Testimonials

“On June 5, 2019, I made a decision. I had attempted to make this decision many times before. Addiction had brought me to my knees; feeling utterly alone, hopeless, beaten, broken. Even after getting shot in the head, it wasn’t enough; all I cared about was the medicine going through my veins. I cursed God for letting me live, hated people that called me a miracle, and welcomed death with open arms.

Eventually, I came to the realization that I wasn’t going to die that easily. The question to myself was: How long did I want to keep suffering? So I made the decision. Following the suggestions of others I respected, giving it to God when fearful, praying for others before myself and helping someone when I was too much in my head. I work the steps, live by the principles, and lead by example.

My life today is beautiful. My family is actually proud of me, my mom can sleep easier at night,and I think I’m my dad’s best friend. I was able to go home for Christmas to make amends and be a positive influence, instead of having everyone on edge. I just moved into my own place, and really witnessing how God is orchestrating everything to fall right into place.” – March 24, 2020

“The first picture is me during active addition. My life became miserable and unmanageable. I wasn’t able to take care of myself or pay my bills. I was doing things I never did before, like stealing, selling, and doing such grimy things. Drugs became everything to me, and I almost lost my life because of drugs, but it didn’t matter. My family didn’t care to be around me because I was such an embarrassment, always starting arguments or nodding off in public. My relationships were all failing and I finally gave up on myself… until I finally got to the point where I was so low – at rock bottom. My family finally helped me get help, which they had been trying to do for years 

In August, I came down to Florida and went to detox at Just Believe and then PHP. There, I got a sponsor, started working on the steps with her, and got busy. Afterward I went to Foundations, where I started IOP. Slowly, I started to see changes. I did my 12 steps and continued to grow. I started working at Chick-fil-A. I was managing a house, but had to move back to the house I was at previously, and now I have the opportunity to manage a house again. So many good things have been happening, all because of God. Slowly, good things are happening and it shows. I see progress, I’ve never been happier, and I have a plan for my future now. My self-worth and self-confidence is back. I’m coming up on six months of sobriety, and it amazes me that I’ve grown up and changed so much.” – March 10, 2020

“Well, I guess my whole addiction started because I never felt comfortable in my own skin. Drugs would comfortably numb my internal hatred for myself. Suddenly, I could talk to people and felt like I was the s***. Unfortunately, the drugs ran out and wore off eventually. I felt I had nothing to offer others if I couldn’t get them high. This perpetuated the hatred I had for myself. Hindsight is 20/20, but this is hard to see when you’re high. Through my addiction, I lost everything multiple times. The material items always come back when you do the right things and work for them. The lives of loved ones and friends are different. The only things you can do are to work to become the best version of yourself and to live in their honor. Inevitably, more loved ones and friends come into your life when you’re putting the work in to better yourself.

Early recovery isn’t easy, but once you get over that hump, you will start gaining the things that you were looking for through drugs. So, once you get over the hump, it’s a hell of a lot easier than being a full-time addict. When I got out of treatment, I rode a bike seven miles a day to a job I hated, where I worked for $9 an hour. I kept a positive mindset and kept on trucking, because i knew this was just a stepping stone to better places. Today, I have a job that I love with awesome bosses. I’m surrounded by some of the best people I’ve met in my entire life. Once I made a 360 degree mind/body/spirit transformation, my life became a manifestation of my actions. By following my passions and helping others, I’m starting to see my life’s purpose for the first time in my life.” – February 25, 2020

“The picture on the left is me in the midst of my 15-year addiction to pills. I was a functioning addict who thought I had everyone fooled. In reality, the only person I was fooling was myself. I was masking my problems and feelings behind a constant mind-numbing regime of pills that ultimately led me to isolation. My priority was getting my daily supply of pills, and although I was productive professionally, by the end of the day I had retreated into my own little world. Friendships and relationships were lost as they took a back seat to me getting high. Although I knew I had a problem, I had myself convinced that I could beat it on my own. We all know how that goes. In the end, I was mentally, physically, and emotionally empty. I realized I needed help. I relinquished all decision making and control to a hand that had reached out to me from a complete stranger 1,500 miles away. That hand led me to Foundations Wellness Center.

Six months later, I am happy to say that, in my adult life, I have never felt as good as I do today. Foundations Wellness provided me the tools that I needed to put my life back together. I built a strong support network through the friends I met, both there and in the rooms of AA. Although I have not worked a perfect program, I continue to attend meetings and work through the 12 steps with my sponsor. Most importantly, though, I have surrounded myself with great people that want sobriety just as badly as I do. They have become a second family in a home away from home. Although things can get stressful, I take it one day at a time and all the pieces of life have started to fall back into place. I’m happy and I laugh more in sobriety than I ever did while using. I have meaningful relationships back in my life and a job that has allowed me to move back out on my own and relocate to an area where the sober support network is second to none. I am forever grateful for the people at Foundations. I had to, and will always have to do the work, but they helped right the ship and point it in the right direction.” – February 18, 2020

“The picture on the left is me in active addiction. I tried really hard to make it seem like I had everything together on the outside. I tried for years to run my life off of self-will. I always wanted to be a good father to my son, and I never lost the love I had for him, but I just couldn’t admit that I needed help to change my life so that I could be there for him. I was in and out of rooms for years. Nothing was working for me until I finally fully surrendered and gave my trust to God.

The picture on the right is me present day. I have built a family though AA and the strong, positive support group whom I love. Today I am truly able to be there for my family and, most importantly, my son. I had to take the time to take care of myself first before I could be there for him. It was a hard decision in the beginning, but it was 100 percent worth it. Exactly one year ago today, I gave it up completely!! Today, I celebrate one full year of continuous sobriety!!! I am truly grateful for my higher power and the life I have now.” – February 11, 2020

“Active addiction was an absolute living hell. Day in and day out, I was constantly hurting those who loved and cared about me. Doing whatever I wanted to do to get what I needed to get drove me deeper and deeper into a extremely dark place. It was almost dark enough where I thought there was no way out, and as sick as it was, I was kind of okay with the status quo.

Through friends I have met, I was afforded a scholarship from Brandi’s Wish Foundation, and landed on the doorstep of Foundations Wellness Center. With their help and unconditional love, I have found a better way to live. I have formed lifelong friendships with multiple employees, and their doors are always open. I can’t say enough about them.

I regularly attended 12-step meetings and always am working on myself. From previous stints of sobriety, I know this is never ending. I stay active in recovery and in life. Today I am present in the lives of those who loved me through my active addiction, I could not say this two years ago. Every day is not always perfect, but if I keep doing what I am doing, I have a solid chance to live a life I can be proud.” – February 4, 2020

“The picture on the left is me in active addiction. It took me a long time to realize that my life had become unmanageable. I always considered myself a strong-willed person, but when it came to drugs and alcohol, I couldn’t control anything. My addiction put me in a lot of tough places – arrests, legal issues, family problems, the list goes on. I had to make a decision to change my life.

The picture on the right is me today, clean and sober!! On January 24, I will celebrate one year of sobriety!!! I am so grateful for the people in my life today. I have a steady routine and do things daily to keep myself accountable and focused on the things that are important in my life. My kids and family are back in my life today and I’m so grateful for my support network. I’ve been able to hold multiple jobs simultaneously, but i make sure that I put my sobriety first so that all other aspects of my life continue to thrive! There is always hope!” – January 14, 2020

“The picture on the left is me when I came into Foundations on June 21, 2019. I was totally broken and had just come from my second detox center. I definitely did not want to admit that I needed help, much less go to treatment. But, I knew I was going to die if I didn’t do something. May was probably the worst month of my life. I was sicker than I had ever been, and I wanted my husband to kill me. I even asked him to get a gun and blow my brains out because I didn’t want to live the way I was living anymore. After a five-day detox center stay in North Carolina, he picked me up and we immediately went to buy heroin. I was so sick that I vomited in my shoe as soon as I got into the car. I only had relief for a couple of hours, and then I was sick again. The next morning, we decided to look into treatment centers in Florida. I detoxed in Boynton Beach for several days, and then I was taken to Foundations Wellness in Port St. Lucie.

I knew this treatment center was different than anywhere else I’d ever been… so I decided to embrace all the information I was given and give it everything I had. Within a month of being in treatment, I got news that my husband had passed away. I did end up relapsing on August 8, because life sucks sometimes, but I haven’t jeopardized my sobriety since. With all the terrible things that have happened to me, and continue to happen to me since I’ve been here – like being sued by my in-laws, totaling a new car within seven days of purchasing it, and experiencing chronic pain – I still get up every morning and do what I’m supposed to do. I don’t live life perfectly, because no one can do that, but I fight when I need to fight, and I push through on tough days. My life has miraculously been transformed, and sometimes I forget how grateful I really should be. Luckily, today, I have amazing people in my life to remind me.” – January 7, 2020

“The picture on the left shows me in my ‘natural state.’ The state I was in for years. The only state my son ever knew, and the state my family wished they never saw. I became a stranger to my friends and family. Even on the rare occasions I was home, I was usually locked up in my room. ‘Mama’s sleeping,’ is what my mom always told my son when he asked where I was. Drugs and alcohol took a front seat to everyone and everything in my life.

On December 15, 2016, I was at one of my lowest points in life. That was the day I was found passed out in the car with my two-month-old baby in the back. There was nothing that was going to keep me from getting or doing what I wanted. Drugs were not my problem though; they were merely my solution. The road to discovering this was a long, bumpy, and exhausting road to travel. In July 2019, my eyes were opened to the real problem… me.

A string of events landed me in a detox in Ft. Pierce, Florida. After experiencing one of the worst detoxes of my life, I was transferred to Foundations Wellness, where I met the people that would help save my life. Seeing that I’m not the only person that thinks the way I do, that I’m not the only one to lose custody of a child due to drugs and alcohol, I’m not the only one who doesn’t feel right inside, helped me to realize that I’m not as different as I thought. I’m not the only one who decided to challenge God instead of accepting the things that I could not change. I have a little over five months of sobriety today and everyday becomes more clear as to the person I am supposed to be. I have a very supportive family, understanding friends, a loving boyfriend, and Foundations Wellness Center to thank for that.” – December 31, 2019

“The picture on the left shows me in August 2018, at my best friend’s graduation. I couldn’t show up for her clean. I made what should’ve been her day all about me. I was sick, broken, and had no hope. I remember wondering if I’d ever get this thing right. I was in and out of treatment and detox facilities for two years.

Finally, I had enough. I knew if I was going to stay clean, I needed to start working toward my goals and having a future. I went back to school and I am now a licensed EMT. I start paramedic school next fall. I never thought any of this could be possible, but, because I stayed clean, I’m able to be successful and be what I’ve set out to be.

This year, my best friend asked me to be her maid of honor in her wedding. Last year, I couldn’t be trusted, and this year I’ve gained that trust back. I have a career, and I’m grateful for everyone who never gave up on me.” – December 17, 2019