Kintsugi Heroes
Steve Rothwell · 76 min
A man who went undiagnosed through prison, suicidal depression, and decades of struggle discovers that his lived experience — not clinical training — holds the key to unlocking trauma for others.
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Steve Rothwell spent decades undiagnosed with OCD and autism, cycling through jobs he couldn't hold, perfectionism that paralysed him, and a fatalistic despair that led to a robbery he barely planned. Thirteen months in prison followed. What he didn't know then was that diagnosis could have changed everything. Instead, he emerged without answers, without support, and without understanding why his mind worked the way it did.
After release, Steve found temporary refuge in freedom itself. He worked as a loco driver, paraglided over Indonesian coastlines, and lived a life most people only dream about. But when he moved back to suburbia to be near family, the darkness came home. Depression and suicidal despair overwhelmed him. The realisation that prison could have been prevented hit harder than the imprisonment itself.
It took a university travel writing course to show Steve his own value. Recognition, purpose, and eventually a wife gave him reasons to stay. But the real breakthrough came in a hospital in 2023, when a conversation with another trauma patient revealed something his psychiatrists could not: a map of trauma that made sense. By naming the stuck points in her timeline, Steve helped her speak about experiences she'd kept silent for ten years. That moment showed him what his lived experience could actually do.
Now Steve works with people stuck in their own trauma, helping them see that what happened to them is not the entirety of who they are. His mission is to bring lived experience, not clinical training alone, into the places where people most need to be understood: prisons, hospitals, and the quiet despair of people who've given up looking for help.
⚠️ Content advisory: this episode discusses suicide & self-harm prevention, which some listeners may find distressing.
If you need support, you're not alone. Help is available: • Lifeline (24/7 crisis support): 13 11 14 · lifeline.org.au
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