Now I Can Embrace Everything Life Has to Offer
I was born about 20 miles south of Boston in Taunton, Massachusetts. I was raised by my mother, grandparents, and my great grandmother.
When I was young, I remember spending a lot of time with my great grandmother. She taught me a lot, but the one thing that stands out the most is her secret recipe for apple pie. I remember sitting in her kitchen, the flour coating the table, my hands, and clothes. The moisture from slicing apples on my hands. The enticing aroma of the cinnamon and sugar mixture filling the air. The captivating smell of the finished product and me licking my lips with anticipation of that first bite.
Growing up as an only child I had a deep connection to my pets. There was my cat Blackie and my dog Augie May. One night my dog Augie May ran out of the house into a bad snow storm. I was devastated, crying, and feeling hopeless. I stood in the doorway of my home and called for her over and over again. This went on for over an hour. Finally, I looked out through the strong gusts of snow and saw her in the distance. I was excited and started to yell even louder and before I knew it, Augie May greeted me at the door and came in the house. By then I was soaking wet from the melted snow on my clothes but I didn’t care as I was overcome with relief and excitement to have my dog back with me.
My Mom and I moved around quite a bit because she worked hard to provide a better home for me. I even remember her and I moving to Florida, to be close to my grandmother. I dreaded the move, I missed my friends in Massachusetts. I was a 1st grader and it was tough for me to adjust. I would pretend I was sick every day at my new school and go home early. When my mom came to get me, I would cry and tell her I wanted to go back home to Massachusetts. Eventually, my mom did what was best for her son and we moved back to Massachusetts.
I went to school in Taunton up to the fifth grade and then moved from the city to a small town named Raynham. This was another big adjustment for me. My mom enrolled me in the town football league to make friends. This worked and helped me adjust to my new surroundings. When school started it was a different story though. I got picked on a lot because I was new and dressed differently than everyone. I just brushed it off though and continued to adapt to my new area.
By the eighth grade, I had a good group of friends, I was a starting running back on the town football team and I was happy. When I graduated at the age of 14 I tried alcohol for the first time. I remember the euphoric feeling that came over me and I loved every minute of it.
I got into high school and kept playing football when just a few games into the season I got tackled and tore a knee ligament. I was traumatized and all I remember was being devastated that I would never be able to play sports again.
This is when I took prescription pain medication for the first time. I didn’t like it at first because of how it made me sick, eventually though they grew on me. It shut off my feelings toward the world around me and made me stress-free. When I finally quit taking them I became a habitual pot smoker. I even started selling large quantities of weed to support my habit. By the age of 17, I began experimenting with Acid and cocaine and found I liked living life in an altered frame of mind. I felt like it made me different from everyone else and that no one could touch me.
By the time I got to college, my life started to spin out of control. I was experimenting with meth, PCP, Benzodiazepines, Somas, Ecstasy, and research chemicals. All I cared about from the age of 19 to 21 was drugs. I used them because of the way they made me feel and to solve everyday problems. When I was 20, my use landed me in a psychiatric ward for two weeks. Once I was released, I just went back out and continued using. My main go to was ecstasy and molly. I was DJ’ing a lot at that time and promoting electronic dance music events.
The whole time I never thought about the consequences. My addiction led me to steal from my parents and my friends, taking anything to fund my habit. This eventually led me to sleeping in my car or on a friends couch.
That all changed the day I came to Narconon. They helped me figure out who the real me was. They gave me the tools I needed to make amends for all the bad things I had done in my life. I repaired relationships with my family and I even forgave myself.
“I can confidently say I love where I am in my life and never have to go back to my old ways. Drugs are no longer a part of my daily routine. I can embrace everything life has to offer and live happily and drug-free.”
My favorite part of the Narconon program was the sauna detox. Every day in the sauna, I felt the toxins leave my body. I started to feel like myself again, as it stripped away the druggie attitude I had. I felt healthy and clear-minded for the first time after years of poisoning my mind and body.
Reaching one year of sobriety made me think of the life I was living compared to the life I live now. I can confidently say I love where I am in my life and never have to go back to my old ways. Drugs are no longer a part of my daily routine. I can embrace everything life has to offer and live happily and drug-free.
Narconon saved my life and I will never forget that. If anyone out there is struggling with a drug addiction call them today. They really do care and they can help you just like they helped me.
