Summary
In this testimonial, Affect member David shares how he achieved sobriety for his family.
Virtual treatment can make it easier for you to remain committed to your recovery. We know that its not always about a desire to change, but all the curveballs life can throw your way. Affect’s app makes it easy to connect to care in order to get the help you need. Hear how this made a difference for Affect member, David, in his story!
What made you decide to join Affect?
David: Hello, my name is David, and I chose Affect as an option due to the fact that I live in a small town, and there’s not much available as far as resources and treatment, uh, programs, and I actually kind of just, I don’t exactly remember how, but I kind of just stumbled upon it somehow just off the internet, and I thought I’d just, you know, give it a try and I tried it out, did the initial intake and all that good stuff, and I was accepted. I’ve been struggling with substance use disorder, if you want to call it that, uh, for a good 25 years of my life. So I figured, you know, I’m not getting any younger and I wanna try something that’s gonna hopefully work for me uh without having to leave my home because I’m transportationally challenged, I’m financially challenged and, you know, I’m, I wouldn’t say my life is difficult, but I’m facing a lot of challenges that restrict me from leaving the home and I appreciate the the video groups and therapy and counseling cause it’s convenient and to me, you know, it’s the same as actually being in person cause you get to know these people in the groups and you share. You experience, you know, the recovery process, all together. So I enjoy Affect, and I, I would recommend it. I have recommended it to a few of my friends and, you know, whether they joined or not, I don’t know, but um. Yeah, that’s in a nutshell, my story.
Tell us what your life was like before Affect. What were you struggling with?
David: So my life before Affect was not so much in chaos, but I was, you know, actively in in use. Actively using and my companion, at the time, was also using, so it was– The drugs and alcohol were readily available. We indulged together. And it went on for quite a while. Prior to that, you know, I’ve had my share of uh trying different drugs, you know, my drug of choice is alcohol. It’s the most readily available, but I’ve done, you know, I’m not proud of it, not gonna share any war stories, but I, you know, I’ve indulged in almost everything out there. You know, this, this started way back in high school with marijuana and alcohol, and it just moved on to stronger, heavier, dangerous, substances. And, of course, I got in trouble with the legal system, and I was in and out of jail and rehab, and jail and rehab, and I’m, I’m just fed up with it, you know, I’m fed up with my, my own actions, so I’m trying to be a man of positive action and leave the drug and alcohol use behind me.
How has your life improved since you joined Affect?
David: Yes, definitely my life has improved in the areas of, you know, recovery and it’s not only the substances we we recover from, but the other aspects, you know, the behaviors, the conduct the personal neglect. And being on probation, it’s given me incentive to stay on track. I’m not just doing it for probation, I’m doing it because I, I do wanna make a change in myself. Because I do have family, I do have children, and I want to be a positive influence on them, not a negative.
What has been your favorite part of working with Affect?
David: As far as my favorite part of Affect, I think I like it all, you know, it’s all equally important, and the groups are beneficial as well as the one on one, so I consider them all equal in favor. I don’t have the convenience of certain things, um, but for what it’s worth and what I’m getting out of it, it is all favorable for me.
What advice would you give to someone considering getting treatment?
David: For anybody considering treatment, whether you’re a man or woman, old or young, or whatever, it’s a starting point, you know, it’s a positive learning experience, and it’s a healthy change in lifestyle, and, you know, it has its Positive and ups, you know, I can’t say it has its downs, I mean. Um, but it’s, it’s, uh, treatment is good, whether it’s residential, inpatient, or something like this, you know, um, doing it via online or however you wanna call it, um, virtual, excuse me, but yeah, it’s uh treatment is, it’s all, it’s all good and it will definitely improve your overall life. Um, if it doesn’t, maybe then, you know, you gotta try a little bit harder. I mean, there’s some effort involved and and changes needed to be made. So, um, nothing’s perfect in this world, so you gotta find what works for you and go from there.
