Well, in the end I woke up one day and said, for goodness sake get yourself going. I looked in the newspaper and here was this job looking after an elderly lady. I got the job.

I believe the solution has to come from within yourself. You’ve got to find your own strength and get yourself up. It’s very hard to do. I miss terribly not having anyone to live with. But if you haven’t I think you’ve got to go to people who will support you. I’m a very independent person but I’ve learned that it’s extremely important to have good friends around you. Talk to them, tell them how you feel and take their advice. You’ve got to bare your soul in a way so they can help you. If you’ve been brought up in a Christian lifestyle it does help."

Jason managed to overcome addiction. At first he didn’t acknowledge a problem. "Alcohol and cannabis were a normal part of my social group and my life as well. I didn’t see it as a problem, all my friends were doing it. I thought it was a fun life style. The first real problems were financial. I never had any money left over. I was often in debt. I started to resent the fact that it was controlling me.

In times of desperation I prayed. But I feared that if I got involved with a church I’d have to change my life style. I did finally go to a church and came in contact with people I initially felt alienated from because of the lifestyle I had. They were accepting, non-judgemental and open to discuss things with me, sharing my concerns and my fears. That was instrumental, just spending time with those guys, praying, it helped me refocus. I became more and more uncomfortable smoking dope till I reached the point where it just fell away.

It’s good to be open and honest with friends about where you’re at. When stresses of life come, as they do, drugs can take the edge off, but it becomes a vicious circle. Drugs become the problem so you use more to block out those feelings.

You need to know that it’s never as bad as you think it’s going to be. We can make things so big in our mind that we’re scared to attempt it. The fact is people can solve their problems. I’ve done it, I know lots of people who have broken the cycle. It’s not easy but it is doable and it’s never too late. Certainly life on the other side is so much better."

You can see the full stories on www.vivavitalis.com.

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