How old are you? 47
How many years sober? 6
So you got sober at: 40
Describe your childhood: Amazing. I was spoiled, very outgoing and active in sports – particularly soccer.
What was your drug? Alcohol mainly.
When was the first time you drank/used? I was 10. I found my parent’s boxed up stash of alcohol and wanted to make friends and become popular – it worked.
What was “life” like at the worst of your addiction? It was New Year’s Eve – I was 16 days out of rehab. I told my wife I wanted to go to a marathon meeting but I really went and got high on meth. My wife called me wanting me to come home. All she wanted was that New Year’s kiss with her husband and I was too out of it to even talk to her. That was the worst I felt as a human being in that moment. Chaos was all around me and I looked at my life and realized I am not the man, husband, father, friend I was raised to be – I was a dirt bag and I hated it.
When did you make the choice to get sober? I never wanted to get sober – I wanted to be able to drink and not hurt people anymore. When I finally had an understanding of what the steps are designed to accomplish, I got to where people could drink in front of me and I didn’t have the desire to drink anymore.
How was recovery in the beginning? I stayed drunk for a couple years after my Meth night. It took 20 years from my first intro to AA to stay sober. At 23 years old I stayed sober for 15 months – then 9 months here, 2 months there – off and on for years.
What was the biggest thing that helped you maintain your sobriety? The steps – my life is not about drinking or not drinking. Drinking is unimportant to me even though I honestly feel like life would not be as good as it is now had I never been an alcoholic.
What is life like now? Overall amazing. It’s the complete opposite of the shit-storm it was before.
How are you being of service to other addicts? I sponsor people, I share my story, I engage in the lives of everyone who will let me. This is my way of life now – not just to stay sober but to help others.
If you had one thing to say to someone who is struggling with addiction what would that be? If you could push a button that would make you not want to drink again would you push it? That button is AA.