Oftentimes, people think of addicts as outcasts. Especially when they don’t know someone who has an addiction, they have a hard time understanding just what it is that someone with an addiction looks like.
But, that is the thing – there is not one specific face of an addict. Many different addicts walk among us each and every day and we might not have any idea that underneath their smile they are struggling.
But, each person behind the mask of addiction has their own story – somewhere they came from…
There are addicts who are:
Parents
There are several moms and dads – young and old – who struggle with addiction day in and day out. They might be financially strapped and that is feeding their inability to give us their addiction. Or, it might just be a bad habit they never dropped.
Children
Many, many teens struggle with addiction. Their minds are young and impressionable and being a teenager is hard. There is peer pressure all around teens and drugs are very prevalent in schools and at parties. During a time where one wrong decision could lead them down the wrong path, many teens find themselves developing a problem at a young age.
Professionals
Rather it is a teacher, an athlete, a doctor, or someone in another profession – nobody is above addiction. And, sadly, there have been several of these professionals have struggled with this for years. For some, it has already cost them their job. For others, they are on their way to it costing them their job.
Conclusion
In the end, each addict is a person with a story. And, each person deserves a fair shot at recovering from their addiction. Rather they are young or old, they had a life before their addiction started. Each one has lost something, or several things, along the way. It is important for us to see the faces of the addict; the one who is behind that mask.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY2luGTX7Dk&t=8s
So, if you think you might be struggling or you know someone who might be struggling, it is time to get help.
Someone who suffers from an addiction, with the proper help, can once again become that parent, spouse, young professional, or athlete that they once were.
It is possible – if they get the help they need, the support they need, and put in the work. Addiction does not have to be forever.
Behind each addiction is someone who is hurting. Someone who needs help.