A Story of Hope and Life After Alcohol Abuse Treatment
This is another story of an individual dedicating his life to helping others after recovering from a hopeless state of mind and body. Rickie battled with alcoholism for years before entering recovery. This article describes the bottom he dropped to and his struggles along the way. The feelings and experiences he describes are similar to many of the residents at Gatehouse Academy. This story is a great description of the hopelessness of Alcoholism and the incredible transformation that occurs through 12 step recovery.
“Part of me knew I was an alcoholic” but denial kept surfacing, Jones added. “For about 12 beers, I’d hate myself. But after 14 beers, I wouldn’t care anymore. After 30 beers, I wouldn’t remember.”
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November 15th, 2007 at 8:34 pm
Similarly to Rickie, I was given the oppurtunity to go to treatment in my early twenties. I thought I had hit a substancial enough bottom to get and stay sober. Thinking of myself as an adult (I got sober at 23), I wanted no part in a “young adult” treatment center. After some soul searching, I let my parents decide where I should go. I am so grateful that my parents ultimately chose a facility where I was surrounded by young people. There was something very powerful in being around people my age who shared very similar stories. Seeing the impact that the 12 steps had made on these indviduals eventually drew me in. I truly feel that if I had been surrounded by people 10, 20 or 30 years my senior, I would have justified my right to still use. I still attend many young peoples meetings and events, but I also have found just how much everyone in the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous has to offer me.
Great Story!
November 15th, 2007 at 9:38 pm
This story is really genuine and matches my own in many ways. I as able to get sober with the beautiful opportunity given by Gatehouse at nineteen years of age. I have almost fours years of continous sobriety which I attribute to AA which Gatehouse allowed me to find. I appreciate that opportunity everyday as my life is unequivocably better.
November 16th, 2007 at 8:38 am
This story gives me so much hope. I watched my son try to heal his pain with Drugs and Alchohol.He did not want to feel anymore. He was wasting away before my eyes. As a single parent so confused I was counseled to find a treatment center that offered a year program.As the year in rehab saved my son it also taught me so much and I was given the most precious gifts my son back and the 12 steps. your story reminds me again that hope was on the horizon and faith starts to replace fear. Inspiring !!!
December 8th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
Much like Rickie I am greatful to be this side of dirt and sucking air. It took a little while sober to stop hating myself. Had I not came to Gatehouse; I don’t know if I would have ever come to the conclusion that there was a way to stop and accept help. Gratefully and for the grace of God I recieved two years of sobriety on the 7th of this month. It has been a long journey so far, and I was able to apply many of the lessons learned at Gatehouse to my life today. The Gatehouse program teaches principles of living in order to stay sober, and after commencing I found,through trial and error, that they actually work. I am happy with myself today as a direct result of working the 12 steps to find my creator. Gatehouse provide the essentials to make that possible, and for that I will be eternally grateful. God bless.
December 10th, 2007 at 11:13 am
Reading stories like these and also hearing the stories of Gatehouse residents, I am always amazed by two things: 1. How much they have been experienced, faced, and overcome in their young lives. and 2. The drastic change between the way they were and how much hope they gain for the future. It is inspiring for anyone to hear these stories; addict or not.
December 10th, 2007 at 11:36 am
For a large part of my life, I knew that I had a severe problem and with the value system and upbringing that I had and the religious background I believed in, I did not think that there was ever going to be any hope of me getting sober. I went through numerous treatments and was in and out of numerous hospitals for alcoholism. I was labeled with chronic alcoholism at the age of 19 and told that I would die within 5 years. But there were many people that suffered with this addiction that were in recovery that kept pushing me in a direction to get help. I finally realized that I was not hopeless, and that there is hope in recovery and the 12 steps.
December 10th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
When I got to Gatehouse at the age of 22, I was completely hopeless. Without the opportunities I was given here, I may not have lived long enough to find AA. Today, I am extremely grateful to Gatehouse and AA for the hope that I found and the ability to share this hope with others.
December 10th, 2007 at 12:50 pm
I knew that I was an alcoholic, but never would say it outloud. Every day got worse when drinking whiskey. Only did it get worse, then better, then great when I quit.
December 10th, 2007 at 1:11 pm
When i read this i really thought of my bottom and how hard it was but being able to turn it over to god and all the drugs i did being used for 12th step work i wouldnt trade 27 milloin dollars, the feeling of helping other drunks is better then anything i have ever felt and AA is to thank for that
December 10th, 2007 at 1:18 pm
I needed hope when I first came into recovery. I needed to see that is was possible. I was a hopeless dope fiend now I am a dope less hope fiend.
December 11th, 2007 at 7:36 am
This story reminds me that in recovery all things are possible. Working in this field, I get to see people come in to AA not sure they really want sobriety and then the miracle of the program happens and they are really excited about recovery. It is such an amazing process to watch.
December 13th, 2007 at 10:13 am
I think the feeling of hope is as important to the families of addicts as it is for addict themselves. Seeing parents on tours of our community is very exciting, to see the hope they have for their children to be sober. The hope of families at commencement, knowing the challenges their loved ones have been through and the new chance of life, is amazing as well.
December 20th, 2007 at 11:33 am
Being in recovery for the past 27 years has allowed me to meet people throughout this country and outside who due to the process of 12 step recovery have been able to surpass any dream they have ever had. This is a story which rings consistent and exists in the promises of AA.
December 21st, 2007 at 9:43 am
I am currently 21 years old. My first time ni treatment was when I was 15. At that time I had been using for 6 years, but heard all the old timers talking about drinking for 10+ years, so I justified that I hadn’t been using for long enough. Now I have been using for 12 years, which is more then half of my life. I can totally relate to running out of excuses. My final excuse was that I didn’t care about life, and eventually that scared me, I didn’t see myself going anywhere. Finally, I expressed this to someone and they said, “That’s fine, that’s what recovery is all about, finding a new path.” This ended up saving my life, and now after 10 monthes am finally being able to dream once again.
December 28th, 2007 at 5:20 pm
I had no direction nor hope while I was drinking. I thought the booze would give the direction. Like, Rickie, God tapped me on the shoulder one day and presented a choice – stay on the road to destruction that you are on or go for the greatest ride you’ve ever been on in your life!
January 8th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
I was a hopeles alcoholic and drug addict. I didn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel and thought I was destined to live life that way. Even in early recovery I felt hopeless at times. With other alcoholics in recovery and the help from a higher power I was brought back from a hopeless state of mind and body
January 18th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
As it was stated in his story, I had no hope or positive attitude about where I was at in my life and where drugs and alcohol were taking me. My life was also ran on fear, and as it was said, drugs and alcohol created that illusion of taking that fear away. I didnt believe being able to quit using would help me, nor did I belive it was my problem, but I gave sobriety a shot and sure enough drugs and alcohol werent my only problems. Through the 12 steps and Gatehouse, I have realized that everything I thought about life was wrong. Today, I have made progress in that area, and Im not hopless like I once was. I am 20 years old and 11 months sober and today I have things that I look forward to and do not have to spend my time running from my problems.