WATCH – #RECOVERYISPOSSIBLE –
June 3, 2021 – At six years old, Burton says she was introduced to marijuana by her mother. At the age of 12, she says she got into methamphetamine and cocaine. By 14, she was smoking crack and getting blackout drunk. It’s hard to believe, she knows, but all the while she wanted to stop using.
“I’ll be really honest with you I didn’t care whether I was killed, whether I successfully committed suicide or whether I went to prison,” Burton said. “Any one of those options was just fine for me because I just wanted to stop and I couldn’t stop on my own.”
It was a vicious cycle until eight years, five months and 27 days ago.
“It’s the longest I have ever been clean in my entire life,” she said. Next week, Burton will graduate with her bachelor’s in political science. She announced her achievement on Facebook and from Rochester, Washington, nearly 2,500 miles away in Ohio, her message hit home.
“We want to celebrate their success,” Chillicothe Police Chief Ron Meyers said.
Chief Meyers says he knows the struggles of addiction. He and his officers see it every day. All the more reason, he says, to share Burton’s post.
“Anytime we can get a message out to folks, especially with something we’re succeeding on here and getting treatment and letting folks know that it’s OK to have bad days and you can do better yourself,” he said.
Along with Chillicothe’s Peer Supporters and Post Overdose Response Team, Chief Meyers says it’s important for addicts to know recovery is possible.
