News / Education
Narconon Arrowhead Drug Rehab Graduate Shares Her Success
"I'm not alone anymore"
I'm not alone anymore! |
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I'm not alone anymore
You would think that after getting arrested for possession at the age of 16 that maybe I would turn my life around. Needless to say that didn’t happen. I continued using more and more. I threw away any hope and help from my family. All I cared about was using the drugs that made me feel like I had some worth. I thought I was only affecting myself, but my friends and family were on the downward spiral as well.
Before I knew it the people who surrounded me were dying or going to jail. In my head that was all a part of the game. You had to stay one step ahead or you would fall six feet behind. I watched my boyfriend and good friend of 5 years overdose, and that showed me there was no hope.
I was making runs all over the state to get my drugs that would fix all my problems and it was always one shot or one pill away. I never found what I was looking for. I also never found out what I was hiding from. What I did find was myself sitting in a jail cell. I sat there for almost a month and I realized that I was sick of losing everything. I had NO idea who I was, and I didn’t know anywhere that could make me feel comfortable being me. I had gone to a 3 ½ month rehab before and it had done nothing. So I was not looking forward to going to another one…I expected the same results.
When I walked through the doors of Narconon®, it was a fresh, friendly, active atmosphere that I never would have ever expected. The first thing I heard was that I was NOT addicted or a slave to any drug. I found that I was able to sit in a room with people and feel as though I didn’t need anything to make me comfortable. The entire experience showed me new ways to look at life. I found that every time I got high was because I wanted to. No one made me and I had no excuse of depression. The sauna got all of the toxins out of my body and the life skills got me well rounded. They prepared me for what I was going to deal with when I left. They helped me disconnect from the people who I had been hanging around with. They were not going to let me leave and fail. They gave me every single tool I needed to succeed.
Today I stand today at over a year sober. I have no urge to use. I know that drugs are out there and I know they aren’t going anywhere fast. Most importantly I know that I DON’T need or want to use them. Not because I fall a victim to them, but because for the first time in my life I feel as though I can be happy without them.
I love life now, and I wake up every single day and am happy I am alive. I have lost a lot and been through even more. If a year ago someone would have told me one day I would be successful, happy, and drug free, I would have laughed at them. Now I know that all along I had it in me to do just that. I am not alone anymore.
Today I stand strong with so many positive influences that surround me and I never expected to be this happy without having to use drugs or alcohol.
Emily M.
Narconon Arrowhead Graduate December 2006
Story written July 2007
