I lived in active addiction for 12+ years, starting off with smoking weed and drinking, and through the years found heroin, benzos, and methamphetamine.  Initially. I started using because I liked the effect produced.  What I also found is that it made it easy to cope with the hard time’s life sometimes throws at us.  I was able to stay numb and live under the delusion that I was happy and free.  Somewhere in my late teens/early twenties, I crossed an invisible line to which I could not come back from.

Drinking and using became a necessity.  It was no longer a desire or a want.

In my mid-twenties I entered a detox facility.  This experience was nothing but a short break.  When everything finally came to a head in 2013, I entered my first treatment center.  I was introduced to acupuncture, massage therapy, steps 1,2 and 3, psychiatry, and art therapy.  In hindsight, it is no wonder why I didn’t stay sober.  I went to a few more treatment centers after this, inevitably ending up relapsing.  Time after time.  After a handful of treatment centers, sober livings, and aftercare programs I somehow ended up flying from California to Texas, coming off one of the worst runs I have ever had.  I had no idea that the place I was going would be the place that ended up saving my life.

Origins is a place I hold dear to my heart.  It was the first treatment center that provided a solution to my problem.

I was taught that drugs and alcohol were a symptom of a bigger problem, my internal condition.  It was there where I was finally taken through all 12 steps thoroughly.  I was able to delve into each step and really gain the knowledge one needs to get sober and stay sober.  It was here where I learned about the importance of spirituality, what step one really means, how to do a proper 5th step, how to facilitate a 5th step, how to sponsor, the list of the knowledge and tools I gained is endless.  I am forever grateful for my experience here.  Another important note to add is that I am a repeat offender at ORC.  I had a step one problem with leaving the first time and was welcomed back for a second stay with open arms and zero judgments.  The date was July 8th, 2016.

I am now a grateful recovered addict and alcoholic.

I say this because God has now afforded me the opportunity to help others who are struggling.  God is the reason I am sober today; however, it was Origins that provided me with the platform I needed to take the right steps toward true freedom and happiness.

For me when I think of Origins, the feelings that come up are love, passion, comradery, and friendship.  I owe it all to God and to Origins, and I am forever grateful.

-Frank S., Origins Recovery Centers’ alum