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Hello. My name is Arnold Hudson. I am a recovering addict. I made the decision to use drugs when I was a teenager because I could not cope with feelings of anger, feelings of abandonment, and feelings of being “less than.” As I grew into adulthood,\u00a0these feelings became more intense.\u00a0 And to cope, I used stronger drugs and used them more often.<\/p>\n
What I didn’t know was that using drugs was slowly destroying my positive outlook on life.\u00a0 I began to always see what was wrong instead of what was right. Near the end of my 28 years of using, I lost my will to live.\u00a0 I came to believe that death was a good option.\u00a0 After my third attempt at rehab, I managed to stay clean for 10 months. But, I did not take suggestions offered by counselors to continue to stay clean.\u00a0 Once again, I was using.<\/p>\n
Things changed one night when I was “escorted” out of a crack house because I ran out of money. I ended up sitting on a street corner, crying, and asking myself how I ended up here again. Then, it hit me: this is where I\u00a0always ended up. I was just never willing to admit it. I made a decision then that I would do everything necessary to stay clean.\u00a0 That was June 7, 1995, and I have not used any mood or mind altering substances since then.<\/p>\n
My life has gotten progressively better in the last 27 1\/2 years. Regaining my self-esteem and serenity has been my greatest reward, and I believe anyone can turn their life around if they are willing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"