Real People Share Their Sober Before and After Photos

And the way that I sober success stories things, the way that I cultivate my relationships with people. I get to live with both sides of me, the ugly and the good. I can maneuver things and figure out what’s a good decision for me. The gray area just kind of becomes a little less. There’s a whole world that is so celebratory and celebrates you finding your truth.

Shame is having negative beliefs about yourself and your self-worth. Guilt is having negative feelings about your past behavior. People in recovery can experience a lot of shame simply for having become addicted in the first place. Most people who make their way into recovery have left a lot of pain and suffering in their wake. Feeling guilty or ashamed of past behavior or actions during active addiction is natural and healthy. It is also important to seek help from a therapist.

People Who Became Successful While in Addiction Recovery

“I had so much doubt and insecurity my entire life. Alcohol and drugs allowed me to have a new identity, one where I felt empowered for a long time,” she said. Those are traits with a double-edged sword that can lend themselves to a disposition to substance abuse, but they’ve also allowed me to lead an exciting, adventurous life. They also make me a great entrepreneur, business owner, and leader in general. I’d also never give up the personal growth I’ve experienced in the last year.

Six https://ecosoberhouse.com/ later, after an intervention, he entered a 22-day treatment program, then began attending AA meetings. This April, he celebrated five years of sobriety. INSIDER spoke with 16 individuals who’ve learned this by living through it. These stories and photos show their journeys from addiction to treatment to hard-fought recovery.

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I had someone I was at Herren Wellness with come up from New Jersey for my one-year celebration there, and that meant to the world to me. My whole goal right now is to be a good husband, a good father, and to help other alcoholics and addicts who are going through the same thing that I have. There is no worse feeling than that hopelessness of wanting to disappear. I was in a meeting with Chris one day – and I’ve mentioned I love sports – and he told me that it’s like it is the 4th quarter and I’m down 40 points and I need my best team with me. I would think all the time that the best thing for me to do would be to disappear. I felt I would be doing everyone a favor – my family, my parents, my wife, and my children.

He was a heavy drinker for 20 years, until his life came to a screeching halt. Todd found the program of AA, which led him closer to a higher power. Today, he’s two and half years sober and continues to see the miracles show up in recovery.

Collin B🥳 2 Years Sober 🤯

She continued working as a freelancer — despite getting paid very little — so that she could drink all day at home. She went through a 12-step program and, since then, has become “unrecognizable.” Sobriety has helped Chelsea Dueitt repair her relationship with her son. “Music has gotten me through my hardest times in recovery,” she said. “I find when I’m in my head I will just pick up my guitar and it relaxes me.” She gained weight and her psoriasis flared, leaving her body covered in red patches.

• The first time Kimberly Wessels drank, at age 18, she had two bottles of wine, blacked out, and threw up on herself.
• I rode back in a taxi to the airport crying and promising myself I would get help when I got home.
• I told my mom I was going to die from this disease, that it was my destiny.
• Born in Michigan and at 13 years old he moved to Florida, by 14, he started experimenting with drugs.
• “I saw someone on social media that I was friends with back in high school and who I knew had a drug problem,” he told INSIDER.