Imagine being 19 years old and being drafted into a war you weren’t particularly comfortable fighting in. For many young men this was their reality in the late 1960’s, for the Vietnam War. Many individuals such as Scott Riley were poorly trained on combat and a lot of lives were lost but, for the individuals who survived they were faced with a big challenge and limited resources. Either they were physically injured in combat or they were emotional scarred from their experiences overseas. It was very common for Veterans to experienced PTSD. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which is a severe condition that may develop after a person is exposed to one or more traumatic events, such as sexual assault, serious injury or the threat of death. The diagnosis may be given when a group of symptoms such as disturbing recurring flashbacks, avoidance or numbing of memories of the event, and hyper arousal (high levels of anxiety) continue for more than a month after the traumatic event. Sadly, a lot of individuals are faced with this and many turn to drugs to mask the memories and to numb their minds.

For Scott Riley he turned to drugs to hide from the terrors that lived within his memories and it wasn’t until he found himself sleeping on a park bench in the snow that he had realized he needed to change. When he decided to seek help at the Su Casa drug treatment facility, he never left. He is now a Food Service Coordinator at Su Casa and is now celebrating 17 years in recovery and thankful everyday for his second chance he received 17 years ago.

It’s never too late to seek help and to change. If you find yourself feeling hopeless and defeated Seabrook is here to help. To see if we are the right treatment facility for you, please visit www.seabrook.org. Make today the start of your Second Chance at living a healthy sober life.