“I was walking to my dealer’s car when suddenly four police cars turned up. You’d be amazed at how blind when you are in full-blown addiction. I didn’t care what happened to me.”
‘You’re bleeding behind your eyes.’ I drank to forget the pain. Internally, I was completely dead. I’d never felt so alone.’: Man details addiction recovery journey, ‘I completely changed my life’
‘I knew I was going to die. That night, my phone rang. ‘You’re not alone.’ I didn’t even know him, but he saved my life.’: Paramedic shares journey with addiction, ‘You are HUMAN and SO worthy’
“My 31st birthday came. I kept all the receipts so I could return the gifts and give everyone their money back. No one knew this, but I was going to die in 4 days. I was prepared. I was the calmest I’d felt in years.”
‘I want to swallow a bottle of pills and end it.’ Nothing brought me happiness. All I saw was a girl who needed to lose weight.’: Woman details recovery journey, ‘ALL bodies are good bodies’
“The clothes that once fit became baggy. One day, I tried an old pair of jeans on, and they fit. I CRIED. I had gained weight, and that was absolutely terrifying for me. I was always trying to be the ‘perfect’ girl.”
‘Why did you quit?’ I didn’t need to hit rock bottom. I was ‘functional’ but I went to the liquor store every night. I KNEW I needed a reset.’: Mom shares sobriety journey, ‘I live with clarity’
“No one ever said a thing about my drinking, even those closest to me. That’s the funny thing about alcohol. You can be silently dying inside but the outside world has no idea.”
‘I’ll deal with it when I graduate.’ I was drinking daily, but had NO CLUE how to ask for help. I was always reaching for the next drink.’: Woman overcomes alcohol addiction, ‘I’m healing’
“I bought a dog. I bought a house. Everyone thought I was doing great. But I had bottles of alcohol all around my house. I would wake up with full resolve to never drink again, and would find myself with a bottle in my hand by the evening. Things got really dark, really fast.”
‘How did I get here?’ I kneeled over the toilet, heart racing. Suddenly, I heard God speaking, ‘Don’t do this, Rachel.’: Woman shares eating disorder recovery journey, ‘I had to break free’
“Could I escape from this prison of disordered eating, self-hatred, and destructive pursuit of weight loss? Would I ever find love? My knees ached as I shakily got up off the cold tile floor. I couldn’t keep living like this.”
‘I can’t raise a child. I can’t even take care of myself!’ I had nothing left to live for. Or so I thought.’: Woman recovers from addiction for daughter, ‘All it took was a tiny shimmer of hope’
“Self-medication was the only thing keeping me alive. I sat outside, chain-smoking and chugging a bottle of wine. ’My boyfriend is an addict and I can’t get sober.’ I was never supposed to get pregnant.”
‘If you keep eating, we’ll have to buy you maternity clothes.’ I felt disgusted. Everything I hated about myself was because of food.’: Woman raises eating disorder awareness, ‘Don’t turn a blind eye’
“I scrambled to anchor myself and settled on the one thing I could control. Food. The high I felt stepping on those scales, malnourished, with fragile wrists, was like no other to me. It was an addiction.”
‘I don’t drink any more than my mommy wine friends.’ It was my reward after a hard day. I felt like I earned it.’: ‘Mommy Wine Culture Survivor’ says ‘sobriety was the greatest gift’
“I was the woman in yoga class joking about sweating out the booze. I was the mom who planned pre-drinks. I was also the businesswoman, completely hungover, giving a presentation in heels.”
‘I couldn’t get ‘high enough’ anymore. I went from a meeting to my dealer. Then I almost died.’: Woman recounts sobriety journey, ‘I finally accepted help’
“I remember waking up the next morning ashamed. I panicked. I wasn’t ready to be done using yet.”
