The Freedom of Living Drug-Free

 

I was born and raised in Yverdon, a small town in Switzerland.

My childhood was quiet, I played a lot of sports and enjoyed football. My dream was to become a professional footballer. Everything was going well at school and I had no problems.

I remember intense moments of joy when we won the cantonal championship with my football team. I loved nature and calm.

When I was a teenager, everything was complicated, I started having school problems and I started a professional apprenticeship that didn’t suit me at all. I then smoked my first joint, then went on to try cigarettes and alcohol. At the same time, I started to go to techno parties and I used ecstasy, LSD, and other drugs. At first, I enjoyed the high but after a while, I had to consume more and more of it to feel something and there the infernal sequence began. In order to continue to have the same effect, I started taking heroin and after a few months, I become a zombie. I knew death was fast approaching.

With drugs, I lost my dreams, my dignity, and the trust of my relatives and my friends. I started to lie and be a shadow of myself.

This life had become hell and I had to do something about it. My doctor then advised me to seek treatment and he gave me a list of available centers.

I decided on the Narconon program because during my interview, for the first time in my life, I felt understood and listened to by someone from Narconon.

The most surprising thing when I arrived at Narconon was how quickly and easily I had to finish my heroin withdrawal. Outside it was impossible and there in a few days, I no longer felt any physical lack.

I regained my physical potential as if I was 16 again and without drugs in my system. I also regained my confidence in the future and the belief that I could live a life happily free from the harmful effects of drugs.

When I completed the program, a great sense of pride came over me about what I had accomplished and I was ready to face it and reap all the benefits possible.

Now it’s been 29 years that I live without drugs, I have 2 beautiful boys fulfilled in life, I do a job that makes me happy and I live life to the fullest every day.

The thing that excites me the most as a drug-free person is the feeling of freedom it gives. I wouldn’t change that feeling for anything in the world.

The advice I could give to people in need is not to lose hope because there is always a way out. Life is worth living and you have to have the courage to confide in yourself, to ask for help and to make the decision to do something about it.

For those who are currently in treatment, don’t give up. Carry on and face the more difficult times ahead. At the end of the tunnel, there is the sun. Don’t get stuck inside or go back.

—Jacky B., Narconon Graduate