Addiction Talk

Even the strongest can ask for help.  Former SEAL Dan Cerillo shares his story of overcoming the stigma of addiction and asking for help.

Lauren Sisler is a multi national award-winning sports broadcaster working with ESPN, the SEC Network, and AL.com. Her journey was not always full of victories and celebrations. In 2003 as a freshman at Rutgers University, tragedy struck Lauren’s world when she unexpectedly lost both of her parents to their concealed battle with addiction. Through her grief and despair, Lauren found the courage to...

 Michelle talks about the significance of connecting with women of recovery from all over the world and talking about stepping out of their shame to speak their truth.

Michele’s long journey with addiction began when she was introduced to benzodiazepines. She became so addicted to them that she began forging prescriptions until she was caught and charged with a misdemeanor.  Today she is grateful that she didn’t die as a result of her enormous pill intake.

Chad’s life before active recovery has run the gamut — going in and out of treatment, being put on probation for a felony and being a new father who exposed  his child to the world of drug abuse. It became so bad that he would choose to spend last $20 on drugs instead of buying his daughter diapers. The moment he realized that he needed to get help came when his daughter saw him at a true low.  Be...

Former BMX champion Tony Hoffman connects with American Addiction Centers to share the story of his journey from opioid addiction, homelessness, and prison, to getting sober, coaching the Olympic BMX team, and traveling the country to spread his message of recovery from the disease of addiction.

 For anyone who has experienced the trauma of a parent with an addiction, it can cause a lot of pain, anguish, and distrust within the entire family. And as a child, it’s extremely hard to understand why a parent won’t stop using drugs or alcohol. Even after a parent has gotten sober, the resentment and anger can easily become lifelong baggage and negatively influence your own life and relationshi...

When Jordan looks back on life before addiction, he realizes there was not one huge event that led him into addiction. He was just a kid longing for a stable household while living out of bags and blankets. He had too much freedom and did whatever his friends did in order to feel accepted. On a daily basis, Jordan could be found carrying out his so called ‘rituals’ – rolling up weed, cutting up co...

During active addiction, Jordan did things that he wasn’t proud of in order to survive. He lost pieces of himself along the way, until he eventually got fed up. He was tired of the way that nothing in his life seemed worthwhile and wanted to feel the way he did back when he attended his first AA meeting. Going into treatment, Jordan felt powerless but soon became enthralled in meetings, making con...

Mason always told himself that he would never be a heroin addict. When he turned 18 he was kicked out of his house for cutting his hair because his parents didn’t approve of him being transgender . Moving in with his girlfriend, the two started doing Xanax together. About two weeks in, Mason was in a Xanax blackout and woke up smoking heroin. Forced into treatment, Mason’s only motivation to go wa...