I was sadly mistaken, however, and relapsed after only a few months. When I finished my rehab process, I felt great, and thought that I was ready to face the world and get on with my new sober life. Life seemed unbearable, so I decided to check into a rehab center in Colorado. I struggled to find a job, and despite attending Alcholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings on a regular basis, I was relapsing addiction was still a big problem. The many faces of addiction: the workaholicĪfter I got out of prison things did not get easier. That was the moment I realized that I had addiction and life problems, for real. I hadn’t yet grasped just how deep my own problems were. I was so sure that I had everything under control, and that it was only the others there who had problems. He realized then that he had a serious problem and that, ironically, jail was giving him a second chance. He knew that if that hadn’t happened he could have ended up hurting his wife, or even taking his own life. He woke up in the hospital and two days later, he was locked up.

He took his car and smashed it through the wall of an empty store. One day, when he was very moody because he didn’t have a lot of money, he had a violent argument with his ex-wife. That was the moment I realized that I had addiction and life problems, for real.Ībout three months after I started attending, another inmate told his story about having hit rock-bottom, in which he explained how he ended up with the rest of us. It was better to hear unimportant things (I thought at the time) than to be stuck in my little cell. At first, it was something I was doing just to get out of my confinement. I first heard about Alcoholics Anonymous when I was in jail.

Even though it was difficult and it taught me many things, the important part of my story, and of my recovery, is what happened next. I will not go into the sordid details about the hardest and ugliest parts of my addiction story they are very similar to anything you might have read. It hit a milestone when I was 23 years old, and I was incarcerated in Colorado on drug-related charges for two and a half years. At 18, I met cocaine and meth at a college party, and my journey towards the worst chapter in my life began. I was young and stupid, and because all the cool older kids were doing it, I had to do it too. So I kept going.Īt 18, I met cocaine and meth at a college party, and my journey towards the worst chapter in my life began.Ī little later in my life, when I was 14, I encountered marijuana. I didn’t particularly like the taste, but it felt somewhat empowering. But as the party kept going and everyone got too drunk or busy to pay attention to me, I took my first drink. Alcohol was being passed around to all the adults, and I, naturally curious, asked if I could have some. I was just eight years old, and it was at a family gathering. I can clearly remember the first time I got drunk.

My addiction story