How I went from heroin addict to recovery coach

You might be wondering how I can possibly help you overcome your battles. How can I relate to your experiences? What qualifications do I have? Allow me to share.

My downward-spiraling journey began when I was fourteen years old in a church parking lot. Rebellious and full of curiosity, I smoked weed with a man who was much too old for me. Although I thought the parking lot was empty, I now know that God and His angels were right there with me. They had their hands of protection on me, and they would continue to protect me for the next ten years of my life. 

That first hit of weed led me down a disruptive path. I soon started taking Ecstasy, which made me feel like I was swimming through life. I later tried one line of Oxycontin and was instantly addicted. This drug would rule my life for the next seven years. I wasn’t using it to get high—I was using it to survive. Within two years, my friend was teaching me how to shoot drugs into my arm. I was in a living hell. My days consisted of waking up, getting drugs, sleeping and repeating—even on Christmas Day. 

 

I had no future, no purpose and no reason to live. My life continued to spin out of control during the next few years, and I began getting in trouble with the cops. At the age of twenty three, in a grocery store parking lot, I hit rock bottom. My friend and I had gone to get some heroin, but I didn’t know that this batch would almost kill me. We did our normal routine of  shooting up and injecting the drug into our veins. That was the last thing I remember. I spent six hours lying in an unlocked car—with drugs all around me and my eyes closed. 

I could have died that  day, never again having the chance to reach my full potential. But God said, “No, not today, Britni. You are My child, and I have a plan for you.” 

After six hours, my eyes opened—not just physically, but spiritually as well. It was as if my eyes had been closed for twenty-three years of my life, and I had finally seen the light. God turned my life upside down—or rather, right side up. 

I checked myself into rehab the following week. By the grace of God, I have been clean from drugs since that day. I completely moved away from my addicted life and reinvented myself through my new identity in Christ. I  started school, one class at a time, and found that I could actually pass a college course. I took  small steps in the direction God was calling me, and now through the power of God, I have three degrees under my belt, including a Master’s in Social Work, and a Freedom in Christ Certification. 

It takes a lot of work to be an addict, but when that energy is put into something positive, there are endless wonderful possibilities. God has always shown me the path to take, and when I choose to go where He is calling me, I continue to reach unbelievable levels in my life. I am blessed to be the author of Recovery in Jesus’s Hands, which is designed to reach those who are still in active addiction. 

The story of addiction is different for everyone, but the path to freedom is the same. Through Jesus Christ, each of us can come clean and find the wholeness we have always wanted while receiving the abundant life God has promised us. My mission is to help you reach your maximum potential in Christ while empowering you to step into the vision He has planned for you. There is an abundant life waiting for you on the other side of obedience. Sobriety is just your first, of many, blessings that God has in store for you. He called you out of addiction for a divine reason, and I can’t wait to watch you Level Up to your full potential and find complete freedom.