Addiction & Early Recovery: Rob Havelock & Lianne Jones [4 Films, 8’17”]
Rob was born in Porthmadog, North Wales, 40 years ago. His life took him to Manchester for 16 years, where he got married, had a son, and bought a house. His cocaine addiction and alcoholism then spiralled out of control, and he lost everything. He started attending 12-Step meetings but relapsed, and eventually returned to North Wales with tail between his legs.
Rob initially spent time at his Mum’s in Porthmadog trying to sober up. When he began searching for 12-Step meetings in his area, the first one that came up was Penrhyn House. He took himself off to Bangor, where he attended meetings at Penrhyn as a local community member, rather than as a resident. However, something was missing for Rob there. He was full of ego and even though he had relapsed previously, he thought he knew better than anyone at Penrhyn House. He met Lianne at a meeting in Penrhyn House about two and a half years ago [this was from the time of the conversation, in March 2025], and they started a relationship.
Lianne is also from North Wales, from a town called Pwllheli on the Llŷn Peninsula. She experienced a good deal of abuse and trauma in her earlier life, and the impact of this gradually built up over time as different things happened to her. She eventually became addicted to painkillers, illicit drugs, and alcohol. Lianne started travelling around the country, before settling in Derbyshire for a couple of years. Her situation got a lot worse, and she became very selfish, caring for no one other than herself. She wanted to change and was therefore visiting a Substance Misuse Service, but that didn’t help. She had no one else to whom she could turn.
After she moved back to North Wales, Lianne heard from a friend about Penrhyn House. She reached out to Penrhyn and started attending as an outside community member. She connected with people for a couple of months, attended Fellowship meetings and did some recovery work, but realised that she didn’t really want that type of life. She just wanted to do what she wanted to do, and not care about other people.
Rob took a job in Blaenau Ffestiniog in September 2022, and Lianne was offered a flat there the following month. They thought at the time that things were really coming together for them. However, the lads at Rob’s work would share stories of their escapades over the weekend, and there was still part of him that wanted to engage in such activities. He was always guilty of romanticising a life which involved him sitting in a pub with his pint, being Jack the Lad, and enjoying the company of his mates. He soon relapsed into drinking. However, he found only a short-lasting enjoyment from alcohol. Wulf points out that many people forget the role of pleasure in the process of addiction.
Lianne relapsed soon after Rob. She had experienced the mindset of thinking, ‘I’m away from people in Bangor and can do what I want.’ Something changed in her then, and she realised that she really did want a new life. She was offered a place in Penrhyn House and moved in as a resident.
This conversation took place in March 2025. Rob is Founder of an Eryi (Snowdonia)-based walking and outdoor community dedicated to helping people recovering from addiction and mental health struggles. Lianne is a Duty Officer at Penrhyn House, the residential part of North Wales Recovery Communities in Bangor.