Auckland man Shelwin Khan was just 14 when addiction first took hold. By 15, he had overdosed, blacked out and woken in a police cell before being admitted to a youth psychiatric ward. Diagnosed with bipolar disorder as a teenager, he faced years of instability, cycling between substance use, hospital admissions and attempts at recovery.
This week on The Nutters Club on NewstalkZB, Khan shared the long road from chaos to seven years of sobriety and a life he once believed was impossible.
Born and raised in South Auckland to Fijian-Indian parents, Khan describes a turbulent adolescence marked by bullying, academic struggles and early substance use. Despite being told by a teacher he might be “slow,” he went on to complete a Bachelor of Arts in psychology and English. But behind the achievement, his drinking escalated.
“I was drinking five days a week and recovering the other two,” he said. “On the surface I looked successful. Underneath, I was falling apart.”
By his mid-20s, Khan was unemployable and had attempted rehabilitation three times. Each time he relapsed. After years of heavy drinking and drug use, and with only 16 days of sobriety across a two-year period, he reached a breaking point at 27.
Instead of ending his life, he walked into a 12-step meeting.
There he met a man who had been sober for 28 years. “He had more sobriety than I’d been alive,” Khan said. “He seemed peaceful. I wanted that.”
Khan immersed himself in recovery, attending support groups and completing a Wellness Recovery Action Plan. He later trained as a peer support worker, drawing on his lived experience to help others navigating addiction and mental illness.
Today, nearly seven years sober, he works across mental health services in multiple roles, including as a lived experience advisor.
Sobriety opened doors he never imagined. He has travelled to 14 countries, including Japan, Italy and Switzerland, a stark contrast to the years when he struggled to leave his bedroom.
Recovery has not meant the end of challenges. Khan continues to manage bipolar symptoms, including episodes of paranoia and psychosis, using self-awareness, support networks and practical coping strategies. Recently, he faced another test: a cancer diagnosis. A 10-centimetre tumour was surgically removed in January, and he is undergoing further treatment.
Yet his outlook remains grounded. “If this had been the end,” he reflected, “the last seven years have been so full and meaningful that it would have been okay.”
For Khan, sobriety is more than abstinence. “It’s about how I show up to life,” he said. “It’s about finding a new default.”
His message is simple but powerful: recovery is possible and life, even with its curveballs, is worth it.
