March 6, 2009. Eight years ago. I finally had enough. I finally decided that the life that I was living was not the one I wanted. So what did I do? I asked for help. I surrendered. I listened when I didn’t want to. I followed suggestions that I didn’t want to. I showed up when I...

I still remember the first time I ever felt truly free. I was 16, going to the South Florida Fair in my friend Chris’ busted down broham. We were listening to OutKast’s Aquemini and he handed me a blunt. As I smoked, all the worry and concern I had experienced my entire life...

My name is Steph and I’m an addict. That’s how I introduce myself these days at 12-step meetings. It’s part of who I am, but let’s start with how I got here. I was born and raised in Elmwood Park, N.J., a small town near New York City. I have two younger brothers, and out of our...

I recently celebrated my 10th year in long-term recovery (April 8, 2017). In hitting milestones, its normal to reflect back on moments of the journey. I think back to July 2005. A dark room. Table, desk, chairs. I’m with a staff psychiatrist of the Green Oaks Psychiatric...

Andrew Was More Than Just An Addict How do we remember someone as special as Andrew? 99 percent of the time, the first thing people mention, is his incredible intellect. From the very beginning, Andrew was extremely bright. He was accepted into the Gifted Program in first grade....

My Story isn’t going to come out in one continuous line. It will not clean itself up or try to contort itself in to a shape that easily resembles success or moral.  I have not reached success. I’ve reached right now. My reach still extends.  I achieve balance by anchoring myself...

I am open about my life in recovery. I will not be silenced, shamed, or invisible: I have a disease. And I battled my addiction alone for years. I didn't have role models, doctors, friends, or colleagues who showed me how they had struggled with addiction and succeeded to find...

If you had looked at my life from the outside growing up, it's kind of hard to imagine that one day I would find myself completely alone and hopeless wishing that I would be dead. I actually welcomed that idea at one time in my life. I was raised in a loving family. They...

My name is Mackenzie Phillips. I am Shane’s mom, I am a drug and alcohol counselor, I am a writer, singer, actress, but above all this: I am a woman in recovery from substance use disorder. Had I been asked to define myself a while back, this would not have been the way I would...