STANDING IN HIS TRUTH –
March 14, 2021 – You can sense the trepidation in Poyer’s message. He eventually says, “Can’t lie even writing this, Im embarrassed, it’s shameful but If I can overcome the struggle of alcohol, so can you.” “My first step was realizing I had a drinking problem. Cause I did. I couldn’t drink just to hang. When I drank I had to drink to get F’d up. I used alcohol to avoid all my issues in real life. My family, my job, my friends … when I drank I could forget all of my issues. I didn’t have to deal with them face on. After we lost to Houston in 2019, I felt I didn’t play the way I wanted to and we lost in such a bad way that for the next 5 weeks after that game I drank every damn day. Alcoholism is, of course, nothing to be embarrassed or ashamed of, and Poyer’s message is courageous and important. My wife had seen it first hand and honestly if it wasn’t for her & the consistent support from my family and friends idk where I would be. I remember days she would cry because I just couldn’t put a beer down. I remember not being able to play with Aliyah cause I was too intoxicated. I remember feeling thoughts in my head; that would scare the hell out of sober me now.
I finally decided to take a few trips to AA. My mom told me it helped her. Never spoke in them . Just took 3 trips and listened. I realized my issues were not even close to other’s life issues.” Having Poyer speak out about a subject that is still frustratingly taboo is a vital step in helping more people understand the many forms of alcohol abuse. Poyer got broad support after posting his message, but if you look hard enough you’ll find some people who used it to create a discussion full of misconceptions and stereotyping about alcohol addiction and the programs used to assist those suffering from it.I wrote earlier today about how sad it is to see Johnny Manziel and Josh Gordon playing in the Fan Controlled Football league, as both of their careers were derailed by addiction. ESPN ran a story earlier this year about CC Sabathia’s — and writer Ryan Hockensmith’s — fight against addiction.
