Latest news with #BraidenTonks
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE I lived fast and hard dealing drugs while hooked on meth… then came the sliding doors moment that completely turned my life around
A reformed drug dealer has recalled the horrific moment he found his brother trying to save his friend after he choked on his own vomit and died from an overdose. Braiden Tonks, 32, has lived through a decade of addiction, violence and crime that ultimately left him scarred, alone and hanging on to life by a thread. Mr Tonks managed to turn his life around and is now a father of three, partner and activist who is trying to help other addicts by sharing his own life experiences. The young father said he was the son of a pub brawler who had a reputation among locals and that he leaned into his violent legacy. Six-foot-five, covered in tattoos, and sporting stretched earlobes, he began smuggling methamphetamine into the Apple Isle in his 20s. His exploits afforded him nice cars, Harley-Davidsons, and enough cash to use meth on the side. But his addiction took it all away, leaving him with a stolen mountain bike and no roof over his head. 'I went from that guy with all the money, all the assets, and dealing drugs, to the absolute bottom of the spectrum,' he told Daily Mail Australia. When he thought he'd lost everything, he sought solace in other users. One introduced him to heroin – the worst drug he ever tried – and soon he was on the brink of death. In a hotel with his brother, Mr Tonks tried some, felt dizzy, and collapsed. CPR from his brother saved him, but the next morning he had to watch as his new friend wouldn't wake up. His brother tried CPR again, then turned to Mr Tonks, bile in his mouth, and said: 'This is exactly what I was doing to you'. The incident rattled Mr Tonks. The turning point came when he was caught in a hailstorm, wearing a T-shirt with nothing but a suitcase of drug paraphernalia behind an electrical box. He weighed just 68kg at the time. 'I remember sitting down behind this thing and bawling my eyes out,' Mr Tonks said. 'I wasn't born a Christian or anything, but I just remember sitting there and all of a sudden looking up, saying, "God, if you are real, help me, or kill me". 'I literally had nowhere to go. Nobody. My family had given up on me, my mum was in jail, my dad is completely anti-drugs.' It was a moment he's now grateful for. Soon after, he was nabbed at Hobart Airport following a failed trip to purchase $20,000 of meth. Detectives hauled him from the tarmac. 'They fully strip searched me, they found the cash, a couple of satchels with residue from drugs in the bag. That was enough to take me back to the station,' Mr Tonks said. He copped a 12-month suspended sentence with two years on good behaviour before a variety of minor offences landed him inside Risdon Prison Complex for six months. After leaving prison, he knew he couldn't stay in Tasmania. He feared he'd be pulled back into old habits. His mother, just out of jail herself, and his ex-partner – who is the mother of his two kids – gave him a chance to stay in their lives if he cleaned up. He said his current partner, Bec, and their daughter was a 'big factor' to his recovery. Mr Tonks said surrounding yourself with people who want the best for you is key to overcoming addiction. While working in construction and raising his kids, he started talking about his previous experiences on a podcast and trying to become that helping hand for others. His content joins a growing group of 'underworld' podcasters - like Sydney phenom Spanian - speaking to forgotten Australians and those curious about life on the edge. An estimated 10.2million Australians aged 14 and over have used an illicit drug in their lifetime. Drug use has declined in most age groups since 2019, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. But street drugs are growing more dangerous due to synthetic ingredients and powerful cutting agents. Mr Tonks also shares stories from others on the path to recovery. He has received dozens of messages a week from young people wanting to turn their lives around. Not everyone likes what he has to say – and that's fine with him. 'There's 100 per cent way more positivity than negativity on social media for me through the message I carry, but once upon a time I wouldn't have been able to handle it,' Mr Tonks said. 'My father was a very violent man... I sort of copped that reputation of him myself.' He admits he used to threaten those who criticised him, a habit shaped by his upbringing. 'Since I went to jail, I wouldn't say I found the Lord, but I found something,' Mr Tonks said. 'I believe in a higher power, whatever it is. I definitely believe in something higher than me. It's helped me, man, to switch off, grow more and not deal with a negative s***.' His podcast is available on Tonksy Media Podcast via social media, YouTube and Spotify. Lifeline: 13 11 14
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
How the cost-of-living crisis is making younger Aussies ditch expensive alcohol for a deadly drug
Overdoses related to the deadly 'don't wake up' drug have skyrocketed among Australians in recent years as some fear financial pressures may be pushing young people towards hard substances. Gamma hydroxybutyrate, better known as GHB, is being used by an increasingly large number of younger Aussies. Many believe its low cost, accessibility, and mind-altering effects are making it an increasingly popular alternative to alcohol. The drug has attracted global attention due to the notoriously small margin of error between the amount used for an average recreational dosage and an overdose. The effects - relaxation, sociability, euphoria and an increased sex drive - can be felt within 15 minutes. But, even a slight overdose of the drug can prove fatal. The number of GHB-related ambulance callouts has surged across Australia in recent years according to new research from Monash University and Turning Point. Victoria is the national capital for GHB-related ambulance attendances, with 65.8 attendances per 100,000 people in 2023. It represented a 67 per cent increase from the year prior, following a 147 per cen t increase across the state between 2012 and 2019. Attendances also spiked in Tasmania, increasing by 346 per cent between 2022 and 2023. Reformed ice dealer Braiden Tonks recently told Daily Mail Australia GHB was on the rise nationwide for its sought-after side-effects. 'It just slows your heart right down, puts you into a completely relaxed state where your heart will just slowly beat and just slowly just stop, that's how you die from it,' he said. 'It's not like an instant bang of being stabbed, I'm dead. It's just slow, just like, go to sleep, don't wake up.' Young people are more likely both to abuse the drug and to require emergency help following GHB use. Affordability aside, some believe financial pressures are contributing to an appetite for harder substances. Canberra emergency consulant Dr David Caldicott told ABC News its promise of 'escape' from reality was more influential than its afforability. 'I think young people are looking for an escape from what really does not appear to be a very attractive future for them,' he said. 'I think that's probably a considerably more important element than the cost.' Uncover Mental Health Counselling founder and psychotherapist Kristie Tse said financial pressures were engendering a 'need for relief'. 'One of the biggest drivers is the desire to escape or cope with stress, which has been exacerbated by rising financial pressures and uncertainty about the future,' she told NewsWire. 'The cost of living plays into this, as financial strain can lead to heightened anxiety and a need for relief, which some may seek through substance use.' One Touch finance founder Maria Rosey told NewsWire cost-of-living pressures can create circumstances where substance use is seen as more acceptable. 'As money stress becomes more common, so does the acceptance of substances as coping mechanisms,' she said. 'The increase in GHB use during the money crisis shows us that substance use problems can't be solved by focusing only on the substances themselves. 'We need to address the conditions that make people turn to substances in the first place.'
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE The terrifying 'don't wake up' drug sweeping Australia: Recovered meth addict sounds the alarm
A reformed ice dealer has sounded the alarm over a 'don't wake up' rave drug he warns has the power to devastate countless lives in Australia. When he was dealing, Braiden Tonks, 32, drove luxury cars and Harley Davidsons. But, after countless years of abusing meth, sleeping rough and a stint in Tasmania 's frigid Risdon prison, he left the criminal world behind. Now, the Gold Coast tradie and dad is raising awareness of the dangers of the party drug GHB, also known as gamma hydroxybutyrate or 'Frank'. GHB, typically sold in fish-shaped soy sauce packets, is mixed with soft or alcoholic drinks and inhibits the signalling of pain between the nerves in the brain and body. The effects - relaxation, sociability, euphoria and an increased sex drive - are felt within 15 minutes. But, even a slight overdose of the drug can prove fatal. Mr Tonks said the rave drug has gained a cult following in south-east Queensland and is steadily rising in popularity across Australia. 'It just slows your heart right down, puts you into a completely relaxed state where your heart will just slowly beat and just slowly just stop, that's how you die from it,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'It's not like an instant bang of being stabbed, I'm dead. It's just slow, just like, go to sleep, don't wake up.' The former drug dealer and meth addict said he had receive word from his underworld sources that it was rising in popularity. 'It's one of those drugs that's just growing by the day, and dropping people, left, right and centre... it goes hand in hand with addicts as well,' he said. The clear, odourless liquid is also commonly used as a 'date rape' drug. 'You can imagine in a nightclub, let's just say if there's a dirty old bloke over there, and there's a group of girls over there, and he just does a quick squirt in their drink, for example,' Mr Tonks said. 'The next thing you know, there's an ambulance running in to try and save one of these girls, it's as simple as that, it's dangerous.' Dr Hester Wilson, Chief Addiction Medicine Specialist for the Royal College of General Practitioners, said certain factors can increase GHB's risk factors. A slim proportion of the population have reported trying the drug, however, usage is higher among those who take or inject other illicit drugs. Among those who inject drugs, 15 per cent reported using GHB. 'If you don't have enough, it does nothing. And if you have too much, you overdose. And that window of dose is pretty narrow,' Dr Wilsonn said. Dr Wilson said doses could be miscalculated when combining GHB with other drugs, adding it was challenging for doctors to deter patients who have overdosed, due to the minimal 'comedown' or 'withdrawal' symptoms. 'They'll wake up and feel absolutely fine, won't know what has happened,' she said. 'It can be hard to engage them. They'll just wander off home. They're a hard group to engage in kind of harm reduction strategies.' Users also take gamma-butyrolactone or 'fantasy', the compound 1,4-Butanediol. Both are chemical precursors to GHB and convert to the substance once ingested. GHB and its chemical relatives can be illegally produced under the guise of legal intentions, for purposes such as 3D printing and creating spandex. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) said the substance was increasingly being used for recreational use after 3.8tonnes of 1,4-Butanediol was seized in May. Acting Assistant Commissioner Paula Hudson said organised crime networks will flood communities with any illicit substance for lucrative profits. 'By importing this substance into Australia, criminal networks are creating a demand and appetite for this drug and the bigger the appetite, the bigger the profits,' she said. 'We have seen organised crime use a number of methods to illegally import this substance into Australia, such as concealing it in bottles labelled as cosmetics, including shampoo and body wash.'
