Who here started over after 30 after addiction and went on to live a great life? Please give me some hope!

8 comments

1. Wondering, why 7 years?

2. I think I was… 36 when I got off hard drugs. That and therapy helped me gain a lot of introspection and objectivity. That sounds nice, but it was an ugly and difficult process. Though it did make me to come to terms with how awful of a human being I had been until that point, with therapy, I was able to set goals and start carving a path forward.

   That was quite a while ago, and I’ve made a lot of progress. I’m better toward myself and others, no longer playing a victim, and feel like I’m being a lot more genuine in general. I feel like I can legitimately laugh, smile, and cry now, and not worry too much about it – it’s all a part of life, after all.

   Withdrawal is hell, but the truest low point is when you look in the mirror and really see yourself. The upside is, it only gets better from there.

3. Not me, but a very close friend beat heroin and meth addiction in his mid-30’s after years of wrestling with it. He was deep into the life, in and out of jail and on the street a lot of the time. Was married and she stayed with him through it all but he couldn’t be around for a number of years while he was in it, she just waited. One day he decided he had to be done with it, so I went to weekly NA and AA meetings with him, helped him get into therapy and helped get him to the jobs he’d hold down for a while. It was rough and it’s still a battle for him. He had to remove himself from every relationship or situation that connected him to his old lifestyle. He won’t even listen to certain music that he was into at the time. Just a total cleanse. He’s been 100% clean for something like 7 or 8 years now, won’t even accept painkillers from a doc for any reason. He’s doing amazing. Back with his family, has a great job, a set of new healthy friends, but he knows and I know that he’ll always be on the edge so we don’t do anything at all to tempt him. He won’t even have certain conversations amongst friends that hint at anything that pulled him down before. The guy is my hero and we all make it a point to remind him of how proud we are at times, but I know it’s always there and will be a temptation the rest of his life. It isn’t easy, it was one of the toughest things I’ve seen someone go through, but if this guy can do it you absolutely can.

4. Hi!!!! I’m 38m. Quit alcohol at 31.

   Before, I was spiraling. Health was atrocious and it was only getting worse. Mental health was worse. Drunk in public arrests were mounting. Divorce and losing any right to set my daughter was imminent.

   After quitting, I saw almost immediate change in my health. I stared working out and this was the beginning of my journey of understanding and treating my mental health. It took a while to convince my wife I was serious. I had verbally abused her to no end while drinking. I started therapy and then marriage counseling.

   For the last 6.5 years, I’ve been in great health, continually working on my mental health, marriage is stronger than ever and we had a son! I went back to school and got a bachelor’s degree. Quality of life is just amazing now. I don’t ever want to go back.

   Good luck!!!

5. I got sober at 30. Two years later I accomplished a lifelong dream and now, a few years after that, I have a well paying job I love, where I work from home and am working towards even more dreams.

   The thing about getting sober was that the first year I was an emotional whirlwind. I’d cry while watching basketball games or when reading poems on the toilet or when someone said they liked my hair. It was like I was learning how to emotionally regulate in a way that had been blunted back when I drank.

   Once that settled down, and I developed coping strategies through exercise, proper nutrition, meditation, and an emphasis on exploring my spiritual side, I found a surprising amount of focus.

   Some keys for me:

   A men’s-only AA group got me off the ground, though I found it had limited value once I hit a few months.

   Wim Hof breathing and cold showers <3

   Leaning into exercise and self-improvement, including books and podcasts.

   Meditation and discovering Zen Buddhism – if this is something you’re interested in, check out Noah Levine’s Refuge Recovery program.

   Cutting out toxic people from my life, including a partner who was sexy and passionate and wild and a drinker. The sex was great; the constant abuse of intoxicants was damaging to my soul.

6. I don’t know about great, but it was better then my 20s

7. What I found when I got sober was that most of my problems were actually the result of self-sabotage. So when that stopped, so did the problems.

   People are shocked just how fast addiction can fuck somebody’s life up. But what can also shock you is just how fast sobriety can build it back up.

8. I got sober at 34, went to college and started teaching at age 40 . I’m now 53 (in a couple weeks) and love what I’m doing. It’s never too late to start a new life after addiction, even if you’re 70.