Hope for recovery
Cheryl Warner had repeated the “vicious cycle” of drug addiction for years, in which she would become sober for a while before falling back into substance abuse. Now, at age 31, she has a life she never thought possible.
Warner had struggled with drug addiction throughout her life, and has been in recovery for about a year. Originally from Virginia, Warner said moving to Robin’s Home, a women veteran housing shelter in Butler, saved her life.
“It wasn’t until a friend of mine said Butler has a recovery community that can change your life, so I think of Butler as a place that has saved my life,” Warner said. “For me what worked was finding a place where I could get a fresh start, where I didn’t have anybody to call (for drugs) and I didn’t know which house to go to.”
Warner was just one of four people who shared their stories of recovery from addiction at a speaking event Thursday evening, Sept. 15, at the Butler Art Center.
Ken Clowes, Butler County Community College’s community initiatives center assistant, organizes “Hope is Dope” nights regularly to gather people struggling with addiction together to get to know one another and other people who have been in their shoes.
Clowes said to the crowd of more than 50 people in attendance that he hoped to show people that recovery is not something that happens overnight, and everyone has their own journey on their way to it.
“Recovery is a process,” Clowes said. “We’re all in this together.”
Aside from the four people in recovery who spoke at the event, BC3 president Nick Neupauer shared words of encouragement, as did Steve Treu, chief visionary officer for Quantum Revolution, a counseling service based in Cranberry Township.
Treu explained that drug addiction is a chemical reaction in the brain in which endorphins react to stimuli, which opiates can activate.
Treu said on the flip side of that coin, hope works in a similar way, and used a scientific study involving the placebo effect and opiates as an example of how the brain reacts to expectations.
“The expectation of getting an opioid made the brain experience an opioid in the form of endorphins,” Treu said. “There is a lot of unfair stuff about the world, but we can all be hopeful.”
The four speakers Thursday each took listeners through the story of their addictions, each starting with their childhoods and ending with their current position in recovery.
Richard Stepp, who has been in recovery since July 2021, said he struggled with alcoholism since he was a child. He was in and out of jail several times throughout his life, which he viewed as only an inconvenience. Stepp also said he contemplated killing himself but is glad he did not.
Stepp also said he wanted to speak at Hope is Dope to encourage people to ask for help.
“I have an opportunity to come speak to you tonight to acknowledge that there is hope,” Stepp said. “I advise anyone to be involved in a program if you don’t know how to live life ... It doesn’t make you less of a man or a woman to ask for help.”
Mark Marcus, who has been in recovery since October 2015, has chosen to take the path of sobriety because he doesn’t want his son to follow in his footsteps. Having seen his own father cope with substance abuse, Marcus said his motivation comes from not repeating that pattern.
He also encouraged people struggling with substance abuse to find what works for them in their own process.
“Legacy is a big part of my journey and what I want for my son,” Marcus said. “Abstinence worked for me, but people should find what works for them. It doesn’t matter what kind of recovery you are in, we should all stand together. We have to.”
Warner also said her motivation for recovery is creating a good life for her children. She said no matter what someone is going through, if they can find a purpose, they can get into recovery.
“My motivation is just finding that purpose, and stop at nothing to complete that purpose,” Warner said. “If it can happen for me, it can happen for anyone. I hope it gives someone else here just an ounce of hope for themselves.”
