteering? For more information and to register your expression of interest complete our online application.

Thank you to our partners

We wish to recognise the assistance and valued support many people and organisations have given to Family Drug Support Aotearoa New Zealand. Supporters including the following:

Support our efforts

We believe that helping the families of people with alcohol and other drug misuse ultimately helps the user and the wider community. To achieve this we need your support. We rely heavily on volunteers and make applications for funding, but resources are limited. So we invite you to become a "Friend of FDS" and donate. One-off or ongoing donations, big or small, enable our organisation to continue its valuable work.

Make A Donation