It’s not just about willpower when it comes to these drugs. The withdrawal is long-lasting and dangerous, unlike ten years ago when you could detox by laying on the couch for a week. We had an abundance of cheap OxyContin on the streets, but the government shut that down without providing any assistance to those who were dependent on it. Rehab gave me time away from drugs, but I didn’t learn anything.
- Gupta called for more funding for addiction treatment and healthcare services, especially in Black and Native American communities where overdose deaths remain catastrophically high.
- Travis Rasco in Upstate New York says he’s grateful he got enough time, enough chances and enough help to rebuild his life.
- This was a common experience for many people, especially in South Florida where I’m from, as pill mills were big, and cheap OxyContin was readily available on the streets.
- At the age of 15, Cat Marnell began to unknowingly “murder her life” when she became hooked on the ADHD medication prescribed to her by her psychiatrist father.
Advice to Parents and Loved Ones:
Lisa’s story is a stark reminder of how easily prescription drug use can spiral into addiction. A successful marketing executive and mother of two, Lisa’s life seemed picture-perfect from the outside. But behind closed doors, she was battling a crippling addiction to prescription opioids.
Lifeskills Mental Health Blog
Some communities are trying to help, providing active drug users with clean needles and making the overdose-reversal drug Narcan more widely available. People walk past an East Harlem health clinic that offers free needles and other services to drug users on in New York. There are stark differences successful drug addicts in how the body and brain respond to alcohol and different drugs. Mable-Jones lost a decade to addiction, entering rehab and relapsing repeatedly. Americans often see the more destructive side of addiction, drug crime, people slumped in doorways and family members who are spiraling downward.
Inspirational Stories of Addiction Recovery
- A successful lawyer with a loving family, Tom managed to maintain the façade of a normal life while battling a severe alcohol dependency.
- He told NPR there is “probably a 100 percent chance” he would have died without the medical help that is now far more widely available.
- “Nobody recovered from addiction dead. My feeling is if we can keep people alive long enough, we know eventually the majority get recovery,” he said.
- Over the past two decades, she’s faced numerous challenges – divorce, the death of her parents, financial struggles – all while maintaining her sobriety.
- With commitment, perseverance, and the right support, individuals can rise from their lowest point, embrace sobriety, and build a future filled with hope, purpose, and fulfillment.
Imagine a day where the stress that shadows your every move is lifted, even if just for a moment. In today’s world, stress is as omnipresent as the smartphone in… Recovery is a long-term process that requires commitment and effort. Stay dedicated to your recovery plan, even when faced with challenges. Similarly, the roughly 95,000 deaths each year in the U.S. attributed to alcohol represent a fraction of high-risk drinkers. But in a pattern researchers say is common, Mable-Jones’ illness eventually eased.
The couple, from Tennessee, whose joint sobriety date is December 31, 2016, relied on their faith in each other, and their shared faith in God, to help them to overcome addiction to methamphetamine. For instance, if someone is HIV positive, we encourage them to take their medication even if they’re not ready to get clean. We’re seeing that people who are still using can maintain undetectable viral loads as long as they adhere to their medication. Our doctors are some of the most compassionate individuals I’ve ever met. It’s a big contrast to how I was treated in the past.
Our Treatment Advisors are available 24 hours a day to help you or a loved one access care. We’re ready to make sure you have the support you need to achieve lifelong recovery. Like too many people, substance use disorder had taken over Gina’s life – that is, until one day when she found the inner strength to ask for help. Behind substance use disorder is people – people with real stories of struggle and triumph. Binzer had a long history of substance abuse over the course of his career. The “Butterfly” singer made appearances on seasons of VH1’s Celebrity Rehab and Sober House in the late 2000s.
Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed With Alcohol by Holly Whitaker
Sophia’s substance abuse quickly spiraled out of control, jeopardizing her job and alienating her support system. It wasn’t until she overdosed and woke up in the hospital that she realized she needed help for both her addiction and her trauma. Today, Michael has been sober for four years and manages his depression through ongoing therapy and medication.
Living Recovery: True Stories of Addiction Recovery
- Less visible are the people who survive the illness and rebuild their lives.
- And while I stopped using so-called hard drugs prior to graduate school I continued to use alcohol and marijuana daily, not before or during work, but invariably after work and throughout the weekend.
- It was when I went home that summer that I experienced my first physical addiction.
- I managed to maintain my employment and continue progressing.
- After residential, I stepped down to PHP and went to Osceola House, where I got a job at Michael’s.
He said being revived after repeated overdoses isn’t enough. He wants more done to help people in severe addiction heal and enter recovery, as he has done. In recovery for roughly a year, Breeyear takes a prescription medication called suboxone to reduce opioid-fentanyl cravings.
Let’s start with three incredible stories of individuals who have triumphed over drug addiction, proving that even in the darkest moments, there’s always a glimmer of hope. Gupta called for more funding for addiction treatment and healthcare services, especially in Black and Native American communities where overdose deaths remain catastrophically high. His experience is reflected in data from the Vermont Department of Health, which shows a 22 percent decline in drug deaths in 2024. He believes these changes – a response to the increasingly toxic street drug supply – mean more people like himself are surviving.
