LYNCHBURG, Va. – The National Institute on Drug Abuse defines addiction as a disease. And like all diseases, people need treatment to combat it.
Jessica Holdren knows the struggles of addiction all too well.
“Unless you’ve used drugs and been in a situation, you don’t understand what it’s like,” Holdren said.
Jessica found herself in the middle of addiction, and turned to BrightView Health in Lynchburg for help.
“If I can put cocaine and methamphetamine and pills in my body, then I can get up and come here and do this for me and my kids,” she said.
Tuesday, BrightView in Lynchburg celebrated a year of helping people in their fight against addiction.
In that time, about 300 people have started treatment.
Tom Fraticelli is the director of outreach.
“We wanted to recognize a couple of our patients that have been with us for a number of months and have made significant progress and really changed their lives,” Fraticelli said. “And that’s what today was all about, really celebrating their success, as well as recognizing that we’ve been here for a year and thanking our staff and the community for all the things they’ve been doing for us.”
They say their approach to outpatient treatment is different than many other facilities, with a focus on medical, social and emotional health.
“We make sure that those patients know that we’re here for them,” Fraticelli said. “When they’re ready, we’re ready and we’re ready to pick up the torch when they’re ready to take that next step.”
Jessica tried other treatment options before BrightView, but none worked.
“I lost my family, I lost my car,” she said.
And she is excited to have her life back.
“I leave here, I feel really good. I feel happy, I feel positive. I don’t think about drugs. I haven’t used. I haven’t relapsed, not one time,” she said. “And if I ever do think about relapse and I would call them immediately and know that they would help me.”