BY: Marc McMahon

So it is time, is it? Things probably haven’t been going all that well I take it? Your addiction has finally begun to cause enough grief in your life that you decided to make a change? Good for you, my friend, it is your time to taste some of the amazing pleasures and see some of the beautiful sights that only a clean & sober life can offer those of us who suffer from the disease of addiction.

First of all, I would like to say you have already accomplished one of the most important and fundamentally difficult tasks, deciding you need help. Again I would just like to say great job on that! That decision for many is far more terrifying than actually walking into a treatment center on the first day.

So where does that leave you? Maybe with a little bit of what is life going to look like without being high or drunk as often as you like? Or the fear of the unknown treatment center you have never been to and what exactly is going to go on there with you and your new found recovery?



Let me say this you’re not alone, not by a longshot. Do you realize that a 2011 National Institute on Drug Abuse (N.I.D.A.) study showed that over 20 million Americans above the age of 11 suffered from some sort of Substance Abuse Disorder? This is why treatment centers have wait lists to get in anymore, simply because the demand for their service is so high.

Treatment from my experience and I have a lot of it on that topic, unfortunately, has always been a good for me. I have been in 10 inpatient programs over the last 21 years from state funded, low budget facilities, to top notch private pay resort types and one thing remained constant through every stay. The friendships and the comradery, the love and the understanding I experienced while I was there from the other clients has stayed with me for life.

You are about to embark on a journey of healing, filled with a new found hope you have only been able to dream of lately. It will be a time of self -reflection and perception, a time of laughter and tears, (both of sorrow and joy) but most importantly, it will be a time of love. Love for your new found comrades who suffer from the same affliction as you and who know you and what you’re going through as well as anyone, because they are going through it too.



You will undoubtedly have some of the first days of class in a new school butterflies in your stomach but have no fear. I would say that just about every new client that has walked through that very front door probably felt the same way. So just go easy and breathe. I always found that my anxiety was put to rest quickly as I was welcomed with open arms and after the formalities were finished and all the papers signed, food and rest were their next main priority for me.

Then after a good rest, your first full day of participating in treatment begins and you get a feel for how the schedule goes and you go to sleep, day two down! You will as I usually did, find yourself waking up a little more confident the next day than you did the one before because now you know what to expect. You go through your day, you meet new people, and you begin to bond in a way that I cannot quite put into words. Let’s just say it is very unique, and genuine from my experiences.

When all is said and done and the sun goes down again day two is over and you are a seasoned treatment veteran now. Look how fast time is going already, your almost on day three and you haven’t even finished my article yet. Time fly’s when you’re having fun.

“Welcome to the beginning of the first day, of the rest of your life.”

The best part, it will be a time of forgiveness and compassion. Not only towards others but before you leave there you will find yourself slowly beginning to forgive and care about yourself again as well. That my friend is a beautiful thing! Look at treatment as a vacation, the only kind you can walk into completely broken, and walk out of glued back together. It is now your job to make sure that the glue has time to set so it holds firm enough to make sure you never break again, Love you!

Welcome to the place that turns tears of sorrow into tears of Joy! Be blessed.

About the Author: Marc is a 48 yr. old Author, speaker, and soldier against the disease of addiction. He resides in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Marc’s hobbies include writing, Mt. biking, hiking, and drinking copious amounts of coffee. Marc is also the proud father, of one very outstanding young man. As Marc always likes to say “Be blessed, my friends.”