Behind every door...

...you never know what to expect. I am sitting in my office waiting for a new client to arrive. At this point I know very little about him. I know he is a youn male from Texas with an addiction to oxycodone and that is it. I don't know how he is currently feeling or what he is thinking. Is he in detox? Is he feeling pain? Is that pain emotional or physical? Probably both. Is he regretting his decision to come to rehab? Did he even make that decision or did someone make it for him? Is he motivated to move forward to recovery or is he just wasting our time and someone's money? Time will tell.

This business is not glamorous. You have to leave your intentions to get rich at the door when you sit on the treatment side of this business. The failures will break your heart. The stories-by the clients and the families-are gut wrenching. But when someone gets it; when the light comes on and recovery is the only option; there is little in life as rewarding. To have the opportunity to significantly impact on the outcome of someone's life is a gift. It is a special opportunity that words don't justify. By directly influencing and guiding one's path from addiction to recovery literally serves to save their life. Few jobs compare.

So who is this young man about to arrive? Will I be able to help him. Does he want to be helped. I don't know yet. But he will get every morsel of my attention. Every drop of my ability to work with him and help him help himself. Because you never know who will survive.