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We now continue our 12 part series, Reclaim Your Life.
Addiction can affect anyone in life including the people who dedicate their lives to protecting
us.
But specialized programs are available to help them overcome their addiction as I found
out when I visited Transformations Drug and Alcohol Treatment Center in Delray Beach,
Florida and met the people behind their First Responder's Program.
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The First Responders that come here come from all walks of life.
They are First Responders who are still active, there are First Responders who are retired,
and there are First Responders who unfortunately have created an incredible mess in their lives.
We are exposed to so many things that, at the time, we feel that it's not really hurting
us.
That's okay.
But in the long run, this cumulative effect of exposure to all these horrific things that
we see and experience, they do take a toll.
No question about it.
We either hit the bottle or hit other drugs, and we just die in silence because we don't
want anyone to know that we cannot handle it.
The problem is that not every First Responder is willing and able to say, "Hey, I've got
a problem.
I need some help."
What makes this program unique here at Transformation is that the kind of approach that we have.
We have this holistic complete approach.
It is put together and run by a First Responder for First Responders.
As a Master's level therapist who is also a First Responder himself, Carlos Farina is
head of the First Responder Program at Transformations Drug and Alcohol Treatment Center in Delray
Beach, Florida.
He knows only too well how the physical and emotional impact of being a First Responder
can drag a person into a life of addition.
I understand what they do every day is difficult, and that's what I want to hear.
What is it that you're helping them through?
We're helping these men and women be able to live fruitful lives, to let them know that
they're not alone.
As a First Responder, we normally don't come in contact with a lot of happy people.
They're usually in need of help and sometimes the scenes are very very traumatic and very
descriptive, horrific in the sense that it's a job that we've got to perform.
And so no matter what it is that we're exposed to, we are asked to perform.
I am diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and during my time in the military
there was a lot of stress overseas.
You never know what's going to happen.
I was in active combat zones during two deployments.
It carried over when I came out of the military, and I had difficulty adjusting to civilian
life and I battled with Post Traumatic Stress now.
And I got caught up in the spider web of drugs and alcohol and addiction that I didn't know
existed.
I didn't know this world at all.
And before it was too late, I was stuck.
Carlos, how typical is Brett's story?
And how do you help Brett and other clients like him move forward in this journey of healing?
Well, that's our goal, our aim, with every single one of them.
It is to allow them to move forward and get healed.
When they walk in through this door of my office, I want them to know that I understand
what they're going through.
I've been there.
Over the treatment period, each professional at Transformations is focused on one goal,
to guide and support First Responders on their quest for longterm recovery.
Carlos, here at Transformations, there's also specialized programs for your clients.
Tell me more about them.
Well, we have, for example, the EMDR which is the Eye Movement Reprocessing.
How does that help?
Well, what is does is that through a series of movement of the eye with the fingers, it
reprocesses different thoughts or different traumas and have the individual verbalize
so it's not only just the eye movement.
It is the verbal presentation and it's also the mind reprocessing.
Another one that I personally use with the First Responders is hypnosis.
The mind is an incredible piece of machinery, and I think that most people underestimate
the power of the mind.
You've been there.
You know what these people have been through.
Personally, for you, how does it make you feel when you know they're saying, "Thanks.
I got my life back."
I don't know if I can find the words for that.
You know, recovery is not about one big bang, one big thing.
Recovery, changing someone's life, is about a lot of little things, but the little things
that matter.
I used to think that I would just ignore what has happened to me that I know is affecting
me, and it would just go away over time.
And that's not the case at all.
You gotta process these things.
You have to talk about them, get them out there, and then you can begin to heal.
It's cliche but there definitely was a transformation.
Transformations offers a way to truly give back to these people who have given so much
of their lives to protect us, and helps them on a road to success.
We hope you'll join us again in our Reclaim Your Life series as we show you how the unique
programs offered by Transformations Drug and Alcohol Treatment help so many people on their
road to recovery.
Next time, we're going to see how their Intensive Out-Patient Program helps build a foundation
for living a healthy sober lifestyle.
Remember, for more information, you can go to TransformationsTreatment.Center or our
website, TheBalancingAct.com.
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