Andrew Aleman remembers climbing through a window after being locked out of his home, when he discovered something he will never forget – his friend dead on the couch.
In the weeks prior to the fatal drug overdose, Aleman’s friend quit his addiction recovery program. Aleman said he was devastated by the tragedy and is no stranger to the consequences of addiction.
“I was lucky enough to get incarcerated before any of that stuff happened, but I’m no different,” Aleman said. “If I were to continue doing what I was doing, I’d be dead.”
Originally from Austin, Aleman said he starting using drugs at a young age; first experimentally, then recreationally. At 15 years old, he was charged with public intoxication and spent a majority of his youth in correction centers.
“I didn’t wake up and say, ‘God I want to be a crackhead for the rest of my life,’” Aleman said. “That’s not what I wanted to be when I grew up.”
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 1 in every 12 teenagers had a substance abuse disorder in 2014.
When he turned 21, Aleman said he was arrested for drunk driving and given two options – jail time or drug rehabilitation in Lubbock.
Aleman checked in to The Ranch at Dove Tree, a recovery center in Lubbock, where he stayed sober for 11 months before relapsing.
“It got to the point where I couldn’t forgive myself,” Aleman said. “I hated waking up in the morning and looking at myself.”
Aleman said he had been sober for about an hour when he walked into Fire Sky Ranch, a Lubbock-area Aspire Recovery rehab facility, and asked for help. The owner gave Aleman a scholarship covering the entire program fee.
The push gave Aleman a much needed life-saving incentive.
Providing other life-saving incentives, Emily Crochet – a referral administration coordinator for The Ranch at Dove Tree – said their facility offers personalized treatment options ranging from horse therapy to family-empowerment programs.
“We offer an in-patient care program, partial hospitalization, intensive out-patient, and an on-site detox program,” Crochet said.
Crochet also said Dove Tree’s collegiate program provides structured support for students in recovery, including the option for transitional living.
Aleman is not alone in his struggle with addiction. Lubbock resident Joey Martin describes his recovery as nothing short of a miracle.
Martin said he started drinking and taking pills with friends at the age of 14, eventually becoming addicted to heroin.
“After five years of being strung out on that, I started doing meth,” Martin said.
Martin said he remembers putting his life at risk many times; willingly using a needle from someone with hepatitis c to testing a drug dealer’s home-cooked meth.
“Nobody can get sober for you and nobody can make you, unless you want to do it for yourself,” Martin said.
Martin said he will be three years sober in July and credits Lubbock for offering great recovery options.
Upon successfully completing rehab, Aleman was accepted to Texas Tech University through the Center for Collegiate Recovery Communities.
Sober for 18 months, Aleman said he feels like he has a purpose in life, urging others to stay strong and seek the help they need.
“I went to nine different high schools because I couldn’t stop selling drugs,” Aleman said. “Now, I’m sitting up at Tech with a 3.6 GPA.”
Addiction recovery resources in Lubbock:
- The Ranch at Dove Tree – https://ranchatdovetree.com/ : 1406 County Rd 5800, Lubbock; (866)572-6062
- Aspire Recovery Center of Lubbock – https://aspireoftexas.com/ : 3330 70th St. #120, Lubbock; (806)589-5911
- Managed Care Center for Addictive/Other Disorders, Inc. –https://www.managedcarecenter.org/ : 1715 26th St., Lubbock; (806)780-8300
- Lubbock Lighthouse – http://new.lubbocklighthouse.org/ : 1308 Ave. Q, Lubbock; (806)744-3419
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