- Alcohol
- Drugs
What made you decide to get involved in working with people in recovery?
I wanted to work with people in recovery because I wanted to give back. I was about eighteen months sober and I gave up my teaching position. I decided I didn’t want to go back to that. When I went to treatment there were care managers, who were the people “in the trenches” that actually worked with patients on an intimate basis. That was what I wanted to do. I wanted a position where I could give back like people had given to me.
What has your experience been like since you started working in the recovery industry?
I love it. I think most people know someone who is in active addiction but they may not know anyone in recovery. I think with the work we do, we see people get well and that’s the difference. My job is to give people hope. Sometimes I tell my story and sometimes I don’t. I don’t break my anonymity necessarily, but you can still give people strength and hope just because you know that you’ve lived through it and you know that people can get well. The most gratifying thing about my job is when there’s family involved and I can get the family on the phone. That’s my favorite thing to do. I tell them there’s hope, that their loved one is not doomed, and that I see patients get well every day.
What changes have you noticed in the lives and personalities of patients from the time they’re in addiction to the time they’re in recovery?
I was talking to a guy this morning that has five months of sobriety and he’s just started. He can’t see how different things are going to be for him. There’s such a significant difference between just starting out, getting into recovery and going through the process of getting healthy and well. It takes time. I’ve stood in front of folks who I wouldn’t have recognized from when they first started to the point they’ve reached after a period of recovery. There’s a young man I met that was so defiant and so resistant when I first met him. Then I saw him some time later, and he was so overjoyed that I had to ask who he was. I didn’t recognize him. I didn’t think it was the same person. He had changed so much. He was a different human being, and the change in him had only taken six months. For some people it takes longer and for others it happens more quickly.
What would your recovery tip of the day be?
When you think you have it figured out, you’re in trouble.