Meet Whitney. Whitney suffered a tragic and sudden loss that, through grief, led her down a path of opioid abuse. Learn how she chose her family over opioids by undergoing an accelerated opioid detox at the Coleman Institute.
Explore the recap of Whitney's YouTube video, "Whitney's Recovery from Opioid Addiction at The Coleman Institute," here.
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Whitney’s Journey to Opioid Abuse
I was 12 or 13 when I started drinking alcohol and smoking weed; I started getting heavy into drugs when I was 16 because my house burned down and my brother died. So I kind of just, at that point, flew off the handle and never reeled it back in.
I never was utterly dependent on one drug until I was about 20. And I decided that opioids were what made me feel normal. And I spent many years dependent on pills even as I had kids. And then, finally, that became much too expensive, and I switched to heroin. That only lasted about a year because even though it seemed less expensive, it was costly.
And also, even though my life had become unmanageable before that point, after that point, it became incredibly undisciplined. And I left my job. I was letting my kids down. I let my kids stay home from school because I couldn't get up and help them.
I was keeping my husband home from work because I was sick. I was going through any money that I had and more. So once I started heroin, everything went out of control and tanked quickly.
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Whitney Trying to Self-Detox
I've always been a self-detoxer and had this little regimen to detox off opioids, which involved other drugs. And then I would just white-knuckle for months at a time until I messed up again.
So I got to the point where I was sick of being sick.
And then also loved the feeling, but I was never "happy me." So I finally went to my mom, and I was like, I need help. I can't do this. And by the way, I need money to pay my bills. So she got on the internet, and this was the place that she found.
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UNDERSTANDING ACCELERATED OPIOID DETOX
Whitney Detoxing with the Coleman Institute
And I held out for weeks because I wasn't comfortable getting something that would completely block opioids. Of course, I had reservations, but finally, it got to a point where there was no other choice. So at that point, I gave in, and we went to the Coleman Institute.
The Coleman Institute staff is fantastic. Everything about the process I would recommend. And on the first day, I was here, one of the nurses said to me, which I'll never forget. She said, "I know you're an addict, and you think you deserve how you feel, but you don't, and you have to tell us everything wrong so we can try and fix it." So the fact that it was 5 days and I knew what the end date was of me feeling like this and the fact that any time that I had a problem when I came and checked in, in the morning and got my naltrexone shot, they would ask what was wrong. They would fix as best they could anything wrong.
And if you call the detox line, they'll answer immediately and address the problem directly. If you call after hours, they call right back. All of the nurse practitioners are incredibly nice. After a few visits, everybody knows you by name. When you come for your follow-up appointments, they know you by name. They remember everything that you've told them. They ask you about something you told them the last time and how you're doing. And they act like, and I think they really feel like they're proud of where you've gotten to. So everything's different because my approach is different besides the opioid detox, which I don't think would've been the case if it wasn't for the aftercare at the Coleman Institute.
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Whitney’s Experience With the Coleman Institutes’ Staff
So now I'm figuring out how to be a mom, be a wife, have a normal life and make commitments and be happy. So I would recommend this place over anywhere else.
First, it's okay to be scared of the whole process because if you decide to go to detox or rehab or give up what you know and love, it's hard to do. Still, at some point, unless you want to go to jail or die, you will have to do it.
And this couldn't have been a better experience because there's so much personalized attention. I know the whole staff by their first names, and they know me too. And they know who my husband is. They know how many kids I have. It's very personalized. They call, and they're not, "This is somebody from the Coleman Institute," and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. They're like, "Hey, Whitney. Call on to either check on you, see if something's right, or ask you a question, and nobody judges you."
And I would've come a long time ago had I known that this place existed because I've always done it on my own and never wanted to tell anybody. I always had to smile and act like I had the flu all the time. So, on the one hand, it's nice even to let people know, so you don't have to hide, but they treat you with so much respect that you don't even feel like a drug addict when you're here.
Conclusion
If you are ready to change your relationship with opioids and have questions, please call the Coleman Institute now, and we will gladly answer them.
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