About the Unplugged academy

About the Unplugged academy

RECOVERY EDUCATION THAT MAKES A REAL DIFFERENCE

RECOVERY EDUCATION THAT MAKES A REAL DIFFERENCE

Unplugged helps people take back control from the habits that technology has made too easy to feed — pornography, gambling, endless scrolling, compulsive news — and supports the partners, parents, schools and workplaces standing beside them. We also do something most online course companies won't: we tell you exactly how our content is made, which parts involve AI, and which parts are human. All of it, on this page, before you ask.

Why we exist

The habit was designed. The shame was never
yours to carry.

The habit was designed. The shame was never yours to carry.

Most compulsive digital behaviour isn't a character flaw. It's the predictable result of products designed by teams of very clever people to be difficult to put down. Understanding that changes what recovery looks like — less willpower, more structure. Unplugged was built because the help available sat at two extremes: free forums with no clinical grounding, or private therapy that many people can't afford, can't access, or aren't ready to walk into. We built the practical middle — structured, evidence-informed programs people can start privately, tonight, at their own pace, with human support when they want it.

The person struggling

Self-paced programs on pornography, gambling, social media, news and anxiety. Private, unbranded, and starting whenever you're ready.

Partners & families

For the people who just found out, or who have known for years. Betrayal trauma, boundaries, and what the first weeks actually require.

Schools & educators

Curriculum-aligned modules on digital wellbeing, cyberbullying and healthy online behaviour, with staff briefings and parent evenings.

Workplaces

White-labelled wellbeing programs delivered in your people's languages, with no individual participation data ever shared back to the employer.

How we make our content

Where AI is used, and where it never is

Producing therapeutic education in several languages, across three countries, at a price people can actually afford, means using modern production tools. We do. We'd rather you heard it from us, in plain terms, than discovered it in a footnote.

01.

Every script is written and approved by a qualified therapist

Course content is drafted by practitioners qualified in the subject they're teaching, and clinically reviewed before a single frame is produced. No module is published on the strength of a machine-generated draft.

02.

AI is used for production and localisation

On-screen presenters in our self-paced course videos are AI-generated, as are the synthesised voices and translations that let us deliver the same clinically reviewed material in multiple languages. The words they speak are the therapist's words.

03.

All live coaching is human - always

Every one-to-one and group session is delivered by a real, qualified practitioner. There is no AI chatbot standing in for a person, and there never will be.

04.

Your coach is not the presenter you saw

Because course presenters are AI-generated, the practitioner you're matched with won't look or sound like the person in the videos. You'll see their real name, photograph and registration details before you book.

The people behind it

Who writes it, and who you'll actually speak to

These are the practitioners who write, review and deliver Unplugged. Each is qualified in the areas they work in and registered with their professional body — registration numbers are listed so you can verify them yourself.

Lori Shifrin

Lori is an experienced Clinical therapist based in Melbourne, Australia, specialising in supporting children, adolescents, and families navigating anxiety. Lori is a clinically trained social worker with a Master of Social Work (Clinical Practice) from the University of Cape Town. She is a member of the Australian Association of Social Workers.

Mark Russell

Mark Russell is a certified recovery coach specialising in pornography addiction, gaming addiction, social media dependency, and compulsive digital behaviours. With over a decade of recovery support experience and lived insight, he provides confidential, practical, and compassionate coaching to help clients build healthier habits, restore relationships, and achieve lasting recovery.

Scope of what we do

What Unplugged is, and what it isn't.

What we are

  1. Structured, evidence-informed recovery education
  2. Coaching and support delivered by qualified practitioners
  3. A private first step for people not ready for a clinic
  4. A partner to schools and employers building wellbeing programs

What we are not

  1. Not a clinical treatment service or a diagnosis
  2. Not a replacement for therapy or medical care
  3. Not a crisis service — see the support numbers below
  4. Not a reporting tool: employers and schools never see individual participation

Where to next

Start privately, or bring us to your organisation.

Individuals can begin a course today. Schools and workplaces can request our clinical governance and data-handling documentation before any conversation about pricing.

If you need help right now. If you're in immediate danger or thinking about harming yourself, please contact emergency services or a crisis line in your country

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