 High school dropouts are losers.
High school dropouts will never succeed. High school dropouts have no future. Alcoholics are bums. Alcoholics end up in jail. Alcoholics are self-loathing, depressed and suicidal. Drug addicts are criminals. Drug addicts overdose and die. Drug addicts are leaches to society. My name is Terin DeVoto and... I AM A HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUT ...and I own a house, two cars, have multiple streams of income, money invested and a growing retirement plan. I AM A RECOVERING ALCOHOLIC ...and I am alive, free and sober. I AM A RECOVERING DRUG ADDICT ...and I am a proud and loving father, husband, son and brother. • We are more than our labels! #EndTheStigma
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 Out of all the gifts sobriety has given me, you are by far my favorite ♥️
Quote inspired by Colicchie song, “Drug Addiction”  re·cov·er·y (noun): returning to a normal state of health, mind or strength.
Staying in recovery can be done many different ways, however a person so chooses and decides works best for them. It could be one way, or a combination of ways. Let’s stop judging each other for how we stay sober because the reality is, everybody’s approach is different. Some attend AA meetings regularly, some find Jesus, some do yoga and meditate; for some it’s enough to just make the decision to abstain from using. Honestly that’s the beauty of it, there is no “right” path, it’s individual, THERE IS NO RECOVERY BLUEPRINT. As long as we don’t drink or use, that’s what defines a successful day in recovery. As long as we have something, ANYTHING that makes us better human beings and keeps us sober, that’s all that matters, right? Alcoholics Anonymous, Jesus, fitness, meditation, whatever... who gives a fuck what it is. Label yourself a recovering addict or don’t, that’s a personal choice that really doesn’t matter. Either way, addicts are dying every day... dying slaves to a needle, drink, pill or powder. The label in recovery doesn’t matter when the truth is our addiction doesn’t care what we call ourselves in active use; it will destroy us no matter what if we decide to relapse, right? So as long as today, we aren’t out there getting high, playing roulette with our lives; and we are in recovery (however we define it), alive and sober, that’s all that truly fucking matters. While still in active addiction, the 4th of July was one of those “let’s get as fucked up as humanly possible” kind of days. Not sure why... but definitely wasn’t doing drugs and getting blackout drunk to celebrate our country’s independence, I can tell you that much.
It was one of those holidays where “normal” people wanted to get extra fucked up too; and any occasion where us junkies could blend in with the regulars of society, even just for a day, was a big deal in our minds. Getting fucked up as usual while upholding the false appearance of being a normie was a huge win. So yay! Happy Independence Day to us dysfunctional, drunken druggies right? For the first few years in recovery, July 4th was a tough one. It always seemed to bring on triggering feelings and memories. Those sneaky thoughts of using would creep in. Most years, fantasies of getting high would come up and I would have to implement coping mechanisms. Relapse is a big part of my story, so the most effective one for me was to “play the tape through”. And why was this so effective? Because after playing the tape through, it always became very obvious that I don’t have another relapse left in me! Specific holidays, people, places or things can trigger thoughts of drinking and using. We are addicts and alcoholics who spent years of our lives obsessing over drugs and booze on a daily basis.... so of course it’s completely normal to have these thoughts! But if you are anything like me, using is NOT an option. I don’t know if I would make it back out alive and I have too much to live for today. I have a wife and daughter that need me, friends and family that love me, and strangers I don’t know yet that I am determined to help! I’m willing to do anything to not use again. On that note, hope everyone had a HAPPY 4TH OF JULY! I feel grateful to have spent mine surrounded by those I love, sober and living a life I only dreamed of!  BIGGEST FEAR = REGRET
My driving forces in life are positive influences: love, happiness and success. Those three things are what feed my goals and dreams, my relationships and friendships, and all my daily decisions. I will be honest though, part of me is driven by fear... a fear of regret. Fear of being old and grey, looking back on my life, asking myself questions... Did I accomplish everything I wanted to? Did I pursue the things that brought me the purest joy? Did I love those around me with the deepest love I was able to give? Did I do everything and more that was expected of me as a father? Once that moment comes, once we get to the point where we are looking back at our life asking those questions, that’s it. There is no going back from there, there is no rewinding time, no do-overs, no restart button. That’s a scary thought, sitting, living in that moment... and having regret. Not for me, I won’t let it happen. I will make mistakes, I will fail, I will hurt... but as long as I am loving with all my heart, chasing my dreams and pursuing the things in life that bring me the purest joy, well... that’s all I can do!  In 2016, there were over 63,000 lives lost to drug overdose deaths...
There has been too many tears shed over addicts and alcoholics stolen from us too soon. Amazing, kind, loving human beings who never got to become the people they were destined to be because they got high until they died. Those lost weren’t just junkies, pillheads or drunks like some of the world would label them. They were brothers, sisters, mothers, children... all taken way too soon by the grips of their addiction. I’ve personally shed too many tears over those lost to this terrible epidemic; both people I got high with and people I got clean with. It was men and women in recovery that saved me from continuing to use. I don’t know where I would be today if those detrimental people weren’t there for me when I was in need; chances are I wouldn’t be around anymore. I can’t put into words the amount of gratitude I have for those people, I owe them my life. All I can do to repay that debt is be there for the next addict in need looking for some hope. The goal being one less funeral to attend, one less family missing a child and one less soul taken from this world much too soon  “I’m doing what it takes so my daughter will never see me high.”
Song: Drug Addiction by Colicchie My motivation for staying clean and sober? The potential to be the best version of myself, fear of death and prison, no longer hurting and worrying the loved ones around me... and the list goes on. But the most important motivator of them all is never wanting to let you down. You are my world, my love, my princess, my everything. Making you proud is the most important thing to me in the whole world... it’s the reason for everything I do. My goal every day is to use my time as efficiently as possible. Whether it be professionally or personally, time is the one thing we can never earn back.
Professionally, I try to make sure every daily action throughout my day is either helping my business grow or helping me grow, setting me up for a better tomorrow. In my personal life (AKA spending time with my daughter), I do my best to make sure every moment is being cherished. I don’t ever want to regret wasting time, especially the precious time I have with the most important person to me in the whole world. I’m so fucking imperfect, so all I can do is give my best daily to continue to grow. I’m always trying to find new ways to use my time more efficiently, grow as a person and be the best dad I can possibly be. I’m not perfect, I fuck up and make mistakes. But all I can do is work with what I’ve been given and learned up to this point in life; so I’m going to do my best with these tools... EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.  This album was released June 18. My last drink, drug, fight and arrest was 6 days later on June 23, 2010 (sobriety date 06/24/2010). This CD (yes, we still listened to CDs back then) was all that played in my car from Day 1 until Day 90 of my sobriety. Given the theme of this album and how much I could relate to every song (everything from Not Afraid to Space Bound), I didn’t allow myself to listen to anything else until I got my 90 day AA chip. I won’t say this CD was the sole reason I made it to 90 days because there were many other factors, but it sure as hell played a part!
The power music has is a really complex but amazing topic of conversation. It can trigger memories of great times and bad ones, also remind us of certain people and places. Songs will bring us back and we will literally feel the emotions we felt in that specific memory, good or bad. Music is a such a beautiful thing. Self-awareness has become so important in my life. It offers me such a sense of happiness and confidence being honest with myself about my strengths and, most importantly, my weaknesses. There’s A LOT of things I reeeeeally suck at, but I’m totally cool with it! It’s an amazing feeling having no problem admitting faults and character defects to anybody. If you can admit to yourself first and thenthe world where you have flaws, then the world has nothing to hold against you and that allows you to truly grow!
. So when I say “stop giving a fuck”, this is what I mean. Stop giving a fuck that the world can see you’re not perfect, embrace those imperfections, put them out there and love yourself confidently no matter what! |
Terin DeVoto NoonanRecovering alcoholic/addict, bully victim, 6+ year toxic relationship, past depression. Overcame these past struggles to create a life of love, success and happiness. ArchivesCategories |
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