I’ve never shied away from openly discussing my past struggles – namely, my former addiction. For nearly ten years, I was putting some kind of poison into my body around the clock. For me to finally knock the habit and quit drugs forever, it would take certain life changes and a massive wake-up call.
I was first introduced to drugs when I was 16 years old. Believe it or not, from that moment on, I wanted to stop … but I went on to do drugs for years and years.
Although I overdosed three times and had been beaten nearly to death by dealers, I continued to use. Daily failure killed my confidence and self-worth. As a result, I started leaning harder into the downward spiral in hopes that I’d hit.
To someone else, three ODs and a pistol-whipping would be a sufficient all-time low. However, it was only when I nearly lost my family that the message started to sink in.
What It Took to Quit Drugs Once and for All
At 25, I was in the worst throes of my addiction. Nothing up to that point was enough for me to break the cycle. Until I disappointed my mother.
I showed up to a family gathering high on drugs and acting a fool. Needless to say, I embarrassed my mother. Right there, she told me to never come around again until I was clean.
Two weeks later, I entered a rehab facility.
Equally vital to quitting was what I did afterward to get rid of those demons for good. See, in the treatment center, a “well-meaning” counselor assured me I would fail and use again.
That pissed me off and I wanted to prove him wrong. More importantly, I had a realization.
The Truth About My Addiction
At the end of the day, addiction was never my real issue. I was just hyper-focused on the wrong things. The only reason I ever got into trouble was because I was bored and ignoring my potential. From that day forward, I made sure I was focusing my full attention on my dreams and had no empty spots in my schedule. And this mindset has not only translated into years of sobriety, but massive financial and personal success.
To sum everything up: if there’s anything you can learn from my experience, it’s that getting on a dark path is not the end of the road.
YOU CAN TURN IT AROUND.
Whether it’s as serious as drug addiction or simply losing your motivation, you can turn it around. You just have to chase the real greatness within yourself.
Go after it. Happy New Year!
