David

Here's my story, it's not a pretty one but I wouldn't change a thing because everything that happened made me the man I am now, a man I can be proud of.

My name is David, and I had a difficult upbringing. Absent mother and abusive father, I was put into foster care early on in life, seeing a happy family but never truly being part of it. I started rebelling to get attention, because the only time I got attention as a child was when I did something wrong. Eventually they gave up on me and shipped me off, at which point I started bouncing from family to family. Eventually I started hanging out with people last ke me, other "outcasts" at school because every year I was going to a different school and the kids who lived there had their own groups already. It was only a matter of time till I started using drugs, it started off simple enough just smoking cigarettes and marijuana but as time went on it, my usage progressed. I had it under control for most of my life, I was a "functioning addict" they call it, using my drug of choice, or D.O.C. but still going to work, paying bills, and supporting my family. Until one day I found out my fiancee had been cheating on me while I was working away from home. Then I lost control and started my decent into the abyss. I started using harsher, more dangerous drugs, I quit my job and moved away. Slowly but surely I was losing everything, and that was my excuse for using more, to numb the pain. I lost my family, my kids, my house, was living in my holiday trailer that was a sense of freedom cause I could go and do whatever I wanted, until I lost that too. Eventually I had lost everything, literally everything, except for a backpack full of clothes. I was living on the streets, stealing and trading to get my fix, relying on homeless shelters for one meal a day and maybe a sandwich. Then one day, one of my "street friends" was concerned enough that he picked me up out of the gutter and dragged me to detox. That was roughly 7 months ago and here I am, still sober, working again, I have my kids and my family back in my life, I have my own place and was even able to buy myself a truck again (being a country boy that's a big deal for me)

Like I said I wouldn't change a thing that happened because going through recovery I learned WHY I was using drugs to numb the pain, and everything I went through has made me the man I am today. I've become more caring and outgoing, less judgemental, and I have a different perspective on everything now. Say someone snaps at me for no apparent reason. Instead of asking "why are you such a d**k?" I think "what happened that has you feeling this way?"

I hope this story helps someone, even just one person makes it all worth it. One day at a time, we DO recover, never be scared to ask for help because there ARE people that'll help you, as long as you're asking for the right kind of help.