Where can you turn when the weight of addiction becomes too much to bear?

The seemingly endless cycle of addiction can be one of the toughest challenges faced by members of our community. However, many are able to successfully seek help and change their lives for the better with the help of Zepf Center staff and programs.

Today is Alec’s last day in residential treatment. He packs his bags and prepares to move into the Recovery House—a Zepf Center sober living facility. As he prepares to start the next chapter of his life, free from addiction, Alec reflects on the journey that led him to this moment.

“I’d never stay," Alec said. "I would do something to get kicked out so I could go use.”

He was a frequent Zepf Center client—mainly engaging with the Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU) or Withdrawal Management Services. Each time he arrived, the cycle would begin to take hold of him, drawing him away from recovery and back to spaces where he could continue to use. 

Alec often arrived at Zepf with intentions of hurting himself because he felt his addiction had become too great a weight to bear. He would then stay with CSU for a few days, become stable on his medication, start working with Withdrawal Management and begin the journey towards sobriety.

However, as is common in the behavioral patterns brought on by addiction, something would happen to Alec. It may have been an argument with another client, a disciplinary infraction or even destruction of property; whatever the cause, Alec would escalate the situation in order to leave treatment and return to using drugs.

Although Alec seemed to follow this cycle time and time again, he proved it is not unbreakable and that recovery is possible in the face of addiction.

As he finishes packing his bags and prepares to enter this new chapter of life, Alec reflects on what he learned in his therapy sessions and how he overcame the relentless cycle that had brutalized him for so long.

Some may question why this time will be different, but after much contemplation, Alec has an answer.

Because of the work he was able to do with Zepf Center therapists, programing and recovery services, Alec has been able to take responsibility for himself and make peace with the choices of his past. Because of this, Alec feels capable of taking responsibility for his life, breaking the cycle.

*Based on a true success story. Names and identifying information have been changed to protect client privacy.