On Tuesday, January 6, a few of Turning Point’s Phase I and Phase II residents and two Support Staff members packed up the Suburbans with ski and snowboard gear for the fourth time this year and drove up to Bromley Mountain, Vermont for a full day of shredding up the slopes.

Ski trips are always a blast for residents and Recreation Coordinator, Casey Olayos likes to plan a trip every other week during the winter months. “It’s a freeing trip for resident,” explains Casey. “The guys get a bit of a vacation from the daily activities of Turning Point and being up on the mountain provides a peaceful escape from the tough work they’re doing every day. They always seem to have a good time too, I’ve never gotten a negative review.”

Some of the guys bring their own equipment, but most residents rent skis or snowboards for the day. “I haven’t been skiing very much recently,” says Matt S., a resident currently in Phase II. “So it was a nice opportunity to get back out and try it again. It was definitely my favorite day I’ve had at Turning Point so far.”

At Turning Point, we believe it is crucial for young men in early sobriety to realize that it is possible to have fun without the use of drugs or alcohol. Recreational activities provide residents the opportunity to come to that realization. Trips like the one to Bromley Mountain give the guys a chance to build close relationships with one another, and with staff members, while having fun and trying exciting new things.

Charles S., a resident in Phase I, seized the opportunity to form a connection with one of the Turning Point employees. “I spent most of the day hanging out with Chris Meyer (a Phase I Support Staff member) and got to know him really well, which was cool,” says Charles. “All in all, I had a great time.”

Next month, Casey has some big events planned for Phases I and II. Among the activities are a Chris Brown, Trey Songz and Tyga concert, WWE’s Road to Wrestlemania and the 2015 Masters of Illusion

At the age of 25, Dominick’s addiction has already caused him an enormous amount of suffering and pain, but over the past 6 months he has reaped the benefits of hard work and dedication to a life in recovery.

At 13 years old, Dominick began smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol in his hometown of Toledo, Ohio. Once in high school, his recreational use quickly progressed to daily use. A lack of motivation and an escalating drug habit limited Dominick’s progress after completing high school. “I didn’t really have any goals or ambitions after graduating high school,” admits Dominick. “That’s when I got into opiates and things got bad. I was in and out of dead-end jobs and my addiction just kept progressing.” Once Dominick began using opiates it didn’t take long for his parents to catch on. After finding drug paraphernalia in their home, Dominick's parents gave him an ultimatum: accept treatment or face legal consequences. He entered treatment in Florida and thus began an unfortunate series of unsuccessful attempts at sobriety.

The next six and a half years were spent going to treatment centers and programs all over the country, but Dominick always had difficulty maintaining more than a few months of sobriety. “I just never really gave anything a chance,” says Dominick. “I would get healthy and think I was alright. In the back of my mind, I wanted to be happy and sober, but I knew I was going to use. I would wait until the point where everyone was off my back, then I could lie and keep doing what I was doing.” He attended plenty of twelve-step meetings and was aware of a solution, but like many others, Dominick continued to resist changing his way of living. “I would hear what people were saying but I just thought that I was stronger and didn’t need a program,” confesses Dominick. “There was a lot of self-will because I could control a lot of aspects of my life, just not with alcohol and drugs.”

In the months leading up to July 2014, Dominick experienced an awakening of sorts. After witnessing the effects of addiction with some close friends, experiencing a number of legal consequences, and feeling a sufficient amount of pain, he decided to seek out treatment one last time. He had a discussion with his mother and asked her once more for help. She agreed to help and Dominick began honestly researching long-term treatment that would best suit his needs. He enrolled at Turning Point on July 24, 2014.

When he arrived, Dominick was ready to change. “I made a decision to not complain or moan,” says Dominick. “I was just beaten and knew I needed to do everything that was asked of me. Most importantly, I was told I needed to be honest, so I try to do that.” He quickly progressed through Phases I and II and has stayed close to his friends in Turning Point and the friends he has met in twelve-step meetings. He got a sponsor early on, and continues to talk to him on a daily basis. Dominick has a job today and has worked hard to repair relationships with his family and friends.

Andrew G. successfully completed the Turning Point program, and graduated in December 2014.

Andrew’s decline into addiction was hard and fast, and at a young age he found himself in a dark and hopeless place. After a couple attempts to get sober at treatment centers on the West coast, Andrew entered Turning Point in December 2013, and has since developed into a hopeful, independent, and responsible young man.

Andrew’s issues with substance abuse began at age 15, when he was introduced to marijuana at a summer camp. This introduction resulted in an intense fascination, and after only a few months he was using marijuana and alcohol on a daily basis. The progression was rapid. At age 16, Andrew began using prescription opiates and quickly became physically addicted to Oxycodone. Just prior to turning 18, he was arrested twice and was sent to a farm correctional facility. While in the facility, Andrew heard stories about heroin. He sought out the drug when he was released and immediately began using it. “From age 18 to 20, the heroin use was all day every day,” explains Andrew. “… Over that time, I was hurting people and hurting myself. My emotional state of mind was that I hated my life I hated everyone else. Nothing mattered but getting high.”

In April 2013, Andrew entered his first drug treatment center in Palm Springs, California. He went to sober living after completing treatment and relapsed immediately. He heard a message of recovery but was unwilling to take any action or make any changes. Andrew was then sent to a facility in San Diego, which took a non-twelve-step approach to addressing addiction. “It helped in some areas,” says Andrew. “But I continued to use while in the treatment center, so I was never really open to the idea of recovery.” His using escalated once again after leaving treatment. In December 2013, his family offered him one more chance at treatment. Andrew got on a plane, came back to Connecticut, and enrolled at Turning Point.

Over his first weeks in Turning Point, Andrew was just going through the motions. He knew the right things to say, but didn’t necessarily believe what he was saying. Sometime while he was in Phase II, Andrew started to notice that acting like he was making positive life changes was actually resulting in positive changes in his thinking. He started to buy into this new way of living.

In Phase III, Andrew experienced a lot of ups and downs, but got through the difficult periods by sticking close to the friends he made in Turning Point and the network he built in the New Haven AA community. Andrew graduated Turning Point on December 14, 2014, and subsequently applied and accepted a position as a member of the Phase I Support Staff team. He continues to go to a lot of twelve-step meetings and tries to have as much fun as possible in sobriety. “I think that’s been the biggest thing for me,” says Andrew. “If you realize you can have fun in sobriety, then you are going to fight to keep it, and to do that you have to work a program.”