I was barely 17 and I was an alcoholic. My life revolved around drinking. I hit the ground running at 14 and I came to a screeching halt when my mom told me I needed help. I didn't fight her because I knew she was right. I missed most of the second half of my senior year, but I was in recovery and learning to live for the first time. I left a lot of damage in my wake and I lost a lot of time. Alcoholism runs in my family, so I grew up around addiction. I also learned that I suffered from mental illness -- Panic Disorder -- but I couldn't talk about that during that time. My experience changed me for the better and 35 years later, I'm still a work in progress. Was it hard? Absolutely, but I learned to dig deep and I learned to accept that I had a disease. This journey has taught me that I have choices but my higher power is my guide. Of course, my story is more detailed, but remember: Build a network and never forget hope; there is always hope. Help others, give of yourself and share.

When I was in the Army I was shot by a sniper in 2007. I was in the hospital for three months. I was on a constant morphine drip and when I got out of the hospital I was prescribed morphine pills for my injuries. However the pills were not enough. I often found myself trying to go back to the hospital, saying I needed another surgery. I was addicted to the morphine and didn't know it. I couldn't get more surgery, so to compensate I started to abuse my morphine pills. I was in a unit for injured soldiers and we all had a different type of prescription. We started to trade our pills to get the desired high we were looking for. We would trade Vicodin for Percocet or morphine for Adderall. What made me stop is the death of one of my best friends. We were all taking pills along with alcohol, and two days later he died of heart failure. My unit flew me out to his funeral and his mother asked me "how did my son die?" The pain in her eyes was a pain I didn't want my mother to experience.

I was born into fear. Dad was a violent bully and alcoholic and mom was a victim. When I would escape the house I was tormented in my small town for being different. I knew I was gay at about age five. Hair Salon Barbie was so much more fun than Tonka trucks and GI Joe ... well, maybe not GI Joe. I started getting drunk daily on my Dad's gin stash at age eight and discovered pot by age nine, all to drown out the fear of more beatings, molestation, incest, bullying and suicidal attempts, all of which were a "normal" part of my life. Between a long line of family history of addiction and all of the childhood trauma and the torturous anti-gay bullying, this recipe became the perfect storm for my self-victimization. From my teens to 40 years old I was immensely self-destructive and perpetually suicidal -- most of those years are a blur. On August 24, 2010 God put me in AA which deprogrammed and reprogrammed my mind/heart/spirit. Today I am not a victim -- I am a victor! My purpose now is to help others thrive

I am a recovering alcoholic addict. Growing up I always felt like I was less than and uncomfortable in my own skin. Alcoholism runs deep within my family, so growing up I was terrified of drinking and drugs. However, something changed when I was in college when I took my first drink. Overnight I became a daily blackout drinker. One day, I took a pill to study and within three weeks I was a full-blown prescription drug addict. Four years later, at 23, I had run my career to the ground and lost everything good in my life. I was a shallow, empty shell and hated myself. Something had to change but I couldn't go more than four hours without a drink before getting sick. Wanting my life back, I checked myself into treatment. I was scared that getting sober meant I was kissing my 20's and fun good bye. I was wrong. Through a 12-step program I found myself again and got my life back. Today my life is filled with more fun, laughter and meaning than before. Recovery is possible.