Loudon County Stories

Ashlee

I have battled addiction for over six and a half years. It started innocently with prescription pain medications. I thought it was okay to take "extra" because I had real pain. It didn't take long before the extra pills weren’t enough. It was no longer about stopping the pain. It became about functioning and keeping withdrawals at bay. My addiction came before everything I loved. I went to treatment many times to appease my family, but during that time it was for them and not me. I didn't want it.

Over the years, addiction took everything from me. I lost my family, my home and myself. I felt hopeless and couldn't see a way out. I contacted a faith-based program on May 10, 2016 and asked for help. I was near death mentally, physically and spiritually. I entered treatment the very next day. Sick was definitely an understatement. I remember crying out wanting to die I felt so bad. Some of the women at the facility took me to the altar that same night for prayer, and the experience I had was life-changing. That night I experienced the love of God. He healed me of all the withdrawals I was feeling. No words to really describe what happened. When I walked away from the altar, I didn’t feel sick anymore. It was a peace I had never felt.

Over the last three years, I stepped into my identity as a daughter of Christ. My heart is to help others see that there is hope. No matter how broken you feel or how bad things may be, there is always a way out. I have learned it is okay to have bad days because they are going to happen, and I’ve also learned you only fail if you quit trying.