The Red Zone client Sean Wilford's story of addiction begins on the sunny beaches in Euclid, Ohio where he and his friends use to sneak away and use marijuana.
"I was a little rebel and started smoking weed when I was 11 with an older friend and I liked it. I would tell my parents I was going over a friend's house and we would chill and smoke on the beach all day. It was an escape from reality like a euphoric bliss."
His relationships with older friends normalized his daily marijuana use and by the age of 13, he was combining his current addiction with alcohol and hallucinogens. By 15, his addiction and substance experimentation progressed. Diagnosed with ADHD, his access to Adderall cleared a pathway to the use of more pharmaceutical drugs like Percocet and Vicodin.
Slowly Sean's downward spiral landed him in a dangerous place of full-blown addiction. He would find himself engulfed into a 3-month bout with of regular cocaine use and later met a crowd that introduced him to heroin. He reflects on that time: "Everything went bad real fast."
After losing his apartment, his job and even his friends, Sean's life began spiraling out of control. It was during this time his child was born and he and girlfriend would both battled addiction together. "I moved to Cleveland with my child's mother and we started getting high on weed, heroin and using alcohol."
Although this period would be one of the darkest times of his life, Sean still worked earnestly to fight his addiction, enrolling into multiple recovery programs. "I just couldn't take it anymore."
Contrary to belief, the road to recovery is not linear and Sean's battle would land him to multiple sober and treatment houses and eventually led him to develop a relationship with a higher power and purpose in his life. He explains, "It's a disease, and there were plenty of times I wanted to stop and no matter how much people think it's a choice, it's not. The only choice is the first time."
While working with a sponsor who owned a construction company, he would be introduced to contract work. He is currently working to pursue a career in this industry. "I want to become a contractor and remodel houses and start selling them."
Sean's journey is like millions of people battling with addiction, it's a battle that is full of highs and lows, but also hope and recovery. The 29-year-old finds his strength in his consistent decision to uphold his commitment to recovery. "If I altered by reality, would I be as strong as I am now?"
Aligning himself with The Red Zone has proven to be a powerful decision in the right direction and his work to remain sober is a testament to his discipline and our compassionate and trained staff.
"Recovery is possible for everybody. We make it more difficult then it needs to be. It's actually simple."
Are you or someone you know battling with addiction and need help? We are now accepting new clients for our addiction services, call us at 330-787-9180 and let us help you.
