Hope Restored: My Triumph Over Addiction

 

My childhood and youth were spent on the family farm—a typical farm life that included horses, a close-knit family, and a life in which drugs played no part.

My problems started with an injury I got as a firefighter, for which I was prescribed OxyContin painkillers.

I felt that I was able to handle the OxyContin and did not consider that I was in danger of addiction, however my parents thought I was abusing it and enrolled me in a 12-step style drug rehab program.

I disagreed with the premise of this program―that one was an addict forever, and I came out of the program angry and instead of the controlled painkiller dosage I was on prior to this, taking 18 pills and now fully addicted. I tried a “rapid detox” in Michigan, but that did not work for me either, and I was soon living the life of an addict. While I could function and work, life was going downhill, and I even stole from my family and the family business.

I went to Mexico to get away from it but that also failed. I was on Valium and Halcion on the plane and tried to open the airplane door while in the air. In Mexico, I got Haldol and when my mother came to see me, she found me laying down with my muscles contracting so hard that I thought my spine was going to snap. It took 8 large men holding my body straight to prevent that. I was in the hospital for 4 days before returning home, but then went right back onto the OxyContin and full-blown addiction.

“My mother did not give up on me, she did more research and found Narconon. I liked the fact that at Narconon they don’t tell you that you are an addict for life but have you look towards the future. ”

My mother did not give up on me, she did more research and found Narconon. I liked the fact that at Narconon they don’t tell you that you are an addict for life but have you look towards the future. I was soon at Narconon Arrowhead in Oklahoma. I did the program and it worked.

I have to admit that when I first arrived, I was not the easiest person to work with. I had a tendency all my life to challenge the system and not give other people or ideas that did not match mine the time of day.

But while doing the Narconon program, as well as handling the addiction, a major win for me was that I went from an individual who could be hot headed and reactionary, to someone more open-minded to others and their ideas and communication and able to listen to them and conduct myself in a manner in which others are comfortable being with and talking to me.

I also found as I did the program that I liked to help others. I worked with the other students to get them through the program, including through withdraw. After I graduated, I stayed at the Center for another 3 or 4 weeks just to help others. I consider that this is a big factor in my continued sobriety.

I have a good relationship with my family. When I went home after the program, they took the time and energy to read the Narconon course books to get a better understanding of what the program was so that we would have a common ground to communicate.

I found I was able to become more for my family than the entitled youth I had been. I went from the son stealing from them and who they were seriously considering turning into the police, to the son who is now trusted with handling the family’s finance portfolio.

I use what I learned on the Narconon program in my day-to-day life. I would advise anyone with a substance abuse problem to reach out to someone who has your actual interests at heart and seek to get assistance. No matter your situation, there is always help available.

O.D., Narconon Graduate