My Story on Addiction and Recovery - Yehuda Greenberg

foreign Berg I grew up in a very from Orthodox household I went to goodieshiva's good schools you know I had good grades you know I was going to be the next guadaladar the next RAV and then over the years things you know started to to fall apart I didn't feel in place I felt out of place whether it be in Social settings in family settings School settings I just wanted to be okay with myself I wanted to be okay with my family who at that point our relationship was strained obviously they wanted a path for me that I didn't want for myself or didn't know what I wanted for myself but I knew that I wasn't comfortable with what I was doing so I started smoking weed and you know I was accepted into a new social setting amongst peers that smoked weed and we had fun and over time that then like the other you know drugs substances over time I developed a habit of taking prescription medications that were unprescribed and included opiates benzodiazepines and along with that came a lot of alcohol one thing led to the next and the drug usage got worse over time until I developed an addiction both physical and mentally but the most important thing about it was that it it made me feel okay and I would forget the day come night time and come to morning time and had something to look forward to emotionally I think it was the best word to describe it was numbness there was no emotions it was just me living in this alternate universe that uh there wasn't emotions it was so empty it was just there was nothing there I still remember vividly it was a Friday night it was at a friend's house eating Shabbos dinner and a gentleman that was part of my father's he sat me down he said maybe you should think about getting some help and for the first time I felt it was somebody wanted to help me somebody understood what I was going through it was eye-opening to me and I said sure come Sunday he called me he said I spoke to an organization on your behalf it happened to be a mudim and he said you know we record a treatment center that you could go get help and he said this is when your flight is do you want somebody to fly with you I was in shock I was nervous fearful anxious I said no I'm okay I was a big boy I said I'll fly by myself it was in California I went to Chabad Treatment Center I went not knowing what to expect and it was the best experience I ever had it was a place where I belonged there was no judgment that for me was the most important thing it was feeling that I was a part of something that I never felt before and throughout all this the healing emotionally began and a lot of it started with the community but a lot of it was being okay and comfortable with who I was and who I wanted to be when I got out out of treatment I then started a case management work at a hospital detox and that's really where things started coming together for me my job was to talk to people and get them to treatment that was my job having those conversations and just opening their eyes to like what life can be and also leaning on my past experiences it just made it a lot easier seeing somebody go from point A in their lives even to point B it doesn't have to be a to z but again I'm into treatment is like the most drastic thing I can do to help somebody just like somebody did it for me it's something I love doing and I built my self-confidence and people started to lean on me for and whether it was a ride to work or whatever it was people leaned on me for for something and and now I got married which is my biggest dream and God willing starting a family and my parents I am forever grateful I think they're very proud of what I've done I don't think I would have been on this path or Journey had an organization like them with a non-existent the second day got that call it was no obstacle there was no how much is it you know when is it let's get an help I think that that was one of the biggest things that modem did for me was giving me that ability to say you know what I'm ready I want to get help and the rest was taken care of I'm forever grateful for I'm with them for what they provided me and the the impact that they made on my life will stand with me forever wherever I go and in fact that they make on other people's lives and I see it on a daily basis is instrumental in helping people get better and helping our communities really get better foreign