When struggling with substance use, it is difficult to decide what to do next when everything you've tried so far hasn't worked. Whether that be regular therapy, medications, 12-step meetings and support groups, questioning changing careers or moving, changing friend groups, or going all-in on health and fitness to counteract substance use. For some of us, all of these choices in changes have failed us, and we remain at the same place we started. That was me during the last year of my substance use. I had given all of the above a shot at getting me sober. All of them either outright failed, were somewhat helpful (but not enough), or left me even more broke (and broken). My next step was inpatient treatment. I had contemplated inpatient for the last year of my using, but either felt I didn't have enough money to quit my job (I was working once a week in the sex-worker industry at that point), I didn't know where I would live after as my current partner at that time was abusive but I had nowhere else to go, and deep down I also was afraid of actually committing to a full 30 days of sobriety and change. One night, where I was thoroughly inebriated, I called the American Addictions Center 24-hour line. This not an advertisement for them, however an example of how their 24-hour access helped me in my moment of need. I described to the person on the other line what I was going through, what I was afraid of, and how I was broke, and he was able to create a plan for me. The next day, I completely forgot the conversation, however that guy had apparently saved it to my caller file. I called back after seeing the phone number on my phone app and searching it on google (to investigate the previous night.) From there on, I spent the next month drunkenly navigating the marketplace of health insurance, searching for different treatment centers, planning to move my belongings into a storage unit, and trying to find a temporary caregiver for my beloved cat, Nugget, who had been with me through my entire adult life thus far living in cars, hotels, and abusive homes with me. All of that to say, I am now 3.5 years into my recovery, have completed two internships for inpatient treatment centers, am in college for Social Work, and work as a Chemical Dependency Counselor and Resource Specialist for the parenting and pregnant women of my county living in poverty. I now get to assist to many other people on their journey of navigating the inpatient treatment center options, health insurance, scholarships, and so much more. I credit a lot of my success in sobriety to that stranger that offered me support, assistance with making a plan, and guidance on how to move forward. I partially refer to my lived experience of going to treatment myself when assisting people with what to look for and ask about before committing to treatment, and I use my employment experience of understanding how health insurance can be attainable for anyone, and how to find inpatient treatment that will give them the most and best coverage. If you feel like this may be your next (and only) option, you don't have to navigate this alone, or with a stranger on the phone. I would be honored to assist you in determining if there are other options (like detox and outpatient), or how to choose an inpatient treatment center catered to your healing. Assisting in this field is my passion, and I am ready to be that stranger that can give you practical advice, work with you on a plan, and give you tools you can use in the process. I'm confident you can succeed, but doing it alone isn't the only way you have try.