Over 23 Million Americans Suffer From Addiction and Alcoholism

In this post I will share the story of my battle with addiction and how I was able to overcome it, leading to who I am today.

Addiction is not something that ran in my family. From a very young age, I saw the differences between my families dynamic and that of my friends.  I mean I can literally count on one hand how many times I have seen my mother and father drink alcohol. I never in a million years would have believed it if you told me the journey I was about to take.

At the age of 13 I was diagnosed with a incredibly rare form of migraine headaches.  Debilitating pain would be my life for the next 4 years straight. I had no relief from the pain, and the headache that stopped me from being able to complete the simplest of task was there from the time I woke up till the time I passed out from exhaustion. I lived in the dark unable to go to school or even leave the couch (except for hospital stays). Every Succession of Doctors I went to would follow the same pattern as the previous. I would be hospitalized for a 2 week stay and ore medications added to the already staggering list of meds I was on. At one point I was on 23 medications daily, and this was only at the age of 14 or 15. In a attempt to just get me some relief the doctors started me on a Morphine. This along with the other medications I took daily started me on the mindset of taking a substance to feel better. 

By the time I was 17 I had been out of school for 4 years, living in pain on my parents couch. I have been on Morphine for 2 years and getting my scholastic lessons fro private tutors that would come to my house. Not only was I addicted to opiates given to me by my doctor but also I have missed out on the crucial years of social development. My teen year experiences were very limited. 

Then A Miracle Happened 

 I woke up one morning and my Migraine was gone!!! For the first time in years I wasn't in pain. The joy that not only I but my parents felt was enough to make me cry. I may have been the one in pain for years but y parents felt their own pain everyday watching their son hurt everyday. My mother and Father almost went bankrupt with the cost of all my medical bills and trying experimental treatments to help me.  We thought the hard roads were behind us.

Now that I was no longer suffering from this affliction, my parents and I thought it best I return to normal school for my senior year. This was something that I was super excited about as I was not able to really hang out with my friends that much for the past few years. Now when I returned to school, being that I was isolated for so long, my social maturity was behind everyone else's. All the experiences of the teen years that everyone had gone through, I missed out on.  All of my friends were part of the Philadelphia underground rave scene now. They were all experimenting with Alcohol, Ecstasy and other party drugs. Me wanting to fit right back in with the crowd followed in suite with the rest. It didn't take me much convincing to become a avid user of all of these substances. I actually became the one to introduce all the newer and harder drugs to my circle of friends from that point on. There wasnt anything I wouldn't do. All the years prior I was on medications to make myself feel no pain or just to feel good out myself, why should it stop now? That's the thought that led me down a very dark hole and it took me years of more anguish and pain not only for myself but for my parents once again. When the rave scene kinda died down or the party drug became harder to obtain, I did the unthinkable.  I moved onto a drug I was familiar with, Opiates. The years of morphine prescriptions left a special soft spot in my heart for this substance. All I remembered was it made my life manageable while I had the headaches. 

So yea Heroin was my next true love. A love that over the years of abuse would leave me alone in the streets with no one to turn too. At first I was able to use it casually without consequences. Using only a few times a week I was able to escape physical addiction to the substance. That didn't last as my casual use turned into everyday use. The intense sickness/withdraw that came from not having my daily fix was enough to make me loose my mind. I resorted to shoplifting and stealing from the parents who had already given me so much, just to support my addiction. I had gotten clean from heroin multiple times over the years but always resorted back to the thing that caused me so much pain. 

At the age of 22 I ended up moving to Cali Colombia in South America. I know, it was every addicts dream. Living in the land of plenty for a drug addict. At first I was ok, staying clean and even fathering a beautiful daughter. It wasn't long after that I succumbed once again to my addiction. Again using heroin and becoming homeless in a foreign country, the next 3 years were a fight for survival. My father never abandoned me and did what he could to make sure I had enough to eat. all the while trying to convince me to come home. Little did he know that the option to come home was not in the cards. The cartel had possession of my passport. A trade I had made for drugs a day I was experiencing intense withdraws. It wouldn't be until my back was up against a wall that I called my father and told him everything. He was on a plane the very next day to come and bring me home. He paid off the cartel, got my passport back and flew me home. 

There was no welcome home party or family members happy to see me. They were glad I was alive but the years of strain I had put on the family had taken its toll. They were done with me. My father took me to the Atlantic City rescue mission and told me this was the last thing he could do for me. It broke my heart to see my father so heartbroken. It wasn't enough to stop my  drug use though. I messed around for a few more months before I decided to seek the help I so desperately needed.  I entered a 6 month residential treatment program that saved my life. I learned about my addiction and how to cope with lifes stressors without resorting to drugs. My life was finally on the right track again.

After treatment I entered Oxford House sober living homes. While at Oxford House I became very involved with trying to help others. I moved u the ranks and was hired on as a employee for Oxford House. I was sent to Western Pennsylvania  and West Virginia to be the state supervisor. In my job I would open new sober living homes and help addicts seeking help attain housing while working there program. During this time I even worked with the Governor of West Virginia and spoke at events regarding addition in the State

This was a complete turn around from who I was before. I felt I beat something that was trying to end my life. To me that wasn't enough. I needed to continue educating and trying to help others achieve what I did. I needed to get the word out while still pursuing the dream I have always had. This brings my story to TODAY!!!

Now I live in Los Angeles pursuing my dream of acting and working for Above It All Treatment Center. 

I through Above it All am able to reach out to the masses suffering from the deadly affliction of addiction. I get to see thousands of lost individuals find themselves and get their lives back.  I can honestly say that I have ever seen the level of care so high at a treatment center before. 

I wanted to share the short version of my story to let anyone suffering that there is hope out there. There is a light in sight and for anyone that needs help I am available to help you. Please feel free to text me at 724-541-3014 if you or a loved one has any questions. Im available for calls as well.