Kelvin S. – Sober Since September 2017 (Encore Episode)

About this episode

Kelvin S. shares his journey from addiction to sobriety, detailing the struggles and turning points in his life.

Kelvin's life was defined and dominated by booze and drugs. Though there are similarities to other sobriety tales, many parts of his story contain things that most alcoholics must be referring to when they say, “There but for the grace of God go I” or “That could have been me”. Drinking, smoking crack, gang membership, desperate crimes, jail, broken probation, prison, and parole violations all occurred in within five years after his first drink. Raised in a home rife with family secrets, Kelvin’s mother did her best to help keep her kids out of trouble. But desegregation during his middle school years had Kelvin bussed across town to schools where he struggled to find a persona with which he could fit in. Back in his neighborhood he was bullied for that and had to adopt a different persona to fit that environment. Confusion, lack of direction, lost identity, and low self-esteem inevitably became the drivers to drinking and smoking marijuana at 17. He soon joined a gang and started smoking crack cocaine. Purse-snatching, shop-lifting and other crimes put him at odds with the legal system and put Kelvin in jail, and later prison. He mostly ignored or dismissed alternatives to…

People in this episode

Host: Howard L.

Guest: Kelvin S.

Topics covered

• sobriety
• addiction
• personal story
• AA
• recovery
• mental health

Keywords

• sobriety
• addiction
• AA meetings
• drug abuse
• personal transformation

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