My Story K. F., Chicago, IL

K. F., Chicago, IL

Being from a small town and moving to the big city is enough stress. I was a social drinker until I moved into the city. I had a tough time adjusting. I moved because of the job opportunities that were available in the city. I was to start my new job the following week after I settled into my apartment. The only thing that I was concerned about was the drug test. I never had to take a drug test before. The only people that I new that had to take a drug test where truck drivers and people who worked at the post office. I new that I would pass because I never took drugs. In fact, where I’m from, we don’t have a drug problem like they do in the city.

Anyway, the day before I was to start, I received a phone call from human resources. I was told that I didn’t have to bother showing up on Monday for the job orientation because I failed the drug test. I never new that if you drank alcohol that you could fail a drug test. I told human resources that I’m not a alcoholic, I only drank once in a while. Before moving to the city I had a few beers for celebration. I didn’t see anything wrong with it but I guess the company did.

I had a hard time finding an office job because the ones that I applied to required a drug test. Weeks passed and I had to settle for a non-office related job in order to pay the bills. That’s when I became depressed and began to drink more often. In the past, I drank occasionally. Since I moved into the city, I began to drink daily. I spent most of my money drinking and barely had enough money for rent. That’s when I decided to do something about my life. I didn’t want to move back to the country and have my family and friends see me the way I was, always drunk. I needed to clean up my act and then move back.

I went to the library and did research on the Internet for help. I found many organizations that helped people with drug and alcohol addictions. I found web sites such as abuse.org.il, abusesubstance.net and addictionrecovery.cc , just to name a few.

Then I found an ad post on a very popular classified advertising forum that caught my eye. It was a rehabilitation place that offered free programs and it offered room and board. It wasn’t what you called a traditional drug rehabilitation center. It was an alternative drug treatment center owned by a Vietnam vet and his wife who was a former nurse. This was a big mistake. My advice to anyone is to stick with reputable rehabilitation programs. There are many out there.

This so-called rehab program was located in the city outskirts in a 13-room mansion. There were 6 people living there already who where participating in the alternative rehab program administered by the couple. The wife walked around all day dressed in a long black dressed with her silver-gray hair tied up in a bun. The husband also wore all black. One night, I woke up from my sleep because I heard screaming coming from downstairs.

When I came out the room, the other patients where gathered around the balcony leaning against the railing over looking the downstairs living room parlor. When I asked what on earth was going on, one of the guys had said that they were exorcising one of the patients. WHAT? I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The wife yelled out, “Ya’ll go on back to bed.” Then the husband said, “No, let them stay. Let them watch.”

I couldn’t believe it. “Drink no more! Drink no more! You demonoid!” yelled the man who was in charged of the exorcise. The person that they had pinned down to the floor was a middle-aged woman with long stringy red hair. She kept kicking and moving around on the floor with an angry expression on her pimply face with white foam coming out of her mouth. The wife was collecting the disgusting foam into a empty mayonnaise jar.

“What is your name?” The man asked the woman. Then she started speaking what sounded like French and her eyes where rolling in the back of her head. The others were standing around being entertained. Then the woman kicked the husband in the face and he fell back. The wife tried grabbing her but the woman got loose and ran and hid into the coat closet.

Then the wife practically out of breath asked if someone could bring her a clean white sheet. One of the guys standing around ran into his room and pulled his sheet from his bed and threw it down. The husband got up from the floor nursing his bloody nose with his handkerchief, opened the door and grabbed the woman by the neck in a head lock and dragged her out of the closet. The wife then wrapped the woman up in a sheet like a mummy. At that point, I had seen enough. That’s when I decided to pack up my things and leave. I walked all the way to the nearest convenience store and called a taxi to take me to the nearest hotel.

The next day, I went to the library and looked up rehabilitation centers, (reputable ones. I found addictiontreatmentcenter.biz and addiction.org.il to be very helpful.

I then found a drug treatment center that was only about 15 minutes north of the city. They had a good reputation with a good treatment program. Since I have joined the new treatment center, I have been clean for 2 years. I moved back to my small town and got a job at one of our local alcoholic’s anonymous programs as a counselor. Since I left that forsaken half-way house, I heard that it burned down and the couple along with their patients where killed in the fire. There are many programs out there claiming to help people who suffer from drug addiction. The key to a successful recovery from drugs is finding a reputable drug treatment program.