ADHD, Addiction, and the Life I Built After Everything Fell Apart

I was always the gifted kid. Gifted program, straight A's, high IQ, played violin, ran track, was in choir — I did everything. On paper, I was the ideal student for the majority of my life. But what my mom didn't know was that I started drinking when I was about fifteen or sixteen. At first it was just to fit in with a crowd that wasn't very good for me. It was that period of experimentation. But it got to a point where I was drinking in class, drinking after class, drinking before class — yet still pulling out the grades. It really shrouded what was going on underneath.

College: When the Mask Started Slipping

Cut to college. I had a lot more autonomy, and I really chose drinking and partying over my classwork and being present. As a result, my grades suffered. I had to pivot from a biology degree to food and nutrition. That sealed my deal with not going to medical school, which led me to consider a master's in clinical social work. But at no point did my drinking really slow down. Once I got into grad school, my grades picked back up. I was working, had healthy relationships — so again, everything seemed like it was back on track.

The Pattern That Kept Repeating

I got my first DUI the summer after my senior year of high school. My second DUI in 2014, right before I started doing travel social work contracts across the country. My third DUI in 2022. And my fourth DUI in May of 2023 — while still on probation from the 2022 one. That fourth one resulted in me being in jail for just over three months.

The ADHD Taxes Nobody Talks About

What people don't realize is what untreated ADHD and addiction cost me beyond jail time. Legal fees. Bar tabs I bought for people. Expensive sunglasses I've lost so many of that I literally don't buy expensive ones anymore. I'll probably never have a driver's license again because of this.

And I was surrounding myself with really unhealthy people — people who just reinforced the drinking, people who didn't care, people who were just as lost as I was. I was also in a domestically violent relationship that made complete sense during my active addiction. When you're self-medicating, you end up in situations you'd never accept otherwise.

August 2023: The Reset

I was released from jail in the middle of August. A month later, after my birthday in September, I left that relationship. I moved back home to Pensacola — back to the little bungalow I still owned, thanks to the financial help and love of my best friend in the world, Michael. That bungalow had been waiting for me the whole time.

Getting Help

When I got released, I decided it was time to see a provider. I was diagnosed with ADHD, combined type. I started on atomoxetine — a nonstimulant — because yes, I was worried about stimulant medications. I'd read up on people abusing them, which is why I went the nonstimulant route initially.

Granted, during this period I was on probation, so legally I wasn't allowed to drink. But that hadn't stopped me before during all the other times I was on probation. This time was different. With the medication and the diagnosis, I stopped. And I never picked back up. I was going to AA meetings. I was following up with my psych nurse practitioner. I was reestablishing healthy relationships and letting go of the unhealthy ones.

I finished my probation early — in two and a half years instead of three.

When Everything Clicked

As I started doing my own research and getting my own certifications, all the bells eventually clicked. Self-medicating with drugs and alcohol is a side effect of untreated ADHD. And suddenly it all made sense. I wasn't a bad person. I was a person with an undiagnosed neurological condition doing the only thing my brain knew how to do — trying to regulate itself.

Real Talk About Stimulants

After a while, after research, after getting my own certifications, I learned something important: we don't even remember to take our medication. So how can we necessarily be addicted to it? Are there people out there abusing stimulants? Yes. Are they getting the benefits they think they want? No. But a true person with ADHD does not abuse their medications because we can't even remember to take our medications on a regular, consistent basis, let alone overconsume them.

November 2023: Someone Took a Chance

In November of 2023, somebody took a chance on me. They hired me for a part-time therapy job. And I excelled at that job. For a year and a half, I worked there while going to AA, seeing my provider, and rebuilding my life. During that year and a half of clarity and sobriety and self-reflection, figuring out what I wanted for my life, I realized something: I wanted to own my own practice.

Anybody who knew me as a medical social worker would've told you that was never the plan. I never wanted to be licensed, let alone be a private practice owner. But that's what untreated ADHD does — it limits your vision of what's possible for yourself.

October 2024: The Spark

One night in October 2024, after being upset with my boss, I started brainstorming. What if I did this myself? What if I built something that was actually mine?

January 1, 2025: Serenity Space

On January first of 2025, Serenity Space was born and opened for business. And on September eleventh of 2025, I left my full-time job to transition completely to being a practice owner and solo practitioner.

Three Years Sober

Today, I'm celebrating three years alcohol-free. I have no desire to go back. I actually can't even stand the smell of alcohol anymore. So I'm very mindful and cognizant about the people I hang around, the places I go — because it's just not a part of my life anymore.

My diagnosis was a blessing in disguise because it gave me clarity. It gave me insight into what was actually going on with me mentally. And more than that — it gave me permission to build a life I never thought was possible.

Why This Matters

If my story can help people in their lives and potentially prevent other people from having to go down the difficult road I went down — if it helps them get their diagnosis and get proper treatment — then I will say it was all worth it.

But here's what I really want you to know: the legal system in this country doesn't give a damn if you have a mental illness diagnosis. All they know is that you broke the law. You're gonna be penalized. You're gonna be deemed a bad person. You're gonna reap the consequences.

So don't wait until it's too late. Ask yourself: Is my addiction solely because of poor behaviors, or is it a symptom of something deeper? And if you can't figure that out on your own — seek help. Because the cost of waiting is so much higher than you think.

Three years later, I'm still unpacking what untreated ADHD cost me. But at least I'm unpacking it sober, with my freedom, with healthy relationships, and with a practice I built from the ground up. That's what proper treatment looks like.