Former drug addict offers reality check
BROWNSVILLE — William Addis has been drug and alcohol free for more than four years.
“If you were to look at the first 20 years of my life before I got clean, and you were to look at the last four since I’ve been clean, you would have to say that’s a different guy. That’s not the same person,” said Addis, 40, of Uniontown.
Addis was a panelist Monday for a forum about prescription drug abuse that was sponsored by the Fayette County Drug and Alcohol Commission.
“A drug addict’s life is about getting more drugs,” he said. “To understand that idea, that very simple idea of what a drug addict is, then that leads to you to, hopefully, a more enlightened point of view when it comes to drug treatment.”
Addis said he once overdosed on heroin when his son, now grown, was 6 years old. His son found him unconscious in the bathroom.
“My son had to call 911. He said, ‘My dad is not breathing. I think he is dead.’ It traumatized him. This was one person that I swore I would never hurt, but here it was,” he said. “That was 13 years ago, today we have a normal relationship — father and son.”
Methadone is used to treat heroin addiction, and there are medications prescribed to assist users coping with other drug addictions. Addis said offering drug addicts those medications that aim to curb addictions is not a good approach.
“The idea that you can present to someone who uses as much drugs as they can get their hands on — here is your little bit of drugs for today — now run along and be normal. That’s kind of crazy,” he said. “But that is the mentality and the mindset in much of the medical and treatment community today.”
Addis said recovery is possible — he is an example. He said he used heroin, crack, alcohol and more for 20 years, but then a 12-step program in combination with a relationship with God has transformed his life. Addis is studying nursing at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus,
“I think the emphasis on recovery needs to be on that,” he said. “It’s the difference between being a sick person in need of treatment and being a flawed human, a weak person in need of help. There is a real distinction between those two.”
Addis advocates complete abstinence from all drugs, because medically prescribed drugs don’t solve the problem. He called them an “easy way out” that don’t address the behavioral problems that cause drug use.
“I’ve seen people that come out of these clinics every week where they get prescription drugs and it doesn’t solve anything,” he said. “I tell these people, this is not going to work for you. It didn’t work for me and others. Usually what ends up happening is they go back to the streets. If I see them again, hopefully the point has been made and they will listen to what I have to say about how to steer clear of drugs.”
Addis said the key to living a drug-free life is “staying away from old habits, changing your lifestyle and doing your best for others.”
“Four years ago, I lost custody of my children and my family would not speak to me,” he said. “I was living in the homeless mission, unemployed and completely broke. Men from the 12-step program took me by the hand and taught me a new way to live. As a result, I’m in my third year of college, reunited with my children and family. And the most important thing, I haven’t used drugs in more than four years. My life is better now.”