Australian actress and model Jodi Gordon, known for her role as Martha Mackenzie on Home & Away has opened up about her battle with substance abuse.
The star, who was married to former Roosters player Braith Anasta and shares a child, Aleeia Anasta, with him, says she achieved sobriety in 2022.
“On April 7th 2022 I got sober and have stayed sober ever since, completely changing my life in ways I didn’t think were possible,” she said.
“I have battled substance abuse for the most part of my life, stepping into recovery at 24 but never being able to stay stopped,” she wrote in the social media post.
The process that changed her life was a 30-day recovery program that she undertook at a Sydney clinic. She made the revelation to honour her birthday, as she just turned 39.
Gordon’s fight with substance abuse has been relatively private, but did come to light in a 2009 incident. She was found at the Bellevue Hill home of former bikie associate Mark Judge, after having called police claiming that there were armed intruders threatening her life.
CCTV found no record of intruders, and Gordon allegedly later admitted that she had ingested cocaine that evening. Gordon and her fiancé at the time Ryan Stokes broke up shortly after the incident.
In 2012, Gordon married NRL star Braith Anasta and they welcomed a daughter, Aleeia, in 2014. However, the couple announced their separation in December 2015. While Gordon kept her married name for the first few years, she reverted to her maiden name in March 2020.
Her next relationship, with British banker Sebastian Blackler was a tumultuous one, with both taking out apprehended violence orders (AVOs) against one another.
But despite these bumps in the road, Gordon signed on to a rehab program and has turned her life around. The former model and actress has focused on health, fitness and motherhood, living in Sydney’s eastern suburbs and regularly exercising at nearby Coogee Beach.
Gordon shared her story on Instagram in February 2023, writing about the people in her life who have helped her along the journey.
“I always wanted a big family, and I got one with my daughter Aleeia. She is unlike any human I have ever known, so loving, fierce, patient, wise, and curious,” she said.
“I love being her teacher and student… Thank you Braith for the wonderful gift of a lifetime.”
Since getting sober, Gordon has enrolled in a new career path. She’s studying a Bachelor of Counselling and Communication Skills and is working with Sane Australia in the mental health sphere. She has also leant into her natural affinity for writing and poetry.
Gordon ended her admission by thanking those in her life for standing by her.
“If you have been on this wild ride with me, thank you for seeing my colour when sometimes I have only displayed grey,” she wrote. “Thank you for loving me and supporting me in your own ways. I have felt it.”
Gordon added that she hopes to reduce the “discrimination and stigma” that comes with addiction and substance abuse.
