09/17/2026
This November I’ll be 6 years clean and honestly sometimes I still can’t believe I get to say that
In 2019 I overdosed and you would think that would’ve been enough to make me stop but it wasn’t
And I think that’s something people who haven’t struggled with addiction don’t always understand
I knew what I was doing was destroying my life
I knew I could lose everything
I had literally overdosed and scared everyone who loved me and somehow even THAT wasn’t enough to keep me clean
Addiction really is that powerful
I wish I could say I had this huge wake up call and changed my life overnight but that’s not what happened
I struggled
I went back
I made promises to myself that I couldn’t keep
and eventually one day I chose to try again
And then I just kept choosing it
One day at a time until somehow those days turned into almost 6 years
And the craziest part is when I think about the person I was back then I genuinely don’t even recognize her anymore
I know that was me but she feels like a completely different person
My kids have their mom back
Not just a mom who is physically there but THEIR MOM
The mom who is present
who shows up
who remembers things
who laughs with them and annoys them and drives them everywhere and gets to be there for all the little boring everyday moments that I could’ve missed
And that part will probably always make me emotional because they deserved this version of me all along
There was a time in my life when I truly didn’t know if I would ever get out of that cycle and now I have a life that the old me wouldn’t even recognize
I’m not ashamed of where I came from either
I hate some of the things addiction took from me but I also look back at that girl with so much compassion now because she was fighting something that almost took everything from her
And somehow she made it here
Almost 6 years clean
my kids have their mom back
my family has me back
and most importantly I have myself back
If you’re in the middle of it right now and you’ve tried before and went back please don’t think that means you can’t do it
I’m living proof that the time it finally sticks might be the next time you try
