Im so proud of you

This is so incredibly true and needs to be said louder for the people in the back! 👏 Addiction doesn't discriminate. It doesn't care about your education, your bank account, your family background, or how strong you think you are. One devastating loss, one overwhelming trauma, one moment when the pain becomes unbearable - and suddenly you're reaching for anything that promises to make it stop. I used to think I was different. I used to think addiction happened to "other people" - until it happened to me. Life hit me with more than I could handle, and I made choices I never thought I'd make. What broke my heart the most wasn't the addiction itself - it was how people treated me when I was at my lowest point. The judgment, the shame, the way people talked about me like I was less than human. Like I chose to destroy my life for fun. Nobody chooses to become an addict. Nobody wakes up and says "I want to lose everything I love today." We choose to escape pain. We choose to numb trauma. We choose to survive the only way we know how in that moment. And sometimes that survival mechanism becomes the very thing that's killing us. To anyone reading this who's never struggled with addiction: Thank God you haven't had to walk this path. But please remember that your compassion could be the difference between someone finding recovery or giving up completely. To anyone reading this who IS struggling: You are not weak. You are not worthless. You are not less than anyone else. You're a human being who got hurt and is trying to heal. There is hope, there is help, and there is a way out. Recovery taught me that the opposite of addiction isn't sobriety - it's connection. When we stop judging and start supporting, when we stop shaming and start understanding, when we stop writing people off and start believing in second chances - that's when healing happens. That person you're judging for their addiction could be your child, your parent, your best friend tomorrow. Addiction touches every family, every community, every walk of life.

@Ann Mitchell I stole what yopu wrote and added what I wrote and posted it on Facebook......So powerful

WOW! 19 months tonight at 9 PM - that's absolutely incredible! 🎉 I'm so proud of you and how far you've come! Looking back at celebrating 7 months a year ago and now being at 19 months? That's amazing progress! You've more than doubled your sobriety time, and that shows real commitment and strength. "I deserve to know what it's like to live life on my own terms" - this gave me chills! YES, you absolutely deserve that! You deserve to wake up every day making choices from a clear mind, not from addiction. You deserve to live YOUR life, not the life that alcohol was controlling. "To not give up on myself" - this is everything. You kept believing in yourself even when it was hard. You kept showing up for yourself even when recovery felt challenging. That's what real self-love looks like. 19 months is a HUGE milestone! You've been through seasons, holidays, triggers, good days, bad days, and you've chosen recovery through all of it. That takes incredible strength and courage. You're living proof that we CAN change our lives completely. You're showing everyone in this community what's possible when we don't give up on ourselves. Tonight at 9 PM, celebrate everything you've accomplished! You've earned every single day of those 19 months. Keep going, warrior! You're absolutely crushing this recovery thing, and I can't wait to celebrate 2 years with you! 💙✨ Life on your own terms is beautiful, isn't it?

This is incredibly powerful and shows just how much you've grown in your recovery. The wisdom you've gained is profound - understanding that substances were never actually helping, they were just masking and destroying what's truly important. "That 'help' would only distort or destroy what is left and is still beautiful to remember" - this hit me so hard. You've learned that grief, even the most unbearable kind, deserves to be felt fully. Those raw emotions of love are sacred, and numbing them would rob you of honoring what you've lost. Standing tall in your hometown, in your old stomping grounds, and choosing recovery? That takes incredible strength. You faced your triggers head-on and proved to yourself that you're not that person anymore. Watching someone you love disappear to memory loss - I can't imagine how heart-wrenching that must be. But you're choosing to be present for it, to feel it all, to honor both the loss and the love. "I DO NEED TO KEEP GOING" - YES! Real help. Proven help. Self-care, recovery activities, healthy relationships, therapy, meetings, community. This is what actual support looks like, not the deceitful "help" that buried you before. You've discovered something so important: We can handle life's hardest moments without substances. We can feel the deepest pain and still choose recovery. Your grief is honored by your sobriety, not betrayed by it. Thank you for sharing this wisdom. You're showing everyone here that recovery isn't about avoiding pain - it's about facing it with real tools and real support. Keep going, warrior. You're exactly where you need to be. 💙

CONGRATULATIONS! 🎉🎉🎉 I am SO incredibly proud of you and everything you've accomplished! Graduating drug court is HUGE! That takes incredible dedication, hard work, and commitment to your recovery. You showed up, you did the work, and you made it through - that's amazing! And a whole year sober on Monday? That's a massive milestone! 365 days of choosing recovery, choosing yourself, choosing life over addiction. Every single one of those days matters, and you should be so proud of yourself for each one. Moving to Buffalo for a new opportunity? That takes courage! Starting fresh, chasing new dreams, building a new life in recovery - that's what transformation looks like. You're not just surviving anymore - you're THRIVING! This is what recovery can do. This is what happens when you don't give up on yourself. You're proof that change is possible, that second chances work, that people CAN turn their lives around completely. I'm so proud of you I could cry! You're an inspiration to everyone in this community who's still fighting their way to where you are. Celebrate every single one of these wins! You've earned them! Drug court graduation, one year sober, new city, new opportunities - you're literally living proof that recovery works! Keep going, warrior! The best is yet to come! 💙✨ Buffalo is lucky to have you! Can't wait to hear about all the amazing things you accomplish next!