Mona Ward, Recovering Drug Addict | Teen Ink

Mona Ward, Recovering Drug Addict MAG

By Anonymous

   
Let's be honest here. Have you ever used or thought about using drugs? Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you felt pressured into using? Most teens use drugs to feel as if they fit in with the "in" crowd. Another reason is the dreadful trap of peer pressure. You know what I am talking about - the "Come on, everyone else is doing it" pressure. Each year, millions of teenagers fall victim to this urge. This happened to my mother, Mona. Read this article and maybe, just maybe, you will think twice about it.



How old were you when you first experimented with drugs? Were you pressured to do it ?
I was 13 years old when I first tried using marijuana. Yes, my friends pressured me to do it.

It was your decision, though; so why did you do it ?
All of my friends were doing it. I had been wanting to try it for a long time. When I started to hang out with a new group of kids at school, I was finally given the opportunity.

What drugs did you use?
Well, I started with marijuana. By my junior year in high school I started taking diet pills for the speed effect. I then discovered pharmaceutical white crosses, which is a very soft form of speed.

How did this new behavior affect your life at school?
Before drugs, in the eighth grade, I was president of my class, a cheerleader, and an honor roll student. Exactly a year later, when I was a freshman in high school, I ditched more school than I attended, I was kicked off the cheer squad, and I found out that I was pregnant at the age of 15.

How did this problem affect your home life?
My home life, which had always been dysfunctional, was now easier to tolerate because I had found an escape. I would get high before I went home, which put me into a different mood and made it a lot easier for me and my mother to get along. I would stay in my room until the evening and then I would go to one of my friend's houses and do it all again. When I would get home later that night, I would go to sleep until the next day. Then it would start all over.

How did your family react?
Four of my siblings all went to the same high school at the same time as me, so they knew the type of people that I was hanging out with and they did not approve. While some decided to quit talking to me entirely, my closest natural sister and I fought about it constantly.

Did you move on to harder drugs?
Yes. I was in my early twenties when I was first introduced to cocaine by a close friend; meth amphetamines soon followed.

Did you ever think that you would become addicted?
No. I had heard of drug addicts before, but I had always separated myself from "them." In the beginning, mine was an occasional use which I thought I could control.

When did you realize that you were wrong?
After about two years of using, I found that I could not function without it. My next high became my first priority. I could no longer take care of my family or hold a job.

Was that when you realized you needed help?
No, it wasn't until my four children were taken away by their grandparents and my husband and I were homeless that I decided I needed help - not because I wanted it, but because I had nowhere else to go.

Are you clean today?
Yes, by the grace of God, I have been clean for three years.

How did checking into rehab change your Iife?
In rehab I learned that addiction is a disease, that without treatment it would eventually kill me. I learned to deal with my feelings, good and bad, instead of always trying to numb them. I learned that I didn't have to use ever again if I didn't want to. I learned that, though I will never be "cured," I have a daily reprieve in recovery. The most important thing that I learned is that there is a God who loves me, and wants me to be happy, joyous, and free, and I can be, one day at a time.

What advice would you give to people who occasionally use drugs?
Stop while you can. Addiction happens before you know it. I went from a casual user to a full-blown addict without ever seeing it coming. What seems fun and games now will soon be your worst nightmare. Drugs claim people of all races, religions, and backgrounds. It has no boundaries. It makes us liars, manipulators, and thieves. It takes values and morals and twists them until they are non-existent. But you don't have to take that road; many millions of us have already taken it for you, and it's not fun. Doing drugs is a choice; say no before there is no longer a choice to be made.



JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 9 comments.


Steve7876 said...
on May. 30 2020 at 4:41 am
Steve7876, Florida, Florida
0 articles 0 photos 2 comments
It is a misconception the use of drugs keeps the human body active. Addiction also relax the human brain. But they do not know that their lives are being ruined. I wonder you starting taking drugs at the age of 13. they are are not your friends, these are your, enemies because they history your life. Please keep avoiding the drugs. If your any friend has become addicted to drugs, visit acceleratedrecovery. com on this website.

Steve7876 said...
on May. 30 2020 at 4:36 am
Steve7876, Florida, Florida
0 articles 0 photos 2 comments
Thanks for the articles

Coco said...
on Feb. 11 2018 at 3:01 am
Mona and I were good friends in high school. Jesus is the only answer for any kind of addiction. He can set you free completely!

i love this so much!

on Aug. 9 2017 at 4:51 am
QueenIsland123 BRONZE, Dubai, Other
4 articles 0 photos 20 comments

Favorite Quote:
It always seem impossible until it is done -Nelson Mandela

Such a great and honest piece! I have never taken drugs and I don't plan on doing it but I think its important that people who are taking drugs read it!

on Jul. 23 2015 at 4:12 pm
SomeoneMagical PLATINUM, Durham, New Hampshire
22 articles 1 photo 259 comments
This is great for anyone who has been addicted to any kind of drug--I personally have never taken pot or marijuana. But this is very informative and gives advice to anyone looking for it.

on Aug. 7 2011 at 5:27 am
blindangel12321 BRONZE, Saskatoon, Other
1 article 0 photos 5 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Me? I'm dishonest, and a dishonest person you can always trust to be dishonest - honestly, it's the honest ones you want to watch out for, because you can never predict when they are going to do something incredibly stupid" - Jack Sparrow

Wow :) That article was so easy for me to relate to. I am 19 and also a drug addict. I started using just pot to fit in with the 'in' crowd too, now i have gone through homelessness, psych wards, overdoses, lost all communication with my parents and brother, lost all of my friends, been arrested,all that bad stuff that comes along with addiction. I went from pot to xtc to coke and about a month ago i tried crystal meth and since then have stopped all other drugs and am daily using the meth. It is a terrable monster. I was wondering (if u are willing to say) if you are in Narcotics anonymous? I have gone to NA for 5years, i finally started doing a little bit better and then my sponser (and best friend) moved away. I have since spiraled and i need advice on how to quit. I am not truely alone. Any advice??

on Jul. 9 2011 at 1:03 pm
redhairCat PLATINUM, Pebble Beach, California
47 articles 20 photos 411 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I can do anything!"

Do you have other articles on Teen Ink?

on Jul. 9 2011 at 1:00 pm
redhairCat PLATINUM, Pebble Beach, California
47 articles 20 photos 411 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I can do anything!"

Really great article! Wow - what an honest interview!