Never less than

Vic’s Ideas
Jul 23, 2017 · 3 min read
I can only see so far

Some of us come from a less than perfect background, single parent home, or foster home. I had both of my parents growing up and I do not remember ever loosing our home or ever being hungry, although I have heard stories of when we did struggle and did not eat like I do today. Sometimes my family still gets together and talks about how things were back in the day, along with how are lives are today and the changes that have taken place.

I personally struggled with addiction for most of my life. I do not blame it on my upbringing, my bad decision making skills, or the crowd I used to hang out with. Actually I’m not looking to place the blame on anything, I just want to share my thoughts and ideas about drugs and alcohol.

I will probably catch a lot of heat for saying these things but I want to able to write and express my personal feelings. I work in a medical detox facility and have been going to school for about a year and a half to educate myself on addiction and I now understand how addiction is a disease.

People who struggle with using and drinking need help and compassion. They have already been told that they worthless and will amount to nothing. Ask anyone with a substance abuse problem if they have heard those words directed towards them before, and more than likely, their answer will be yes. And If they haven’t, the real answer is not yet.

There are those, few and far between that instinctively like people or have a heart for people. Usually a spiritual person, a person in recovery, or a parent or loved one of somebody who is struggling themselves. But typically people tend to stay away from people who LOOK like druggies or bums. When we see someone who could use a shower or someone holding a sign saying that they are a veteran and any help would be appreciated, we do not always offer our help and gratitude for fighting for our country. Let’s keep it real, I don’t either.

I could not imagine a young couple in a delivery room holding their newborn baby and knowing that this one will be a homeless drug addict one day. Somewhere something went wrong, who’s fault is it? We would waste too much valuable time trying to figure out that answer. Instead we can turn our attention to the remedy. The remedy may in most cases be a lifelong process doing what works for that person. Medication can be a solution too. We overlook underlying issues that are truely the source of aguish. Mental health and addiction run parallel and often compete for first place.

How can we help as a society? And how can I help as an individual? Those are the questions that must precede our judgement. Some people do not want the help, but there are people who DO want our help and are willing to jump through hoops in order to get it. In those cases it is up to us to point out those hoops. We may not all have the answers, but we all possess the the key element to change, which is LOVE.

Let’s love and help people who want the help. And let’s keep this thought in the forefront of our mind, the person who is struggling is NEVER LESS THAN the person who is not.

Written by

I am a person who really loves to write, and welcomes the ideas of other people.

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