My name is Roseann Crocker, and I am a volunteer at The Mental Health Association of Jamestown NY. I have been in recovery from meth and heroin since 7/8/19. My journey was very difficult since I first became an addict at the age of 19 to heroin. Thus began roughly about 13 years of active addiction. I had gotten bits of clean time anywhere from 6 months to a year, but every time I went back out. I just couldn’t stay sober, and for many years was lost. I gave up on all the things I had loved like my artwork. And this last relapse I had was the one that taught me the most. It taught me the most about myself, and coming to the realization that I didn’t want to keep living this awful way of life anymore. I finally decided that I was ready but this time was different from the other times. I had found out that I had failed so many times in the past due to the fact that I had been doing it for everyone else instead of myself. Whether it was for my child, for my parents, or drug court I failed because I wasn’t doing it for MYSELF. I realized that YOU have to truly WANT recovery for yourself first because my recovery has to come first or else I’m no good to any of the people I love.