Hi my name is Steve I’m a recovering alcoholic and drug addict.
I was baptized as infant and attended a catholic school and there was rules and things were disciplined. That is where I started to rebel and was asked to leave or to straighten up. I continued my education in public school.
I was sexually abused by an employer of a fast food place where I worked sweeping the parking lot. When I was around 14 years old he would buy me things gave me beer and cigarettes and I was to ashamed to tell anyone.
I experimented with marijuana but my drug of choice was alcohol. My friend and I would stand out in front of the corner market and get someone to score us a bottle of Ripple or mad-dog 2020. We also would take some of grandpas cigarettes and go under the bridge and throw rocks, drank at Friday night high school parties. I liked the effect it gave me. I was a better communicator it gave me self esteem. It was my crutch and my friend.
I had a couple of girlfriends that the relationships lasted for over a year while in High school. They were broken up either by my drinking or because I didn’t want the commitment or better yet they were on to my game.
I graduated High School and if I wasn’t going to go to college I had to go get a job. So I got a job in fence and wire manufacturing plant through a friend of the family. I lost that job, my father got me a job with the company he worked for over 40 years. I lost that job to due to missing work which was due to drinking.
I’m now in my mid 20’s trying other drugs going from job to job and in between a few driving while intoxicated and disorderly conduct arrests. I got put on probation and ordered to take antibuse and lost my license to drive. Now that slowed the party down. So I went on a Geographic and my parents welcomed me back home. I got straight with the courts and the probation officer paid my debt to society. I got cleaned up and went on a geographic that would take me from California to Nevada to Oregon to waking up under a parked car one morning cause I had been drinking the night before.
Having a moment of clarity I crawled out from under the car and I called home to California and a family member suggested I check myself into a hospital or something. I opted to something and went to a John 3:16 mission. When they had the altar call I went up and I asked Jesus to be my Personal Savior and the recovery process started. We had bible study in the morning, fed the homeless during the day and went to chapel services at night.
After I left and went to stay with family got in shape physically. I then went home to California and had a slip and admitted myself into a hospital program to quit drinking (cause of the insurance I had while working for my Brother in law). Then I had it going working a recovery program slip here and there, Three years later I got into the airline industry and seven years later with some more training and education I became a aircraft technician for that major airline.
Then after twelve years of not drinking, I break up with my girl friend and went and bought a 12 pack of beer and the run was on. I got arrested cause some guy wanted a fight. By the grace of God I only paid a fine and didn’t loose my job, however I continued to periodically drink and eventually I did loose that airline job. I loaned my car to drinking friend and he didn’t bring it back so I didn’t go to work so they fired me. That was the third time the other two times I got it back.
Well I was filling sorry for myself and heard about some stuff called crack if this stuff took away some guys house, his car, his wife, his family I had to have it I didn’t care any more. I had recently got married. The wife wasn’t talking. I couldn’t get a job so there I went. I knew alcohol was bad for me so I’ll try this instead. That was my rationalization and what a run it was. It took me places I would normally not go. I did things I would normally not do like heroin. And I used alcohol as a buffer to bring me down off the crack cocaine. So I moderated my drinking and abused the drugs.
I had a reserve of money due to inheritance before this party or run ever got started. My wife found my drugs, told me I had a problem — the next day she was gone. That just opened the door to party. I didn’t have to hide it anymore — party 24/7.
Then one morning I don’t know what happened. I awoke. The airbags had been deployed. The railroad crossing was on top of my rental car and it was sitting on the island in the middle of a four lane highway during rush hour. Thank God know one got hurt. I got arrested for driving while intoxicated. I was on my way home to overdose on heroin and I went to jail instead for 4 hours.
Then I went home to party. Then I would go to work house painting take that money and spend it partying that night. It was a cycle over and over. Then I had to hide it while in a recovery program because of the last arrest.
Then one day I had to surrender. It had beaten me into the ground and I asked Jesus to help me. He put out his hand and welcomed me back. A few times I self medicated, but God told me, “I want all of you. If you want to get a new life, let the old go and let Me show the way.” I’m finding His way in His Word where it has been all along.
By the Grace of God I haven’t had to take crack cocaine, alcohol or a cigarette in ten months and over a year and half free of heroin and methadone. So when I asked Jesus to be my personal Savior He kept His word. Amen Thank You Jesus