Drug use and Sex Work

The intersection between sex work and drugs is a complex one. For most people who are struggling with drugs or alcohol one of the main concerns is that using too many drugs or how much they are drinking will lead to them losing their job and therefor income and livelihood but for sex workers its often the opposite. "All my income comes from my party clients” is something I hear from lots of the people I work with in therapy.

What might have started as a fun way to make extra money on a Friday night might have turned into seeing party clients every day of the week for longer and longer sessions which lead to burnout, poor self esteem, anxiety and bad health.

I recall thinking that the only way for me to stop drinking and using would be to quit the sex industry altogether. But how would I pay my bills? How would I support myself through uni? I was living in Sydney at the time and rent for extortionate - I would have had to work nearly three full days a week in a civvy job to pay a weeks rent or I could just go to Carls house in Bondi- do a few lines of coke and make the fortnights rent.

Transitioning to a Sober Sex Worker

I know know it is completely possible to stay in the sex industry even if all you know is party bookings and cocaine. It’s also possible to make more money from sex work sober than when you were partying and using. In fact if you were like me- even though I was earning lots more when I was using I was actually saving way less because I was impulsive, disorganised and actually buying a lot of my own substances outside the bookings anyway. In our sessions I can support you in the fine details or how to change your sex work persona to a sober one. I can also help you rebrand so that you have sober clients and help with relapse prevention strategies that other drug and alcohol counsellors would have no idea about.