Addiction can sometimes feel hopeless for those struggling with the disease, and for their families and loved ones. These stories speak to the overwhelming challenges of addiction—and offer hope for healing and recovery. They are the stories of our neighbors in the Spokane community, told with immense courage, with the hope of encouraging others in their fight.
We are in this together. I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression when I was 12 years old. I started using substances at age I did LSD in 8th grade, and that was my first experience with drugs. When my dad came to pick me up, he knew instantly what was happening, and decided it was best to transfer me to a different school district.
He did this in hopes that I would change the environment, friends, and decisions I was making. For a couple of years, it worked. I was playing sports, mostly kept to myself, and never had a consistent group of friends.
Once I stopped playing sports, my parents told me that I had to get a job to keep myself busy. I worked at a small, family owned restaurant, where all of my co-workers were years old. I started to insert myself into their friend group. They all smoked and drank on the regular, and encouraged me to join in. I quickly started smoking everyday, and I would drink, but rarely. I never thought substances would become a problem. While working at this restaurant, I met my now ex-boyfriend.
I was 17 and he was My parents, and siblings were immediately concerned. He was drinking all the time, and I remember thinking that it was a problem, but I ignored it. I had already been struggling pretty bad since I was 12 years old with my depression, and the pandemic made this a lot worse. At 17 I moved in with my boyfriend, so that I could be with him during quarantine. My depression felt like it was getting worse and worse by the day.
