VASAP Clients Exit Letters & Poems

 

Nick’s letter to Himself after VASAP Treatment

Dear Nick, I know you are uncertain in what direction to go with your career but don’t lose yourself. Things might seem like you are lost right now but that is just part of your journey. You know the things that you should and shouldn’t be doing to stay on the right path. Don’t let your friends sway you away from doing the right things.Follow your gut and continue making the right choices. Just because your friends are hanging out drinking and partying doesn’t mean that you have to. You aren’t missing out on anything but a hangover. If you know that you are going to be drinking, then you should Uber to and from the place and just leave your truck at home. Just because you think you will be fine to drive doesn’t mean that you are actually fine to drive. I realize that drinking leads to bad decisions and that if you leave your truck at home to begin with there will no other option than to call an Uber. Drinking in moderation is fine, but there is a fine line. Most people don’t even realize that their consumption of alcohol can classify them as an alcoholic or heavy drinker just because our society normalizes drinking so much. Having one or two drinks is fine but don’t go overboard. Realize when you drink at home most people pour themselves double the standard pour, so even though you drank two drinks, you really drank four. Ultimately be safe, don’t put yourself in bad situations, and don’t drink just because you are bored and there is “nothing else to do.” Find a good movie, clean the house, and get a good night rest so you are refreshed and ready to go to the gym in the morning. Sincerely, Sober Nick

2/1/2024
 

Dear Alcohol

Dear Alcohol, I would like to start off by saying thank you for all the so called “fun” times. I have had more than enough of you in my life and I am ready to move on. You lied and deceive me for the last time. All those days and nights I thought we were having fun, you were actually slowly destroying me. I have never been so depressed as I have with you. Now that you are out of my life. I can feel happy again and feel like myself. You have slowed me down mentally and physically. You turned me into someone who I didn’t even know or recognize and I will never forget it. Nor will I ever forgive you. I am taking my life back. Goodbye for good -Charles

2/1/2024
 

Thanks you God for having me pulled over and arrested for a DUI

Thanks you God for having me pulled over and arrested for a DUI. The situation could have been more ugly. Since no one or myself got hurt and there was no property damage. You saved me from serious consequences. Yes, I know I've added this passage, every day, for the past month, but it is very important to never forget what may have been. You know I spent 10 days in jail, 6 of them sleeping on the floor. This experience was very eye opening. There were 30 men in my block. 10 men were in for DUI. What was interesting quite a few were bragging about what the did to get there. One cellmate was in terrible trouble. I don't think he told me the whole story. He was in a care crash and hurt 2 people, one was pregnant. He said, no one got terrible hurt. As you know he got a sentence of 10 years. He is very sorry. He thinks about it all the time. What is very sad is a lot of the inmates like being there. No one said this but it was my observation. 3 meals, clothes and a warm place to sleep. The place was organized, structured and consistent. Inmates told me stories of their lives (nothing else to talk about). None of these 3 items was part of their lives. Most inmates lived in a very dysfunctional home. There were generations of alcoholics in their families. Some of these inmates bragged about the damage they caused while intoxicated. They had not one bit of remorse. That thinking is so foreign to me. I know what I don't want to go through again. The punishment handed to me was required by law. It didn't matter if you were a good citizen your whole life. Even the judge didn't have the power to reduce the sentence. -Stan

2/29/2024
 

Poem to Myself

To myself January 10th, 2023, it’s never okay to drink and drive even it’s a sip, even if you’re right down the street. Worrying about the cost of an Uber is not worth, the amount of money, stress, and hardship you must go through with the charge. You pay the ULTIMATE price of drinking and driving. Your record, your life, your paychecks, your everything changes in one minute. ALWAYS get an Uber. The ONLY thing you gain out of drinking and driving and driving is the lesson learned of not to do it in the first place. This experience has taken such a huge toll on my mental and physical health to the point that I have no desire to drink alcohol again. You lose a part of yourself going through the aftermath of a DUI, but come out more mindful and aware of thinking about every decision you make moving forward. I have shed the skin of the past me in 2023 and will continue to bloom into the new me in 2024 and years beyond. What breaks you, makes you -Hanley

3/1/2024