When I finally decided to get the help for my Vicodin addiction, I really didn’t know what to do next. I mean, I knew that I needed to “get help”, but I wasn’t particularly sure what that meant. So I did my research to find out what sort of services would be best for me. I quickly found out, that what I wanted and needed wasn’t available in my hometown of Olympia, Washington. Every place that I called either (a) had a months-long waiting list, (b) didn’t offer the services I was looking for, or (c) didn’t accept my insurance. I needed help before I changed my mind. So, I broadened my horizons a little bit and looked outside of Olympia to see what other options Washington State had to offer. I honestly think that made ALL the difference.
I Left Olympia to Go to Drug Rehab Because I Wanted Help NOW
I read somewhere that of all the addicts and alcoholics in America, only about 11% get the help they need. I was frustrated when I found out that there was no “right fit” for the Olympia, so I made up my mind that I wasn’t going to be part of that 11%. It was hard enough for me to come to the decision to go to rehab, and I knew that if I waited around, I was probably going to change my mind and just start using again. I checked around at a few other Washington State drug rehabs – in Tacoma, Spokane, Vancouver, and others – and I was able to find several places that had IMMEDIATE openings. In fact, they wanted to make arrangements while we were still on the phone. MAJOR plus.
I Left Olympia to Go to Drug Rehab Because I Wanted to Get Away from What I Knew
Once I found out that there were open elsewhere, I really started to warm to the idea. I started realizing that maybe leaving Olympia to go to drug rehab might have other advantages. For starters, maybe it would take away my ability to back out. I mean, I’ve had hometown friends who’ve gone to rehab in Olympia and didn’t last very long at all. All it took was a phone call for someone to come and give them a ride. I even remember one girl I knew who just decided to walk out one day, no looking back. If I stayed in Olympia, it would also be way too easy for me to call a friend and have them deliver what I needed. My supplier has made deliveries before, so it wouldn’t be that big of a deal. I knew that if there was that possibility, at some point, I would be tempted to take it. Take away the possibility, and I just might stick it out.
I Left Olympia to Go to Drug Rehab Because I Wanted Fewer Distractions
It was hard for me to be a good daughter when I was high on Vicodin all the time. I know that I’ve let my parents down. They’re the ones who kept on me to go to rehab in the first place. When I told my mother, she looked like I had just won an award. How can I put this the right way? Of all the things that I wasn’t exactly looking forward to in rehab, I REALLY wasn’t looking forward to visits from my mother. She could be… a bit much. I mean, I was glad that she was happy that I wanted to go to rehab, but I wasn’t going for HER – I was going for ME. As much as I love my mother, I felt that if I went to drug rehab in OLYMPIA, she would insist on visiting me as much as possible. But by leaving Olympia to go to drug rehab elsewhere, that would cut down on the extra visits. She would be close enough to, on occasion, but far enough away where I could have a little privacy.
I Left Olympia to Go to Drug Rehab Because I Wanted Time to Transition
The final reason that I chose a rehab in a different part of Washington State is that the distance could serve as a buffer between who I was now and who I wanted to be in the near future. I figured that travel time to the out-of-area rehab would give me time to mentally prepare for what I was committing to. I could say my goodbyes, shed my tears, and focus on myself for a while. And, on the way back, that same distance would allow me to get ready for my return to my life in Olympia. Even a couple of hours of travel would let me get my mind right for that reintroduction. And that’s how it all played out – I left Olympia to go to drug rehab in the Vancouver area. I was able to spend 45 days in a beautiful residential rehab facility, and it was just far enough away where my mother only visited me twice. None of my friends that I partied with made the trip. For almost the whole time, I was able to focus on me and what I was learning. Rehab was hard, but I think it would’ve been that much harder with the distractions and temptations I would’ve faced if I had stayed in town. But in hindsight, I can say that leaving Olympia to go to drug rehab was one of the best decisions that I could have made.
