My Recovery Story & How Others Can Find Help
Finding addiction treatment shouldn’t be hard. When you make the decision to change your life you should feel confident that the treatment facility you choose will support you in your journey, using services backed by research and science. But unfortunately, that isn’t the case for everyone.
I began my recovery journey seven and a half years ago.
At the time, I was facing suspension from college for my drinking history, but the University of Connecticut gave me another chance, as long as I attended a Collegiate Recovery meeting once per week, went to therapy and a harm reduction group, and attended 12-step meetings daily.
Life didn’t magically get better because I stopped using substances.
It actually became increasingly more difficult – at the beginning of my sobriety, I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Years after I got sober, I ended up hospitalized twice and in mental health treatment for one year.
Looking back, I can see that as a result of untreated mental health issues, I wanted to drink every day in my first year of sobriety. Even after that year I continued to struggle, because I was only being treated for part of the problem – my addiction. Suicidal thoughts plagued me daily until I found the right medication; not having treatment for my addiction AND my mental health could have cost me my life.
If ATLAS had been available to me, I’m confident that my journey through treatment would have looked very different.
The website can be used by anyone touched by addiction to search for and compare treatment based on their individual needs. For me, I needed to find treatment for co-occurring disorders. I also needed mental health medication, treatment inclusive of the LGBTQ+ population, and treatment that accepted my insurance – all of which can be found on the ATLAS website.
This is huge. Not only is ATLAS a resource for those searching for care, but it is also a tool to hold providers accountable – to ensure that the services they are offering are not only helpful, but progressive and backed by science. ATLAS also gives patients like me a voice by offering a space to share their experience through anonymous feedback surveys.
ATLAS brings a sense of community to the overwhelming journey that is recovery.
I am grateful that I am now a member of the ATLAS team and get to be a part of helping others find the care they need. Now that ATLAS is in ten states (Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia), I look forward to it helping even more people. Although ATLAS wasn’t around to help me during my initial recovery journey, I deeply hope it can now help you and your loved ones in your time of need. We all deserve confidence in our recovery journeys.
