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One of our first sponsees, Rick, shares his story. This summary does not do his testimony justice. I really hope you’ll click through to read the whole thing on our website. I dare you to not get choked up. We're proud to know you, Rick.
“My name is Rick. I am a recovering alcoholic. I have one year and about 10 months of sobriety.
I’ve had epilepsy since I was nine. Growing up, my mother always told me that if I drank alcohol, it would kill me because of the medicine I took for my seizures, so I never did. One day at age 13, we were all skateboarding behind my girlfriend’s house and I was really thirsty. I grabbed my friend's clear Gatorade and three chugs in, I realized it was alcohol and my throat was burning. I yelled out that I was going to die and ran into the bathroom and looked into the mirror as if I only had minutes or seconds to live. Then… I didn’t die. My mother had lied to me! Once I knew I could drink, it was time to figure out what this new party was all about.
Fast forward several years, none of my family was talking to me because of my alcoholism. I had lost everything and was homeless. Once I learned how to panhandle, I knew that if I made $34.36, I could buy one half gallon of vodka, two packs of cigarettes, four Gatorades, and food (optional). I was living in the woods with my friend Jim. Sometimes I’d go months without a shower. One night Jim sat with me as I had eight seizures in four hours. I still have lasting physical and metal effects from that night. All because of this one day they call ROCK BOTTOM.
On October 18, 2020, I was in the woods (my home). It was in the middle of nowhere and very few people knew about it, but I heard a man’s voice call my name, “Rick! You ready to go buddy?” Jim had a burner phone that never worked in those woods and somehow that day it had service. I couldn’t believe it. He was able to give Chad and Marcus directions to come get me out of those woods, which they knew I was ready to do, after communicating through my dad.
Here began the voyage of Chad Belger coming from St. Augustine, FL to get me in Panama City to take me to back to Jacksonville where a bed fell through, then to Daytona Beach for a seven-day detox. After detox, I tried to get into a Sober Living House in Daytona but this one said I had to be intoxicated to get in and I was sober. I told Chad, “No problem, where’s the fucking liquor store?” I’ll never forget these words he said to me: “No. We are only moving forward from now on, never going back.” Chad found a place called Real Recovery in Bradenton, FL, where he went to recover, and they had an opening, but not the same day. Chad took me to St. Augustine and I had to stay in a hotel room that night by myself. His words repeated in my head and I actually didn’t drink. That was my first step in learning that I could choose not to drink and still be alright, and that was a good feeling.
Chad drove me to Real Recovery and I didn't know what to think when I got there. I’ve faked this program 100 times, what could it hurt to try to do it right? I had no money, just a few items of clothes that Chad had given me. He got me everything needed to start a life from coming out of the woods: bed sheets, pillows, food, etc. If it weren’t for him and Recovery RX, I wouldn’t have had a chance. But now it was time for me to do the work.
My advice to fellow alcoholics is to find yourself some alcoholic friends (recovering preferably) and call them and go to meetings. Meetings allow you to hear so many significant stories that you would never hear from so many different people that you would probably would never talk to otherwise. Probably the most significant way I stay sober is to pray. This for me is the key to all of the promises in the Big Book coming true. God will not always give you what you want when you want it, but I find that as long as I do the right thing all of the time, that God will always take care of me and that gives me peace of mind that I’ve never had before in my life.
Thank you.
Rick”
Click to Read Rick's Full Story
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