[music]
I remember Googling,
"Are you an alcoholic?"
and not thinking
people who drink normally
don't wonder that.
I never thought it was a problem.
I just go to another doctor and they would prescribe it, and then,
well, heroin is pretty much the same thing.
I didn't like
going outside like that, but
I wasn't going to hide in the house my whole life.
It was just like
you can't touch me. I felt like I had superpowers.
Moms want to fix things for their kids,
and I couldn't,
I couldn't fix him,
and I didn't have anyone to talk to about it.
I called that number and
they asked how they could help.
Having the employee assistance program
saved my life.
I don't know that I would have stopped drinking as early as I did.
How can anyone ever step up and say,
"I need help"
or "My
person I care about
is dying."
You can't do that
[whispering] when everyone is forcing you to whisper.
We talk a lot about addiction,
we don't necessarily talk a lot about recovery.
23 million Americans
live in long term recovery today,
right now, here in the United States,
-but where are their stories? -People need hope
and whole towns are dying.
People need to see, people like me
that are striving and thriving,
you can overcome it.
[music]