- Alcohol
Recovery in and of itself is a life-altering change, but it also leads to other positive changes and the ability to pursue dreams that would have been impossible while under the influence.
Mary has been in recovery for alcohol addiction for 22 years. Recovery also inspired this former customer service worker to go back to school and get a master’s degree in counseling. Today, she works as a licensed counselor. Other positive changes were more personal. Her son, now 27, benefitted greatly from her sobriety as well.
“He has such a different life because of it,” Mary says. “Even with addiction on both sides of the family, he is okay — Lord willing and the creek don’t rise!” Receiving counseling from age 7 to 16 helped him make sense of what his mother was going through, and today he’s getting ready to graduate with a PhD in physics.
It all could have turned out very differently, though. Like most people struggling with drug or alcohol addiction, Mary couldn’t see her own problem with substance use. She thought if she divorced her spouse who was using drugs, all her problems would be over. As she sought counseling to deal with those issues, she was surprised that her drinking kept becoming a topic of discussion.
It took nine months before she went to her first 12-step meeting, and she cried for the first several months. At first, she thought she was crazy. Then she realized she was an alcoholic instead.
She came by her addiction honestly. Mary’s great-great grandfather ran moonshine in Kentucky and her grandfather ran a bar. While her father was never labeled an alcoholic, Mary remembers him drinking every night and passing out. She also remembers childhood outings with him that revolved around going to the beer store.
While her post-recovery life has been dramatically different and overwhelmingly positive, there have been rough spots. When Mary was seven years sober, she hit menopause and became severely depressed. Fortunately, an RN noticed and sent her to a doctor to get medication.
“It was awful. I can’t believe I didn’t drink,” Mary says of that time. But in hindsight she credits it with giving her a new compassion. “It’s helped me understand people that have chronic illness issues and depression issues. It’s made me more compassionate.” Today her motto is “to thine own self be true.”
Mary realized that recovery is not a destination but a journey, and you never know where you’re going to end up. To date, she’s worked in several different treatment centers, eventually finding her niche working with Native Americans. She’s learned to live one day at a time, and that helps her get through difficult patches. She also shares that philosophy with those who are where she was 22 years ago and who are afraid that they can’t reach sobriety.
“You can do anything for one day,” she says. And anyone who’s in recovery knows just how true that is.