Overview

• Shannon Ashley, 30, describes sustained recovery after a decade of heroin use that began at age 13.
• She continued using during pregnancy, and her son was born three months early at 2lb 4oz in May 2010.
• Her habit was funded through shoplifting, theft and dealing, with benefits of about £700 a month and spending up to £500 a week on drugs.
• Multiple prison terms included four years of a six-year sentence and a further year for a licence breach, during which she used methadone and completed a 'building skills' course.
• Since release in 2021 she has regained custody of her son, married Kathleen, welcomed two daughters via IVF in July 2024 and May 2025, earns £3,000–£13,000 a month on TikTok, and lives with permanent liver damage and PTSD.