Veteran Finds Renewal in Recovery and a Daughter’s Hugs
3-minute read
Veteran Finds Renewal in Recovery and a Daughter’s Hugs
3-minute read
Devastated by personal loss, broke, homeless, addicted to heroin, and resorting to crime to pay for his addiction, David didn’t feel much reason for hope. How could the U.S. Army Veteran find renewal?
Finding purpose in the service
David joined the Army a few years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which occurred when he was in high school. “I just always felt like I had to do something, and I wanted to serve my country,” he says.
He remained in the Army for 6 years, serving as an infantryman.
“It definitely takes an emotional toll on you,” he says. “And a lot of times you’re too young or stubborn to realize that’s what's happening. I'd never done any counseling before. So, I couldn't really identify that it was causing trauma in a sense.”
Losing his sense of self
Years after completing his service in 2010, David returned to Arizona to live with his older brother. By then, the Veteran already had experienced challenges with drug and alcohol misuse.
Throughout his life, his brother had always been someone he could count on. “He’s about 2 years older than me and he was my best friend,” David says. “When I wasn’t at work, I was usually with him. We’d spend Christmas together.” After he moved in, they often rode their Harley Davidson motorcycles together.
“We’re going out to ride our Harleys one day and I decided, I think I was hung over, I didn't want to go. So he left by himself and he never came back,” David says. “He got in a motorcycle accident and fell into a coma and then passed away the next day.”
“That’s when I started smoking heroin—turned into a person I didn’t even know anymore,” David recalls.
Second Chances
Reaching a turning point
David’s criminal activity caught up with him at 5 a.m. one morning. He was homeless and sleeping in his car in Las Vegas when a police officer woke him and ordered him to step out of the vehicle.
“When I was in jail, I started taking some substance abuse classes just to try to learn more about it because I really wanted to stay clean,” he says. But the real turning point was when his attorney, also a Veteran, got David accepted into Veterans Treatment Court. If David could successfully complete treatment through the special court, the state would dismiss all the charges against him.
Through the court, David started on his path to recovery in an intensive outpatient program 3 days a week. He continues to draw on multiple sources of support through VA, taking part in a substance use disorder treatment program and an aftercare group. He has also participated in Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous.
David encourages other Veterans to learn from his recovery story and take the first step in asking for help. “You have to let go of your ego and that same self-esteem that you’ve had since your accomplishments in the military,” he says. “You have to submit to the fact that you have an addiction. ... All you have to do is call the VA and ask for help, and they will find a way to help you.”
Experiencing a life renewed
David’s progress serves as evidence of the rewards of seeking treatment. His ongoing efforts keep him in recovery, and his second chance brings him joy.
“Days with my child are amazing,” he says. “I go into the house and I hear her running down the stairs and she jumps from the third stairs and gives me a big hug and says, ‘Dad!’ To have that interaction with my child, see her looking at me and smiling—the kid loves me so much, it's amazing.”
