Two Doting Dads with Matty J & Ash - #136 Reggie "Bird' Sorensen Faces The Reality Of Never Seeing Her Kids Again

Episode Date: April 6, 2025

It's easy to understand why Reggie "Bird" Sorensen is so beloved by the public and the people around her.  From winning Big Brother twice, to connecting with people on this years I'm A Celebrity Get My Out Of Here Australia, you can always rely on Reggie to bring the laughs no matter how dark the situation.  But Reggie’s faced more challenges than most, from growing up in Tassie with her mum's struggles with schizophrenia to her own diagnosis of Usher Syndrome, which has left her navigating the world with pinhole vision. To top it all off, her youngest, Lucas, lives with cystic fibrosis.  Despite this, Reggie makes sure she's the best mum to Mia and Lucas by making the most of what she's got and cracking a few laughs along the way.  Support Reggie by following her on social media:  YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@reggievision_tv  Instagram https://www.instagram.com/reggiebirdbb/?hl=en  BUY OUR SMELLY T SHIRTS HERE  https://www.twodotingdads.com/category/all-products Buy our book, which is now available in-store! https://www.penguin.com.au/books/two-doting-dads-9781761346552  If you need a shoulder to cry on:  Two Doting Dads Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/639833491568735/  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheTwoDotingDads  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twodotingdads/  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@twodotingdads  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Matt, you know what my favorite part of watching I'm Celeb was? Go on. Probably when you swallowed that anus. Ah, yes. No, but of course your friendship that you formed with none other than Reggie Bird. But be honest, what was it more, the anus or Reggie Bird? Oh, the anus. Yeah, yeah, I thought so.

My beloved Reggie Bird. Reggie Sorensen, as some people may know her, she is an incredible person. She is for sure. Reggie is of course a two-time winner of Big Brother Australia. That's outstanding. Despite the big wins, though, life wasn't exactly a guaranteed golden ticket. Reggie's faced more challenges than most, from growing up in Tassie with her mum, struggles with schizophrenia, to her own diagnosis of Usher syndrome,

which has left her navigating the world with pinhole vision. She's doing all this while raising two teenagers, Mia and Lucas, which we know Lucas has cystic fibrosis. Reggie opens up about what it's like raising teens while dealing with vision loss, the financial situation of post-reality TV life, and how she's preparing for the future with outside. Plus she shares how she stayed resilient through it all

and her conversations with Mia and Lucas about facing adversity. Shall we? Let's do it. [♪ Music playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A&M Music Playing. A& Doting Mum. I'm Matty J. I'm Ash. And oh yes, I'm Reggie. This is a podcast all about parenting. It is the good, it is the bad. And it's the relatable and Reg we don't give any advice

Legally, we're not allowed to It's a good thing. Oh, yeah, it's definitely it's a great thing Yeah, well, maybe you can maybe you can provide some advice, but no pressure. No pressure advice on what how to look after a kid or anything Advice on winning raffles, best fish and chips. We'll take any advice. How to win Big Brother, anything like that. If you don't mind, I really want to start way back

when a young Reggie, what was she like? Young, like, oh, growing up young, that young. Yeah, yeah, as a child. A teenager, if you will. Yeah, if you will. A teenager. Oh, I hated the teenage years, eh. I especially hated 14.

Why? Well, turning 14, you know, like you start to grow boobs and you got acne and, you know, and you start to like boys and then it all becomes complicated and I was getting bullied at school. What did you get bullied for, Reg? Oh, I got bullied a lot at school because a lot of the girls thought that I was after their boyfriends, but I wasn't allowed to have a boyfriend. And I got bullied a lot because I had hairy legs as well. So... Were you a class clown or were you more of a follow the rules sort of girl at school?

No, I did sort of play up a bit at school. I do remember letting a fire extinguisher off in the classroom. So... Everyone has a fire extinguisher story. Why did you let the fire extinguisher off? Oh, look, I did say I accidentally lent on it, but I don't think I did. I do remember letting it off and then I got in big trouble and then my school report got rewritten, like my school report got pulled apart and then they had to rewrite it because I was so, like, naughty.

And then I ended up leaving that school. So I went to Rakeby High School for seven and eight. It was quite a rough school. I grew up in a rough area, very like housing commission area. I don't believe it. Yeah, yeah, rough as guts. Yeah. Yeah.

Rough as guts. That's such a great Aussie expression. Rough as guts. Rough as guts. That's such a great Aussie expression. Ruffus guts. Ruffus guts, yeah. And then I went to, years nine and 10, I went to Clarence High School. So that was a bit more of a, like it was a public school, but it was a bit more uppity class than where I grew up. Do you remember when you were allowed to start shaving your legs?

Oh, yeah. Well, my cousin flew over from Melbourne. I think I was about, again, 14. And she went and got some of that Nair cream and put the Nair cream on my legs. And I'll never forget the smell of that stuff. So because, you know, I always used to get called, um, here comes the bush pig. Oh, my God.

That's so mean. Kids are ruthless, aren't they? Oh yeah. Bloody brutal. And then, um, and I got in so much trouble cause all the hairs had gone off my legs. And I got in so much trouble. Like I remember my nan saying to my mum, you know, she's after the boys. She's going to attract boys. You know, she's after the boys. She's gonna attract boys, you know,

like having no hairs on my legs, so. Did it make any difference being hairless on the legs? Well, I felt like a little bald badger by then. It was like, yeah, nice, nice. It was good, it was good. And you know what, Mia, my daughter Mia, I felt so sorry for her growing up through high school. She had really hairy legs like me as well. And I'm like, I don't care. That girl is not going to go through the torture that I went through

at school. Those hairs are coming off. Like, yeah, they had to come off. I used to get the clippers and clip them off. Oh my God. Yeah. She wasn't going to go through what I went through. Yeah, poor bugger. I think that's good parenting if you ask me. Yeah.

Yeah. Do you think? Because I got bullied so much from having hairy legs, I just thought there's no way in hell Mia is going to go through that same thing. So, you know, I had to do something. I think that's outstanding parents. I think that's a good, look, I used to get bullied for my shoes at school and then now Oscar goes to school.

I'm like, he's got to have the coolest shoes so he doesn't get bullied. So I think you've done the right thing there. Yeah, shoes was another thing, you know, I had to wear desert boots to school and that was just horrific. So, do you know what desert boots are? Yeah, like the leather clarks. Well, desert boots are like brown kind of suede. I used to own a pair. They became fashionable.

Now I know what you're talking about. They became, you're an icon. Is that what you said as well? You're a fashion icon. Apparently back then I wasn't. So yeah. Well, for the record, Reg, you're a far cry from a bush pig. I don't see any resemblance.

And you are an icon. Look, I want to look like one of those warthogs in the jungle, Maddie. No. Hey, Reg, I want to talk about Big Brother just really quickly, because I think there's definitely a misconception, I think, that people who don't know the full story of Reggie, they're like, well, she must be sitting on millions of dollars because she's won Big Brother a couple of times, like surely. But obviously you did win an amount of money off the first time you won Big Brother. But at the time you went back to Tassie with your first husband.

And how did that money get split up and what did you get left with? So the first time around when I was married to Adrian, yeah, after winning, winning big brother. So I paid off the house. We had a house and I paid the house off and I left that to Adrian. So I walked away from the marriage. And then when I moved to Sydney, I had a guy made out, he was a TV producer, so he ripped me off 40 grand.

So by that stage, I'd already shipped, I think, nearly 200 grand. Hang on, no, it must have been about a hundred and... A hundred and... Eight, six, I failed at maths school. Just trying to work it all out. Anyway, so when I moved to Sydney, I think I had left about $80,000 and then I couldn't get a job for two years. So when I, and then when I moved to Sydney, I moved to, I didn't know that Rush Cutters

Bay was this hobnobby smart like fancy place in Sydney. And with the unit that I rented, I had to put upfront $20,000 upfront to get this unit because I didn't have a job. And anyway, so I put 20 grand up front for this unit then I was getting stalked by the guy that made out he was a TV producer and I went to go back to the real estate agent to get out of that lease. I'd only been in there for about two months and they refused to give me any of my money back so I had to also pay all that money upfront. So I lost all that. Yeah, so, and I lived off the rest of the winnings

until I got a job at Virgin. So all pretty, that's where it all went. Holy shit. So you imagine you walked away from, you walked away from the marriage. Do you mind going into that a little bit? Cause I mean, I do recall you winning and I recall, I think you had a fish and chip shop at the time. Was that with the same husband?

And do you mind giving us a little bit of insight to why you walked away from that? Yeah, so I was with Adrian for, gosh, nearly 12 years, I think it was, because I was in the shop for 12 years. And then our marriage, we must have been a bit less than that because I was in there with another boyfriend prior, so David. And so anyway, yeah, our marriage broke down. Like, so before going into Big Brother, it was kind of, I was at the stage of wanting

obviously to change, do something with my life and do something different. And that's why I applied for Big Brother, because I'm like, I wanted a holiday to get out of the shop. How often did you get a holiday when you're working in the fish and ship shop? No, not not much at all, because I did go to Europe. Me and Adrian ended up going to Europe. I might have been after I'd been in the shop for about eight years. I went. I wanted to travel.

And so we went travelling and then I came back, was in the shop for another four years and that's when I went, no, I can't do this, I need to get out of here, I need a break. So that's when I applied for Big Brother. And then things happened, I found out after the show, yeah, a lot of stuff happened. And then I went, yeah, I can't do this anymore. And then that's when I walked away. Yeah, and I did cop a lot of shit. Like a lot of people said, oh, like woman's day,

for example. Bastards. Well, they're talking shit about me at the moment. Oh, they've caused a lot. Now, now I'm looking back at this. Geez, that's a couple of relationships they're causing a few problems with. But anyway, so I walked away and yeah,

I left Adrian and went to Sydney and then I went to Melbourne, yeah. At the time, Red, you were working in a fish and chip shop. The stories I've heard of bus loads of people rocking up to see the fish and chip shop that Reggie used to work at, it was crazy. Yeah, yeah, mad, mad. After Big Brother, like that shop would have been, they would have made a shit load of money because a lot of buses would rock up and go to the shop just to see where I used to work.

And still to this day, 23 years down the track, people always go, oh Reggie, I went to your fish and chip shop. And you're like, don't go there. Adrian's still there. We rocked up, gosh, last year, before it was, because me and Rod, well, Roddy's making a doco on my life. And I went back to the fish and chip shop. I was absolutely shitting myself. So, yeah, because I was like,

oh, what do I want to do this? How did it feel standing back in the fish and chip shop? Yeah, it was bizarre. It was so weird, really, really weird. But that's all going to be in the doco. So people will have to watch out for that one. Do you know when's it going to come out, Reg? Oh, we're still in the making of it. So fingers crossed this year it's going to be all finished up.

Very cool. If you need anyone from the jungle to make a cameo. Yes, there you go. More than willing. After that that you met your second husband. So yes, I was living in Melbourne when I met Dale because I had to go back to Dreamworld to do some work and back at the Big Brother house. That's right, used to be at Dreamworld. Yeah. I met Dale through the security guard that used to let us out the house each week. She had to come back and work with me at Dreamworld to look after me while all the fans lined up to

get a photograph and an autograph and all that stuff. And she was good mates with Dale, one of Dale's mates, and that's how I met Dale. And so anyway, I was living in Melbourne and then I went back to, I flew up here to the Goldie, caught up with Dale and we hit it off from there. And then I ended up leaving Melbourne and I came up to the Goldie and then I got pregnant with Mia because I was shagging too much. So that's, and then that's, that's Those damn shaved legs. So that's how me and Dale, yeah. That's how our relationship started.

Yeah. Before we get into Mia, just out of interest, like in that period from, obviously you did a bit of work with Big Brother again, But I kind of think like surely you must have had so many offers like appearances or, you know, because you talk about what it was like after the show and you have to you had to have a bodyguard for two weeks. Like, were you not getting people throwing job offers at you? So after the show, yeah, I had the two bodyguards with me. I think they stayed with me for a few weeks.

And then because I couldn't walk down the street, it was so crazy. It was just mad. That is wild. Absolutely mad. And then I ended up staying in a hotel in the city because I couldn't go home. It was just insane.

And then, so I was with Harry and Mellon. Like we had to have, what is he? An agent, management. So you couldn't go into the show unless you signed contracts and management. But I did have quite a few things like offered to me, like Nando's offered to give me a franchise. And they knocked her back because they said, no, she cooks fish and chips. So that was a really big thing that happened there. Surely you could have adapted to do chicken.

Oh, should, yeah. I make good bloody chicken parmies and chicken burgers. Yeah. But it's really interesting, like back in the day, like again, oh gosh, like you have a lot of offers of things, but then the management doesn't agree with it and then you got no saying it. It was just, yeah. Oh, and it was another world.

It was a world that I didn't know about because I was living in under a rock down in Tassie. So, yeah, no idea. Yeah, I wish I had I wish I had someone guide me through the whole. Yeah, entertainment world. Because I had no idea at all about it. When you were pregnant with Mia, was there anyone guiding you through the preparations to become a mum? No, not at all. I had no idea at all. And I was sick the whole time with me. I had that thing. There's a word for it where you'd vomit nonstop, like vomited, what, nine months. She was nine months old. I vomited up until she pretty much came out of me. Yeah. I know what you mean. It's hell.

It was horrible. And I ended up in hospital on a drip, I think for about four days, because I couldn't even swallow water. Because I was so sick. So, so sick. Yeah. And then- Does that have a drink of water? Yeah. So I was really, really crooked with with me and same with Lucas. I stopped vomiting with him around six months, Mark. Wow. Yeah. I had no guidance on, you know, how to be a mum. I can't imagine nine months of being nauseous. Oh my God. That sounds like one day of a hangover and I'm like, make it end. I deserve more than this. Yeah, so even the smell of coffee, I'd start vomiting just, and I used to lay on the toilet

floor just next to the toilet, just to lift my head up and just vomit. It's where ash is most weekends. Oi, oi, oi, oi. Men have it so easy, right? We have it, we do have it easy. Like, there's so many variations with pregnancy and it's like just even just the thought of being nauseous and sick for nine months straight would I just wouldn't yeah I couldn't I couldn't hack it. I didn't enjoy being pregnant at all. With Lucas you've spoken a lot about the fact that he has cystic fibrosis. When did you realize that that was something that you guys were facing? So Lucas was four months old when the results came through from his heel prick test.

So they do a heel prick test when the babies are born. And I got a letter in the mail and it had like 30 different diseases on there. And when I saw on there, one of them was cystic fibrosis. I just thought, shit, I hope it's not that, because I knew how bad it was. One of Dale's mates, who we worked with at the fire service, his son has CF, Rory, and we knew what they go through. Yeah, and then I rang Dale and I said, we've got this letter in the mail

and there's something wrong with Lucas. And we rang the pediatrician to get in to see them and they said, no, it's going to take two weeks. And then Dale rang them back and he said, no, we want to get in tomorrow as soon as possible. So he blasted the shit out of them actually. So we did get in the next day. And then, yeah, that's when they told us Lucas has cystic fibrosis.

And I just broke down crying. It was just like, this is the worst thing ever. So that was really, really horrible. But I knew something was wrong with Lucas because his poo was very different to Mia's. So his body wasn't absorbing the food. So he was like, his poo was just like, like a real runny green curry. Like it was so bad. Yeah. And I just thought there was something not right there. Yeah. So then after you get that diagnosis, what are your next steps?

So after that, then we got put in touch with, I think think the cystic fibrosis nurses which was then the Lady Salento hospital so we had someone call us we had to go and have meetings with them and then it was just a big whirlwind of like this is what medication that he is going to be taking for the rest of his life this is what he needs and it was just like what what the hell? This is all too much. Like it was very, um, overwhelming. And you had to learn how to do physio on him. Like he's just this tiny little baby and you know, they teach you how to physio was

just like taps of the two fingers, just patting his chest at the time. And what's that for Reg? To move the mucus out of his lungs. So, so with cystic fibrosis, it's a faulty gene. So mucus sits in their lungs and that's what causes them to not be able to breathe. And Lucas pancreas doesn't work. His liver doesn't work properly. So it's the whole digestive system.

It's the CFTR faulty gene, yeah, and the salt. So the salt doesn't reabsorb back into their body. So like us, when we sweat, it all goes back in. With Lucas, when he sweats, all the comes out on and it stays on his skin. So this is why he has to have salt tablets every day as well. And I give him a lot of in summer, power aids, Gatorades, electrolytes to put that all back in. So when he doesn't have enough salt he becomes very lethargic and I can tell. Wow, I had no idea. Yeah.

So before he eats and drinks, he has to have his CREA on his enzymes. Um, has to have a very high fat, high calorie diet. It's very different to our normal diets. Yeah. Cause they don't put on weight. Growing up, Reg, when he was, you know, from, cause you realized when he's not even one, how much attention did he need to make sure you're staying on top of his condition?

Oh, constant. Like it's absolutely every day without fail, you have to have physiotherapy and make sure he's got the right tablets. And also you got to remember like babies don't start eating solid food until they're around what six months old or a bit older, nine months maybe. You're asking the wrong people. I know we've only got two of them. Oh a bit older. Oh gosh I'm trying to think now. So Lucas had to start having solid, sorry, foods.

It was like, you know, like the baby gel jelly stuff or custards. So we had to break the tablets up, the enzymes to put that in the food so he could take the enzymes so he could drink when he would have milk to try and absorb all that into his body. So he was about six weeks old when he started having, had to have, custard and jellies and yeah, so his little body.

And then if you're not staying atop of cystic fibrosis. Oh, they go downhill. Yeah, what does that look like? And then, you know, do you, how do you treat that? Yeah. So like I said, you've got to do physiotherapy every day and their bodies, their immune system is so weak that they catch a lot of colds easily. They get to pick up a lot of germs easily.

Gosh, Lucas, he's been in the hospital so many times. So when he gets run, like really run down, so if he gets a wet cough, you know, straight away, like shit, we need to try and get on top of this by giving him antibiotics. But if it doesn't go away, he ends up in hospital and they put a PICC line into the arm and it goes right up to the top of the heart and they pump really strong IV antibiotics into his body to, and that's for two weeks at a time they go in and do that to try and get on top of it again. So we call it a tune up to get the body back working properly again for a bit. And then how were you communicating that to Mia, your first order?

Because obviously it must, so much of your energy and attention must go towards Lucas. Yeah, it was awful. You know, looking back, I used to feel guilty because Mia would want to, you know, poor little darling, like of a night time, she would want a bedtime to, you know, poor little darling, like, of a nighttime, she would want a bedtime story, you know, and, but I'm like, oh, I've got to give Lucas his physio. So it was a lot of time was spent with Lucas and on Lucas and I feel like she's grown up missing out on that attention, which is really sad. Like I feel bad that that the way that I did that as a mum. So I look back now and I wish I had have put aside that time for me.

And I didn't give her as much time as what I should have. Yeah. She's sort of grown up now. I feel like she's, she's really felt that. But you know what? I, I don't know if Ash is the same, but there are so many moments that I have as a parent with Marley and Lola where they they want one more piece of me and I can't because of work or I can't because my attention's drawn elsewhere. So just just know that you know there's moments, so many

moments where I feel like I should have given more and I couldn't and you know I get that parent guilt as well. Ah, shit. Yeah, well, I guess it happens to us all. Yeah. But yeah, I do feel bad for not giving her that attention. No, I don't. What's your relationship like with Mia, like these days? She's old.

She's only 18. She's 17? She turns 18 next week. Oh, there you go. How are you feeling about that? Oh, look. Well, I was excited that she got a license. So she got a driver's license when we were in the jungle. Very cool.

Yeah, and I couldn't wait to get in the car with her. And the minute I did, I'm like, shit, get me out of here. She's got a lead foot. But she's turning 18. She's got a lead foot. But she's turning 18 and yeah, hopefully she goes out and has a bit of fun and steers clear of bad things, you know. You worry about the kids being near drugs and oh, just this whole, she's about to experience that whole nightclub world.

So I mean, back in the day when I went nightclub and all I did was dance. You just dance. But these days, stuff knows what they take to stay up all night because I'm not into that shit. But yeah, I'm a bit worried about her turning 18. It's a scary phase where they're coming little adults and you've got to step back and not include yourself. But at the same time, you're like, I still want to hold her hand and pick her up from

the nightclub every evening. Yes. But no, look, I went through the phases of her hating school and not wanting to go to school, but she ended up making it through to the end of school, which was really, really good. So she's turned out to be a good girl. She really has. Oh, she's amazing.

She's amazing. Ash, you know. Oh yeah, you met her. I haven't had the pleasure. No. Something else you've spoken a lot about is your eyesight. Yeah, yeah. My eyes are shit.

For those... That's a good way to put it. For those who don't know and for Ash, what was the moment where you realized you might have an issue with your eyesight? I found out about my eye disease, which is called retinitis pigmentosa, was when I went to work at Virgin and I was training in Melbourne.

In the training, we had to work with people with disabilities and this blind lady came in and she spoke about how she went blind. And one of the first things she said was, I couldn't see in the dark. And I'm like, shit, I can't see in the dark. I can't see in the dark. And she said, you need to go and get your eyes checked. And I did.

I went to an optometrist and they said, no, you need to go to an ophthalmologist. And I went to the ophthalmologist and they said, no, you need to go to an ophthalmologist. And I went to the ophthalmologist and they said, oh, well, you've got this eye disease and it's retinitis pigmentosa and you're going to go blind. And I was like, oh, shit. Like, I didn't really think anything of it. I really didn't. And then it wasn't until I moved here when I was with Dale and I had Mia after I had Mia and Mia was crawling on the floor and I used to kick her and trip over the poor little thing.

You know I'd be walking along and next thing she's got a big kick in the guts from me and yeah yeah and he said go and get your eyes checked again and I did I went and got them checked and then that's when they said pretty much said you need to stop driving and I'm like shit so my whole world come crashing down. How old were you at that point? Oh so I was 34 I think when I had Mia? 34? How old am I now? I'm 51 now. Oh I don't. I think I was about 34 when I had to stop driving. Wow. 16 years. What is it? Yeah. So 17 years. Yeah. I can't imagine having kids and not having not been able to drive because of, because

of, because of it. It must have. How did you get around? Okay. How was the... Yeah. Buses, buses and taxis and walk. So I walk everywhere. Because a lot of people always go, gee legs. Gee legs. Legs. Gee Reg, you've got nice legs. That's what I was trying to say.

They're freshly shaved. Those freshly shaved legs. And I would say it's from... None of those kids from primary school could see you now, Reg. See these legs now. Yeah, it's from all the walking. But that's how I get about. But it was really hard when Mia was a baby. Getting out and about, it was just awful.

Because where we lived, it wasn't too far to get to the shops, but it was far. Like, I couldn't carry a heap of groceries home. And I'd always have a lot of trouble with taxis picking me up because they're like, because I knew it was such a short drive. Yeah. So it was really hard to get a taxi. How selfish of them. Yeah.

And you couldn't get a bus where I lived. Like a bus would only come once an hour. And it didn't stop anywhere near where I lived. And back then, like you didn't have Ubers, but it was super hard to get around. And it was just, and that's, gosh, I think it was after I had Lucas, that was even harder, having two little kids and just trying to bloody get around was awful. Reg, did they tell you at that point, like what percentage of your eyesight you'd lost and how quickly it was going?

Yeah. So at that time, I think when I got diagnosed, I only, I think I had about 15 degrees of vision left. Um, and now- Only 15? I think back then, because it was below 20, because that's when you classed, or it might have been 10. Oh, shit.

Because I've only got nine, eight or nine degrees left now. But it must have been about 15, because I think when it's below 20 degrees, that's when you're classed as legally blind. Wow. Yeah, so, and then when I got diagnosed, they gave me 15 years time frame. They said I'll be totally blind, totally blind within 15 years. So I'm hanging on.

I've gone six years over that now. So I'm just hanging on to that little. The jokes on them then, I guess. I've got left. So good on you. That's that's why I get out and do whatever I can. And when I had that opportunity to go into the jungle, I'm like, yes, I'm taking this, you know, grab it with both hands and just bloody go and have fun. Did they tell you now, Reg, like, do they really diagnose how much time you have left

or do you want to know? Oh, it is getting worse, Matty. It's definitely getting worse because I'm doing clinical trials as well at the moment. I've been on these trials for two years and I feel like my eye, like I don't know if I'm taking the real drug or it's a placebo, but I do feel like my eyes have got worse since I've been on these trials. But again, I don't know whether it's my eyes deteriorating or it could be the drug that I may be on. I'm not sure, but yeah, I don't know.

Because when I go and have all these tests done, because it's a lot of testing and you do the field tests, because I've got no peripheral vision at all. And yeah, so each time they do the testing, they don't tell you like on the clinical trials how much vision I've got left. It's not until I go and see my ophthalmologist and I do same testing and then they tell you if I've lost more percentage each time I go there. Right. Yeah. So how long does the clinical testing last for? Well, it's meant to be a two year trial,

but they've now turned it into a five year trial. Wow. And like you said, you don't know if you're on the placebo or not. That's wild, isn't it? Yeah, it's crazy because when you go somewhere, like for an example, going over to the jungle in South Africa, you've got to write down all what medications you take.

And I had to get a letter. I rang them. I said, look, I'm going away. I need a letter to say whether this ME is, I don't know what they write in these letters, but you know, to get it passed, to get it through customs and stuff. Yeah. Even when I went to Bali last year with Phil, I'm like, I was shit scared to take the tablets over in case it was a drought.

Like I didn't know. You don't know what's in these things. You've been taking cocaine for the last few months. I imagine you're locked in a Bali jail. Maybe that's why my brain's fried even more. So, but- Just don't take them in a bodyboard bag. Oh, no, no. So I don't know.

Yeah, the trials have still got a long way to go. And it's all about trying to slow down what vision I've got left to try and save. Yeah. Hey, Reg, we know going to the supermarket is one of the hardest moments with young kids. And it must be even harder when you've got limited vision. Were there any scenarios in the supermarket where it was particularly challenging? Oh yes, I got run over by this old man

on a big mobility scooter. He made me down. I'm trying not to laugh, I'm so sorry. He's the old bugger. He made me down, yeah. So I was walking to the 12 items of less oil with my sour cream and then next I was walking with my cane. So I always use my cane when I go, you know, into crowded places or the shops just to let people know, you know, I can't see very well.

And then he came down on my right hand side and just ran me down. He ran me down and I then he reversed back and ran over me again. Yeah, screaming at me. He's gone, you're as blind as I am. Yelling at me and I'm laying on the floor. And all I could see was my sour cream on the floor. And then I looked up. All these people were looking at me and they were staring at me. I was trying to bloody ring me. Who's that?

Hang up. Oh, sorry. Yeah, so. So he ran you over, then reversed back over you and then yelled at you. Yes. And then all these people were just staring at me. And then this lady come and help me. And all I could see was her face. I was looking at her face and she helped me up. And she helped me go to the counter to pay for my sour cream.

And the lady who works there, she said, are you okay, Reggie? Because I'm a regular down at Woolies. And I said, no, this man just rang me down and she goes, what in here? And I said, yeah, in here. And I went and sat outside. I rang Mia because I was just with Mia and we had lunch. And Mia come over to help me and told her what happened. And then she goes, mum, is that him? And she saw him coming out of Woolies. And I said, chase him. I said, chase him. It's a hit and run. It's a hit and he just left. Yeah. So she took a photo of his number plate on his scooter.

And then after Woolies, they said, after I was sitting outside and the Woolies lady, she said, do you want to look at the footage, Reg? And I said, yes, I do. Oh no. I said, look, I'll come back tomorrow. And I went back the next day, cause I was so shook up. And I went back the next day to look at the footage and she said,

sorry, it's against our legal rights to show you the footage. She's like what footage? Yeah. So she said, you need to see the police if you want to get the footage. So then I had to go to the police with Roslyn. She took me and we got the footage and cause I just want to get the footage. So then I had to go to the police with Roslyn. She took me and we got the footage and, cause I just wanted to see what happened. You know, do you have the footage?

Yeah. Well, I've got the footage. I'd love to be able to show you one, one day we'll release the footage of me getting mowed down in Woolies. So long, long story about me going to the supermarket, but yes, it is hard going to the supermarket. I've now got a fovea of bloody mobility scooters. I see them driving down the road sometimes and like on the footpath. I don't know what's scary.

The kids on scooters or the old people on their mobility scooters. I'll never be able to look at one the same. Just put it that way. Beers. I'll never be able to look at one the same. Just put it that way. Be careful. I will be careful. I can't believe the audacity to run you over, reverse back over the top of you and then yell at you and then run.

The audacity. Yes. Reg, with Lucas now, is he 15? Yeah, he's 15. Yeah, he'll be 16 this year. And how is he going with the cystic fibrosis now? How is he managing it? He goes to the gym. I've just signed him up for rugby league.

He's yet to have a game. He went to the training the other week and he was going, man, they're big boys. Like he's going, because he's in the under 16s. I said, they're big. He goes, they got beds. And I said, I know, like, tell me about it. They're all these big Islanders.

Like they're huge. They're massive. So I think he's a bit worried he's going to get smashed. Cause he's, he's, he's very fast though. He's a fast runner. So I don't know much about... Is that what it is? Put him on the wing and he can just run fast from them.

That's the benefit of being fast. They're usually slow. Okay. So he's very, very fast. So whatever. I still don't understand that game anyway. It's stupid. I don't get it.

It's where I played. I was I was a little string bean, but I was quick. And they were like, you can go on the wing. Yeah. And OK. Yeah. So get his coach and just say, put him on the wing and that would be fine. OK. Yes. That's what he does. He goes to the gym and he's going to start doing that.

He used to play basketball. But again, another thing happened there was when we went back the next season, all the boys had just shot up, like they're huge. And he went, mom, it's too, he goes, they're too big for me. So he quit basketball. Yeah, it was too- So he picked a more contact sport with bigger people.

Does he want to play chess? Chess? I don't know. I said, maybe. I said maybe he should play soccer. I used to play soccer. There you go. He's probably really good at it. Is he still going to school? Yeah. It's been hard this year because I pulled, he was at Helen's Vale High and I pulled him out of that because he wasn't really happy there. So I've put him into another school and now I think it's just the same thing.

He's not real 100% happy here either. So I think school all around is not Lucas's thing. So yeah, which is really hard. So he's always been put in the hard basket all through school with his illness. So he's never really enjoyed school. So hopefully, I don't know, pull him out and put, make him get a job, you know, get an apprenticeship.

He wants to be an electrician or a carpenter or something. So that'd be good if he did something like that. Yeah. I can imagine it would be, I mean, if you're already, if school's not your thing, and then of course he's got to manage his cystic fibrosis, I'm guessing it's really, really hard for him. Just so you know, I left school at 15 and I'm fine. Oh good on you.

What did you do when you left school? I left to do an apprenticeship too. I've had a million jobs since then, but it definitely, like how Lucas might be feeling where it's like school's not his thing and working with your hands and doing a trade was actually really beneficial for me. So hopefully he can find what's beneficial for him. If there's any Sparky companies or builders who are listening to the podcast, who might be on the Gold Coast and looking to take on a young kid, a whippersnapper?

Whippersnapper. Whippersnapper. Whippersnapper. Yeah, I think him getting an apprenticeship would be great. a whippersnapper? Whippersnapper. Whippersnapper. Whippersnapper. Yeah. I think that him getting an apprenticeship would be great. It would really be good for him. And Reg, at the moment, I know you've spoken about the fact that you're like, I'd love a job.

You're like, I'd love something. And you're like, I just need someone to give me a go. Do you know what would be the dream job, do you think, at the moment? At the moment, a dream job would be, I'd love to do radio. That'd be awesome. I'd be great on radio, just saying. But anyway, long as I don't swear. You'd be very good with your swearing on this episode, by the way.

Yeah, I was going to say. I don't know if you've done with the normal, Reggie. I know. Go on, let a few out. Oh, look, I'm really bad. I'm really bad. Even, you know, when we're in the jungle, because we were told it's a, what is it, a PG show.

Family-friendly time slot. Very family-friendly. And Reg was just talking about a mutt the whole time. I was too. Buh. There's a lot, maybe that's why I didn't get much airtime. Yeah. Maybe you could be a comedian, Reg.

I know a lot of people have said, Reg, why don't you do comedy? And I'm like, oh, I don't know. Just get on stage and crack some jokes. Why not? I reckon you'd be really good at it. I don't know. Whatever comes out of my mouth just comes out, you know, naturally. That's perfect for a comedian, right?

Yeah. Because, Reg, we can, and we don't have to include this in the episode if it's too personal, but at the moment, being on a blind pension, how much do you receive a week? So being on a blind disability pension, because I used to get the family tax benefit thing, but when the kids leave school and stuff, you don't get that anymore. So at the moment, I think it's around 1300 a fortnight and I pay 650 a week rent. So there you go.

Sheevers. Hey, that's- Doesn't leave. Leaves you with nothing. It's fine. Yeah. Ah, yeah. Leaves you with nothing. It's like, ah! Yeah. So that's why, yeah, the second big brother, a lot of the money's been lived off. And Red, I know like you're such a positive person and you smile through it, but do you have that worry of like, shit, you know, I really need to get something to sink my teeth into.

Oh, shit, yeah. Totally. Like even with, you know, me and Rod, me and my mate Roddy, we're always doing stuff and trying to, you know, get my social media pages up and the numbers up on them just so I can just try and do stuff you know I need to get a job but yeah it's really hard because being vision impaired you're limited to what you can do so and yeah blind disability pension doesn't cut like these days. I'm very, I'm thankful that I get something, but with the rentals these days, it's just insane how much rent people pay these days. It's crazy. And it's only going to get worse and it's going to get harder. So yeah, I need to get an income coming in because I'm really starting to ship myself.

Yeah. Are you ever hesitant to let people know about the fact that you're blind because it just instantly paints you as being a certain type of person? No, no, not at all. I'm yeah, like when I first found out about my blindness, I was I remember when the very first time I had to wear my disability badge, like my blind badge, my vision badge, I was so embarrassed. And when I used my cane for the first time, I was so embarrassed.

I was so embarrassed and I didn't want to use it. But now I couldn't do without both of them. So no, I'm happy to let anyone know that, you know, I'm vision impaired and legally blind. Even though I get bagged a lot now, after going on Bloody I'm a Celebrity, get me out of here. All the trolls on there saying I'm faking it. So you were a good guide dog for me, Maddie, in there. I pulled you into a couple of trees and rocks. I know you did.

He did tell me. You did tell me that. I was just testing you. I was testing you. He did tell me. You did tell me that. I was just testing you. I was just saying. You were testing me. Can confirm. Can confirm she is legally blind. You can tell me about the rock that he used to make me trip on so I'd fall and grab his penis on the way.

No, no. Tell me about the rock. Is it a penis shaped rock or a rock shaped penis? Tell him, Reg. It was a rock and you're trying because walking out to the waterfall it was a real battle it was a trek wasn't it Maddie like it was that. It was like base camp Everest. Oh my goodness it was so hard and he took me along this path of the rocks and yeah no I did he did make me fall and I did accidentally grab his penis. And what did you think about the penis, Red?

Well, we just got out of the water, which was freezing cold and I must say, it wasn't shriveled up. That's alright, I heard the big ones hurt. Well, that's what my wife tells me anyway. That's all right. I heard the big ones hurt. Well, that's what my wife tells me anyway. Oh my God. Yeah. So now I'm happy to let people know that I'm vision impaired. Just grab them on the penis. They'll know.

Reg, one question we always end on. When Mia and Lucas have flown the nest, they're no longer with you, is there anything that you would like them to remember about the house they grew up in? Oh, gosh, that's hard, Maddie, because I rent, we've moved that many bloody times now. Because the owners either... More about the type of mum that they had growing up. Yeah. Oh, that'd be good. Yeah, because we've moved about six, seven times now.

So the house they grew up in... She talks very literally. Oh, Jesus. The mum that they grew up with would be a kind, loving mum that's tried to do the best that she could for them. That's yeah. That's awesome. Meeting you, I think that they're very lucky to have you and you're very, very kind and

very loving and I really appreciate the time that you spent with us today. Oh, thank you for having me on. I hope this has been okay for you. No, it's been amazing. Thank you so much, Reg. And for the record, I think you're a great mum. Oh, thanks, Matty. Yeah, I do the best that I can.

Good, thank you so much again, Reggie. Oh, man, I don't know how Reggie does it. If you want to keep up with Reggie, make sure you check out the show notes for all the links to our social media. And while you're there, give us a follow and a rating. Why not a subscription? Share it with a friend. Five stars. Maybe a couple of stars. Hey, maybe just a couple. Just a couple. Three, four or five. Do you know what? We haven't had a one or a two or a three star lately.

No, have we had one at all? Oh, we have. It's been a while. But hey, if you're listening to this and you think we're shit, we want to hear from you. Yeah. No, we don't. Fuck it. See you next time. Bye. To Doting Dance podcast acknowledges the traditional custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to their elders, past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.