Dennis had been awake for four or five days, was late for his flight, and shoved a small packet containing methamphetamine in his carry on bag at the last minute. As it traveled through the X-ray machine, a guard noticed the suspicious material and notified the police. Dennis was taken to jail but was, miraculously, released on bail three hours later. A week after that he was in drug rehab.

"Within minutes of getting in trouble I was on the phone with my attorney and then with the friend who posted my bond. I knew I was going downtown and I wanted to make sure that I was there for as little time as possible. I knew that I would not do well behind bars." The next day he called his brother, himself a recovering addict, and they decided together that a residential drug rehab facility was the only suitable course of action to follow.

Dennis is a self-proclaimed innocent, and nothing in his story belies that proclamation. "I had been doing tina (a slang term for meth) for a year and a half before I even knew what it was. All the nicknames, ice, crystal, tina, they all mean the same thing; I didn’t even know that I was doing speed. I'd just do a little bump of white power when we were out at the clubs and it would feel really good."

It wasn't until a friend introduced him to smoking it that things got out of control. "I had made rules for myself when I started doing drugs, which I broke almost immediately. I told myself I’d never do it alone and never in my own house. Those rules didn't last long: I have the willpower of a gnat. The combination of ecstasy, GHB and tina was a popular mix with my group…it was all about the party."

Dennis has now been clean for ninety days clean and feels lucky to be alive and able to move on with his life. "My suffering has been mild compared to what others have been through; I remind myself daily that I need to be a helpful person. My time in drug rehab allowed me to realize that you have to give it away if you want to keep it."

Dennis is rebuilding his life and he hopes his future will revolve around a rewarding career, supportive friends and family, and the emotional stability that are the benchmarks of a healthy and sober lifestyle.

September marks the 18th year of National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery month, a celebration of communities who are reaching out to help those who suffer from alcohol and drug addiction. If you have someone in your life who needs help, make September the month to get them into a successful drug rehab program. Recovery begins with the individual, but you can get the process started.