True

I'm an addictions counselor--

I guarantee that doesn't mean what you think it does.

There are so many preconceived notions--

ones I have been guilty of myself.

"It's a choice"

"They can stop whenever they feel like it"

"They're selfish"

"They don't care about the family"

If there is one thing I could say that is true 

of every addicted person I've encountered,

It would be this:

They are in pain.

She was bullied as a 3rd grader.

He watched his mother drink herself to death.

She was talked into selling her body by someone she trusted.

He was never the same after his divorce.

She lost her child shortly after it was born.

She faced domestic violence and near death experiences for the past 8 years.

She is dying. Years of alcohol has damaged her body beyond recognition.

Sometimes the stories are familiar,

Other times they are nearly unbelievable,

but they are always filled with searing pain.

Another true statement,

I feel very unprepared to work with addictions.

I'm learning new curriculum, a new way of thinking, even a new vocabulary.

I come home and the tears are near,

the client I had so much hope for is back to killing herself

slowly, chemically

Caring is dangerous,

and I'm selfish by nature.

But each day I wake up, 

put on the most "adult" professional dress and heels I have,

and keep trusting.

God made me a helper.

He gave me a mixture of strength and compassion.

Sometimes I even catch a grace-filled glimpse of what He is doing.

I see the connection when 

something I learned in my internship can benefit a new client.

 a class I took in undergrad helps me write a new curriculum for families.

I recognize someone I love in the story of a new group member.

He's given all of us a purpose, a hope, and a future.

And I can't give up now.