Confession of a Drug Addict

I have to admit, the idea of making confessions feels very strange to me. I grew up in a large family and I’m the youngest. My parents were loving and supportive and my brothers, sisters and I never really wanted for anything. I began to dabble with drugs and alcohol at a young age, and by the time I was in high school I’d say I was a budding drug addict.

Hallucinogens, cocaine, speed, and marijuana were all pretty easy to get and I got them as often as I could. I had a tight-knit group of friends that used to “party” quite a bit. We were musicians, artists, poets, and writers all trying to find our muse. It was all fun and games back then and no one was getting harmed.

Where there was drugs, there was sexuality and experimenting, and we all had our fair share of that. It was a special time, we thought, and we didn’t dream it would lead to a life of addiction… but it did.

By the time I was in my mid 20’s I had developed an appetite for alcohol and crack cocaine. I never would have dreamed I would become a crack addict. I was smart, talented and had a great job. Pretty soon the drugs and alcohol had consumed me. I became homeless and jobless by 30 and I was on my way to treatment for drug and alcohol abuse.

I was ravaged by the streets and recovering from multiple sexual assaults, physical attacks, and self harm. The lifestyle had caught up with me and I was spent. I had hit rock bottom.

Treatment gave me the courage to start over and find peace with my past. It has been 17 years since I used and my life is sublimely better these days.