Leah, Xander (Luke Van Os) and Rose (Kirsty Marillier) all gather at the ED, but Irene isn’t appreciative of Leah’s presence when she pops her head through the curtain. When Bree asks Leah if there’s anything she needs to know from a medical perspective, Leah quietly explains that Irene is a recovering alcoholic who has recently relapsed.
Irene quickly realises that Leah has been blabbing when Bree offers to help her with alcohol withdrawal, and refuses to acknowledge the fact that she needs any help, telling Bree that this isn’t her first rodeo.
But when Bree later catches Irene swigging from her hip flask, the shame suddenly hits her.
Bree points out that she’s clearly not handling things if she still needs alcohol whilst on a drip in hospital, and after she confiscates the hip flask, Irene breaks down.
Having hit rock bottom, Irene finally admits that she needs help. She apologises to Marilyn for being drunk at work, who in turn tells her that John is thinking about her.
Irene can’t believe that John would still care after everything she put him through, but sure enough he later turns up with a huge bunch of flowers, causing Irene to burst into tears.
