Day 394 – “Take a deep breath”

Current Recovery (Sunday, 23 December 2007)
Day 394 – “Take a deep breath”

It is actually amusing if you think about it. I’m in my late 20’s and for my entire life I’ve been under my parents’ roof. They cared for me, cooked for me, cleaned and ironed for me. They gave me what I needed and even sometimes what I didn’t need. Even when the idiotic things I did got me in trouble with the law more than once my parents were still there to bail me out and help me through it. It is safe to say that most of my life has been smooth sailing with endless help from my parents… that is of course, until now!

I got this news a while back but first had to make sure it wasn’t just talk and had to inform my friends and family before I posted it here on the blog. I am being transferred to another part of the company. It is a chance of a lifetime really, one I won’t easily get again. The line of work is right up my alley and it is a brilliant opportunity to show what I’m capable off. The catch is it is almost 400 km’s from where I am staying now! That is 400 km’s from everything I know, love and have grown comfortable with.

The important thing however is not so much the distance as the fact that I will be staying on my own! For the first time in my life I will be out from underneath my parent’s roof. No longer under their guidance or their supervision. Some would say it is about time and I guess I would have to agree that not only do I need to experience life on my own with more responsibility but I need to give my parent’s some of their life back. On the other hand it is painfully obvious that I am not an average 27 year old and staying on my own brings obstacles to my life that most can not even imagine.

One thing is for sure, this can be the greatest thing to ever happen in my life. This is a perfect opportunity to find out who and what I am and where I am going with my life. It is also a recipe for complete disaster and if managed incorrectly will lead to my downfall in many ways. The next few months will make out a critical part of how the rest of my life will go and I know that many people will spend their days holding their breath watching how I handle it.

Come to think of it… it is not so amusing after all!

Sizzling Shower Saturday

For those of you that don’t know yet (and for some reason care) I have a fetish for shower pictures – or more specificly men in showers (perhaps now I have a bit more of your attention). There is just something about the water running down the exquisitely perfect bodies that is just so inviting, so yummy! Take Mr. Slippery on the photo below, those eyes are just screaming for another hand to help him… wash!

So from now on Saturdays are dedicated to those pictures so hot they need a shower to cool them down. Or men so dirty (and by that I mean actual dirt… think firemen or rugby players) they need an extra long shower to get them clean and if we are really lucky an extra pair of hands to get to all those hard to reach places!

Tomorrow we’ll get back to some actual writing. For tonight just enjoy the view!

Day 392 – “Whooo… that feels good!”

Current Recovery (Friday, 21 December 2007)
Day 392 – “Whooo… that feels good!”

Somebody left this comment on one of my blog entries. I decided to post it after one of my friends pretty much said the same things to me today. Seems that most communication my way is now done in screaming and while I hope anybody don’t think screaming is going to make a positive difference, I guess I have to respect that they have to get rid of their anger in some way.

Most people in my life feel like this I guess… some have gotten around to tell me, others just haven’t had the chance yet. After the things I have recently done I can’t argue with it any of it. I can’t even ask for forgiveness or say I feel helpless because I’ll just be accused of trying to get sympathy.

I wanted to sensor the swear words below but it would have pissed me off if half the paragraph was blacked out. Here is what Amanda said after my blog post “The Last Road”

“This is fucking stupid. this whole thing, this whole fuckiness of a life that people call a fucking life is stupid and pointless ‘cuz it all sucks, and it’s just gonna keep on sucking and there's only sometimes happy moments in between. You know what junkies do? They ruin their fuckin’ lives and then they proceed to fuck everyone elses up too. They make people cry over every fucking little thing, and hate themselves for not being enough and want to die. That’s what the fuck they do. They don't care about them FUCKING selves, they don't care about their families, they don't care about their fucking 11 year old daughters 3000 fucking miles away getting poked in the butt by some dude. they don't fucking care, because wooooo that feels good. fuck ‘em all.”

Day 372 – “Avoiding this entry”

Current Recovery (Saturday, 1 December 2007)
Day 372 – “Avoiding this entry”

It is 1 December 2007 - International Aids Day. I’ve spent most of this day really unaware of the significance of what today is really about to millions of people around the world. I have been tested for AIDS before, but not since I started taking heroin. I haven’t had the courage to go yet. I honestly don’t foresee a problem, since I never really shared needles or had unprotected sex with every Tom, Dick and Harry. Even so, there is always a possibility and I know I should stop avoiding the problem and face it.

My whole life has been like that: avoiding the problem, avoiding talking or sometimes fighting about the problem, even fixing the problem was sometimes avoided. I guess, some part of me thinks if I avoid it long enough it will just go away. I have found out the hard way that is not the case. The problem never goes away. It always stays there and at the most inopportune time it will pop up again. No problem… I can just avoid it again, right!

Much of my heroin experience I have avoided the real issues. I mean, sometimes I mentioned some of them here but do I really change any of them? Only I know the emotions and feelings, the secrets that don’t even make it to these pages. Only I know the truth behind every decision and every consequence. Only I know… and I know it has to change, something has to change!

It is a bit early to make resolutions for the New Year, but I’m giving myself an extra month to do it. I know if I try and sort out the problems in my life instead of running away from them many other things will fall into place. I guess the 1st of December is about making more of the time we have on this earth and looking after ourselves to make sure we have enough time to complete what we have to do here. Perhaps I see the significance of it afterall.

Day 370 – “The last road”

Current Recovery (Thursday, 29 November 2007)
Day 370 – “The last road”

I have always seen it as a last resort. When all other avenues have been exhausted… then… and only then do we venture on this forbidden road. I mean, addicts go to Rehabs right. Oh ye… now I remember. I am one!

I have had to make peace with the fact that most alternate roads have already been traveled. In fact I left those roads in an awful state with vandalized road signs, fainting paint and huge pot holes. Rehab is one of the last remaining ones.

So, obviously I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. If I am honest with myself I have to admit that I need professional help in some way or form. Even with my remarkable recovery the first time around, I spent my fair share in depressing depths. I always figured I would see somebody professional when I’m back on my feet financially. Unfortunately this latest drug binge left me in a very bad way with many financial institutions and I don’t see that happening soon.

Even before my heroin addiction I have always made it a point never to just miss work for any reason. I rarely take holidays and I rarely stay home sick. Even with my recovery last time I didn’t miss one day of work to stay at home and recover. I had a heroin addict friend who constantly took off from work always with some kind of excuse, usually he was at home withdrawing from heroin. In the end he quit his job and went to rehab. Unfortunately he came back only to start the habit again and he hasn’t been able to keep a job since.

I have seriously considered rehab or something similar but I feel very strong about this one thing. I can’t just quit my job. My job is very important to me and it is one of the few things keeping me from totally losing my mind. There is also a new project starting in 2008 which I might be in charge off – so things are looking up in that area. And to be totally honest there is no guarantee any attempt at rehab would even work.

I have already made up my mind regarding the issue and will share it with you in due time. In the mean time however, I would love to hear your views about this if you consider what I mentioned about my job. It is always nice to get an opinion of what ‘the public’ thinks and since I regard many of you as close friends it makes your opinion all the more important.

Coming Up during the week!

The posts that follows during the week touches on HIV, Rehab and a look into my drug past with LSD/Acid. Remember to send your questions to be answered on the blog via e-mail (tristanbailey@mailbox.co.za). The questions can be about my heroin addiction specificly or just general stuff you might have been wondering about.

Hope to hear from you all.
Christiaan (aka Tristan)

Day 368 – “Chasing the dragon”

Current Recovery (Tuesday, 27 November 2007)
Day 368 – “Chasing the dragon”

I am currently reading a book by Steve Hamilton called ‘I want my life back’. It is the second time I am reading it and it truly is a scary and inspirational story about drug addiction in general but specifically the viciousness of heroin addiction and recovery. The sad thing is I read this book the first time BEFORE I started injecting heroin. I was only smoking it at that time. Even my best friend at the time was living a life which mirrored much of what happened to Steve and none of that raised warning flags to me. I still injected it for some reason thinking it won’t happen to me. I think a lot of heroin addiction stories starts of like that.

My blog sites on 24.com, BlogSpot and Facebook all look a bit different from this week. In addition to the physical appearance I have decided to start including more stories of my past drug experiences – after all, those experiences created the person I am today. I originally thought of keeping them all for the book (the one I am still supposed to right about my recovery). Recent events however proved to me that my life story and my story about recovery is very far from finished and when I start writing the book there will be more than enough experiences to include in there…

For the moment I will just keep to my blog entries. Due to my busy work on the road the blog posts are often a bit late. I apologize for that. My office is closing in 2 weeks for the Christmas Holidays. I’ll be on standby and helping out at my old job. So, I’m sure things will run more smoothly then.

Lastly, something new again on the blog is ‘Q&A’. I have recently been bombarded with questions and felt maybe a lot of other people are wondering about the same things. So, please feel free to ask your questions by sending them to tristanbailey@mailbox.co.za and I’ll answer them once a week on the blog.

Check you all tomorrow again.

Day 366 – “All I want for Christmas”

Current Recovery (Sunday, 25 November 2007)
Day 366 – “All I want for Christmas”

It is Sunday - a month before Christmas. I have ruined yet another weekend for my family. I don’t need to give much detail, since we all know my repetious destructive cycle off by heart by now. My million too many chances are up. I will discuss more about this and my decision regarding rehab during the week.

I have been slowly moving away from my friends and family into my own little secluded corner. Heroin is definitely not a drug that you take with a bunch of people unlike ecstasy or cocaine which is usually at its best the more people you have around you. I spent last night with my two best friends, more company than I've had in weeks. They met each other through one of my famous parties (in the time when we still had them). The parties were normally something many people looked forward to every year and of course had their share of brilliant music, many unknown and uninvited faces, alcohol and of course other substances. For a very long time “having fun” was something I couldn’t do without drugs. Right now I’ll just settle for “feeling normal”.

After talking to my friends last night I realized just how much this has affected them, even with my slow recoil into darkness. They have stood by me through all of this last time and this time but unsurprisingly their patience is now wearing very thin. And even though I truly admire and appreciate their dedicated friendship it is the support and patience of my parents that I find nothing short of a miracle.

My friends, I think, at the worst of times only get a fraction of what is really going on. My family however is living with it in their faces day by day, they feel the full extend of it and still they've found ways to help me through it.

All I keep thinking is how this all should have gone down differently. My mother’s birthday last month and mine at the end of it. My new life with my new job and new boyfriend. This celebration of a year in recovery and even the Christmas celebration – it all should have been so different. We won’t be doing much regarding presents this year and even though slightly cliché, I know that the biggest gift I can give anybody close to me or even myself is just getting clean again.

Day 365 – “Starting with a cup of coffee”

My Heroin Recovery (Saturday, 24 November 2007)
Day 365 – “Starting with a cup of coffee”

I just made myself a cup of coffee. I can’t remember when last I had something which was as routine in my life as brushing teeth or going to work. These days none of it means the same to me. Nothing is the same. I know I am not. The people that know me the best keep telling me how much I have changed, how much I disappoint them and how quickly I am killing myself.

I find it strange and weird to be writing this entry tonight. It is 24 November 2007 and exactly a year go today I started my Heroin Recovery. For the past few months I’ve been trying to remember what drove me to that day, where I got the will to start and the strength to continue. It is 12 months later and I find myself exactly where I started. The relationships I was still trying to build up, the trust I never really got back in the same way, even the money that lied spent on a feeling I could never seem to have again – all of it destroyed again!

My blogging has been quiet, I know! I should apologize for the silence but to tell you the truth I’ve spent so much time apologizing lately that it doesn’t mean much. I’ve even started to believe my own lies. I started blogging again because I still have a lot to say. Right now, I don’t know how to say half of what I feel or even a fraction of what is going on in my life. And to be honest I don’t know how many people are left to even listen or read. My friends and family are at a point I have never seen them. Frightening to think you’ve driven people to ends they never thought they could ever go. I am that person.

I am a heroin addict. No matter what I tell you in the next few days or what I try and do about it in the weeks to follow – that fact will not change. Even so, I find amazing comfort in posting another blog entry tonight. You see… as long as I make entries on this blog I am more than just a heroin addict – I am a heroin addict in recovery!

Day 350/21 – “Writing with my eyes closed”

My Heroin Recovery (Friday, 9 November 2007)
Day 350/21 – “Writing with my eyes closed”

I watched Brothers and Sisters last night. It has fast become one of my favourite TV programs ever. I must say there is a part of me that can relate to each one of the brothers or sisters on the program. Obviously the drug addict in me relates more with Jason (the wash out drug addict currently in Rehab) and the gay part of me relates better with Kevin (the gay lawyer). Last night Kevin made friends with a ‘straight guy’ at gym who unexpectedly kissed him while they hanging out and then they let… well... let other things hang out. That part I can definitely relate to. Whether it is something to be proud of or not, I’m not sure. But exactly the same thing has happened quite a few times with me in the past. One thing I can say is there is nothing else in the world that makes you feel as alive as such as experience. Unfortunately, just like Kevin when you reach the next day they chose to forget and the magnificent experience is just a memory that only you seem to remember.

I have become an expert on hiding my true feelings when it comes to certain people and after years of drug addiction, certain things. Heroin addiction made me a cheater and betrayer out of me. Such a good one, infact, that I could fool most people at any given time. Unfortunately hiding that part doesn’t leave you feeling excited at all… eventually it only hurts feelings and breaks relationships.

Luckily, and my friends will confirm this, I have always been better in expressing my feelings on paper. Perhaps that is why blogging was such a good idea. I don’t think a verbal diary would have gotten anywhere close to the truths revealed on the blog. Maybe it is because I can’t see who is reading my blog when I’m typing it. You see, then there is nobody to look in the eyes and instinctively lie to. If that is the case I’ll close my eyes and I’ll type pretending that nobody is watching. At least not watching how I fall and fail but rather standing behind me and help me get up!

Day 349/20 – “Writers Block”

My Heroin Recovery (Thursday, 8 November 2007)
Day 349/20 – “Writers Block”

I have so much to say, not only about my recovery but general things which other people also blog about. Whenever I try and put some of the words in my head on paper or pixels on the computer screen nothing seems to come out right. Every word or every sentence just comes out wrong. I’m not sure if it is writer’s block because I actually think I have a lot of things to write about – for some reason though it isn’t working on paper.

I have not been feeling very well the past few days. I realize just all to well the damage heroin has caused yet again. My body is broken in too many places to mention, the scary part is most of those places I am not even aware of yet. My days are still very up and down. Today is good, tomorrow may not be. What gets me through some days is knowing that after a few tomorrows it will eventually get better.

I am sorry for being so quiet lately. The office has exploded with work and I am more out of town than I am in town. There are so much new things happening. As soon as I am sure it is not just talk I’ll talk about some of it here. All I can say now is that once again I have been given an amazing chance. A chance to do what I love, a chance to be a better employee and a chance to make up for my previous wrongs.

I have been given a lot of chances lately. Some days I don’t know if I deserve any of them and I see it as a miracle that my friends and family are still there helping me. My best friend phones me everyday to check up on me. My parents check everyday if I’m okay and what they can do to help me. I know the biggest gift I can give any of them is to get better. I know right now that is the biggest gift I can give myself!

Day 338/9 – “Q & A: Rehab”

Q & A (Sunday, 28 October 2007)
Day 338/9 – “Q & A: Rehab”

A lot of things are different in my life this time around. My work for instance is much more demanding and active and I travel a lot more. Since I’m not in the office the whole day like I was last year getting the blog posted on time isn’t always possible. I still want to update you on the progress day by day – so please bare with me if the posts are a day or two late sometimes.

I am asking a question today which a few have already answered. I hope you’ll participate by answering this question as well as the others to follow in the weeks ahead. These questions are specificly about heroin addiction or my recovery and I ask them in an attempt for us all to understand some of the choices or mistakes a bit better.

Today I want to know if you think I should go to Rehab and when you think I should go. Do you feel it is long overdue or do you believe I have and can manage without the help of an institution?

Day 337/8 – “Remembering… Deja vu”

Flashback (Saturday, 27 October 2007)
Day 337/8 – “Remembering… Deja vu”

This piece was originally posted on 25 November 2007, on Day 2 of My Heroin Recovery. I can only smile at the similarities…

I’m hurting… badly. There isn’t a part of me that isn’t hurting right now. Physically it feels like the flesh is being ripped from my bones. I’ve got goose bumps all over my skin, I feel every thing, every bump and every one of them hurts. Emotionally I’m just about to quit. The tears keep coming and the reasons for them are abundant. I just came from a 40-minute ‘what a disappointment you are!’ session with the folks. Once again I stood by while my character was ripped apart by people hurting so badly, hurt that I caused and keep on causing by my actions.

They say I’m weak – and truthfully I can’t really argue. I cracked, gave up – once again – and tried to score. My mom and dad have learned some of the tricks, most of them by now and stopped me in time. And although I look back at the events of the past hour gratefully it did not come without its expense. I displayed just once again the kind of person I’ve turned into and the lengths I would go to for my drugs.

I ask myself: ”Why?”. Why is it that once more a Saturday, a week, a life is ruined by my selfish actions. For that moment, that brief moment where I have my love in my arm, I think only of myself. I do the stupidest things to the most loving people and for what? Why? To slowly kill myself – that is why! To feel good for a few minutes and bad for days. Where is the logic in that?

I sit here with regret for the things that I have done. For the things that happened just now or this morning, yesterday or last week. I sit here with genuine intention to change, to try harder this time, to not give in to this poison, again. But I say that with a sort of deja-vu to it because I’ve been here before many times, I’ve said it before many times. Just for today I really mean it!

Day 336/7 – “Pain to a normal life”

My Heroin Recovery (Friday, 26 October 2007)
Day 336/7 – “Pain to a normal life”

Today is Day 7. Strange saying that again, going from over 300 days to just 7. I must say that the time passes a lot faster than last time. Every day last year felt like an eternity, but I think that had a lot to do with the mess in my life that still had to be fixed. Even though this relapse shouldn’t be taken lightly at all – I don’t think the damage is the same as last time. Then again, given enough time it probably would have reached it again. If I could beat this last time when all the odds were against me, then I can certainly do it now.

For a moment today I was bombarded with issues and problems that would normally send me fleeing for heroin. It has become such a convenient escape… all I had to do was take heroin and everything was better (well… to me at least). In the process I leave all the sober people in my life to deal with the problems I should be dealing with. My parents have actually said on occasion that perhaps they should also have taken heroin thinking that they would then understand a lot of the things I do. I guess that point is arguable, since I often don’t know what the hell I’m doing!

One thing I am trying to do right is the medicine. Somebody asked during the week what medicine I was taking that allowed me to go back to work after just a weekend. The medicine I am on still for a few days is Subutex then I am switching to Physeptone/Methodone. In the mornings when I open my eyes it is the first thing I reach for and in those few moments before it starts working I must say I feel like sh*t. Unfortunately, it is also addictive so when and how much of it I take must be carefully monitored.

Soon I will leave all the medicine and I’ll have to live through the pain that took over 50 days last time before it went away. Even my teeth are acting up because of heroin and I will have to see a dentist next week. So, pain will come and go I guess but it is the price that I need to and will willingly pay to live a normal life again!

Day 335/6 – “O… for Opportunity”

My Heroin Recovery (Thursday, 25 October 2007)
Day 335/6 – “O… for Opportunity”

It is Day 6. After the disaster of Tuesday night I was forced to examine what I was doing with my life and which direction it was heading. Heroin pushes you into this haze where nothing seems to matter any more and even though I have real regret at times about my actions and what it does to those around me, it all seems to disappear when you crave it again.

I was alone today the whole day. I knew that if I wanted to I could get heroin and just continue like I have the past few weeks. If I had, my parents probably would have noticed. The trust I build up the past year is now gone again because of all my lies so I can’t blame them for checking for any signs of it. More importantly I knew that if I took today I would just have given myself permission to take yet again another day.

So, I am extremely proud to say that even with ample opportunity I stayed clear of it today. It wasn’t just an easy ride. The whole day felt empty, like I missed something and I realize that the whole mission of getting and taking heroin became a routine in my life that now leaves a very empty space. It will take time again to fix that. It will take a lot of time to fix many things.

Hykie Berg, whom I think is uber cute and talented told about his Heroin Addiction last night on Kwela. I sat and listened in horror how he told about what he went through, how he scored, when he took and how he finally struggled to get clean. His story was almost exactly the same as mine. Even after 7 years of totally being clean he relapsed almost throwing it all away. It just shows you how you can never let your guard down, not with any addiction, especially not with heroin. As I saw him there on TV you would never say he was a heroin addict. My wish to myself and countless others out there is that we can also be that lucky.

Day 334/5 – “Countdown”

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 24 October 2007)
Day 334/5 – “Countdown”

I spent the whole day today thinking about where my life is and where I’m going with it. I had a relapse and since that day I haven’t been able to completely get rid of it. My family were furious because I tried to take again. They keep supporting me and helping me and I keep going back to the same routine. My friends were not exactly impressed that I lied to them or kept them at a distance the past few weeks. My ‘significant other’ and I decided to rather be friends because I couldn’t and still can’t give my attention to a relationship and even at the office the impact was negative because my head wasn’t in the right place. Something needs to change!

Last year I got to a point where we all made the decision that if I didn’t get better before a certain date I would go to Rehab. A lot of people have mentioned Rehab since my post on Saturday and I feel I need to clarify something. I have never said “No” to going to Rehab. I am obviously not very eager to what Rehab might cause (such as possibly losing my job) but compared to losing my life there is no contest. I see Rehab as a last resort when all other roads have been exhausted. Unfortunately, we seemed to have reached that destination.

In exactly a month it will be a year ago that I started My Heroin Recovery. I have then appropriately given myself until that day (that’s 4 weeks) to get off heroin, get off the medicine and give a clean test. That is yet another chance I might or might not deserve. Some would say I have already had way too many chances. I’d like to see this as motivation. Whatever the case, if I can’t do it then I am going to Rehab.

I have shown the strength once before and left heroin and moved on with my life. It will continue to be a life long struggle but I am much more positive today than the preceding few days that I can beat this once again. As always I’ll be here informing you how it’s going and hope you’ll continue following My Heroin Recovery.

Day 333/4 – “Taking back"

My Heroin Recovery (Tuesday, 23 October 2007)
Day 333/4 – “Taking back”

There are not many moments in this life I will take back if I had the chance. Even my addiction to heroin questionably made me a better or stronger person in the end. If it indeed did then I shouldn’t wish to erase any of those experiences. Of course, when that experience comes at a price that the people around me must pay, an immense price for which none of them asked, then it can only be a moment to completely erase. Tonight is one of those moments. One that should never have happened. One, given the chance, I would easily take back.

I tried to take heroin again. Right now, the past few hours seem like the dumbest choices in my life but at that moment I was only thinking of one thing. It is like I’m a whole different person hunting down and taking heroin. A person that, as my family reminds me, doesn’t give a damn about the rest of them. Sadly, my parents were the ones that stopped me from taking – which means once again I disappointed, hurt and most definitely angered them.

This whole day I tried to be so strong and block out the craving, that nagging to go and get heroin. It is a screaming inside my head, an urge throughout my body that doesn’t want to keep quiet unless I silence it with heroin. I take a lot of medicine and even though they help for a lot of things that nagging will only stop when it gets heroin. For a moment today I thought I made it but I used the slightest gap to throw it all away, just like I would have done tomorrow and no doubtedly the day after that.

So, yes tonight feels like a moment I would gladly take back. I hate that it happened! Then again, because of it there is no way I’ll be taking tomorrow. It sounds bizarre but the best thing that could have happened to me was trying to take and my parents catching me. So, I guess it is one of those moments that just needs to stay – especially if it keeps me away from heroin for another day!

Day 332/3 – “Feelings”

My Heroin Recovery (Monday, 22 October 2007)
Day 332/3 – “Feelings”

It is Day 3. I woke up this morning and predictably felt like a train ran over me. My parents were amazing in helping me through this, even though they should still be mad. It was my first day back at work today after a weekend in bed. It didn’t go to badly considering how I felt yesterday. I am glad that I was kept busy, keeping my mind off everything that was going on around me.

I am fighting the craving of heroin. Every second my mind gets to gather thoughts it thinks about it. That part is scary because I know that I can’t be watched 24/7 and that means sooner or later a tremendous big decision will lie in my path and I will either be strong or will fail terribly. Right now… I don’t have any guarantees.

I have started posting the entries from this weekend and many people replied with comments and e-mails. I thank you for still following, supporting and giving advice. It is nice to see so many familiar names, faces and identities but I feel ashamed to be writing about the same subject again, a topic we all thought would never feature ever again. But your views have always been a key instrument in me getting better, so please never be hesitant to tell me what you feel.

Right now, what I feel is regret that this started again and that it lasted as long as it did. I feel humiliation at the controls and methods that make me a prisoner of my own actions again. I feel scared to do this and angry that I have to. I am trying to keep strong so I’ll settle for having that today… strength… just for today!

Day 331/2 – “The ladder to sobriety”

My Heroin Recovery (Sunday, 21 October 2007)
Day 331/2 – “The ladder to sobriety”

It is Day 2. My blog has been quiet for a few weeks – now you know why! I had some pre-written blogs prepared but I decided to delete them because I didn’t want to post blatant lies. Even these entries will only be posted once I am sure it isn’t just a Day 1, Day 2 and then heroin again! So… I sincerely hope they get posted during this week!

I’ve had a lot of time to think over the past few days. I’ve blamed everything from medicine to work to stress and boredom to justify just another hit but in the end I know it is just excuses. I had two of the toughest weeks at the office – weeks I never want to relive again. It has made it so much harder to even try and stop – but the honest truth is – I wouldn’t have even, if it was smooth sailing.

The worst anger from my parents has died down and they are talking to me again. The screaming from the past few days and nights have stopped. I don’t think they are less angry but their true character shines thru because they are more worried. Worried that their stupid son is slowly killing himself. And even through the anger and the worry they still shown compassion when I am at my downest moment. They are truly better people than I can ever hope to be!

Sundays are always more depressing than other days. I have hardly eaten and still don’t have my appetite back. I’ve hardly been out of bed this weekend and tomorrow I have to work again. Not just sit in an office – but actually work. Right now… I honestly don’t know how I’m going to get through it... any of it!

Day 330/1 – “Under ‘S’”

My Heroin Recovery (Saturday, 20 October 2007)
Day 330/1 – “Under ‘S’”

It is Day 1. Everybody is out in town getting together to watch the rugby and I am lying alone in bed. Even with the medicine, it feels like millions of creatures all over my body are pulling the meat from my bones. There is no way to lie or stand or sit or sleep to sooth the discomfort. My bed and body are both sweaty and the stench of heroin leaving my skin hangs in the room. The smell is as familiar to me as the feeling of heroin itself. I’ve spent as much time trying to get rid of it as I have spent high on it and even so I know given half a chance I would be at the dealer trying to score again!

The logic or the lack thereof makes me sick more than any of the withdrawals can try and do! How can something be so easy and so complicated at the same time? All I have to do is stay clean. All I have to do is not pick up the phone and phone the dealer. All I have to do is stop – and right now it is the most difficult thing in the world to do!

I find myself climbing out of the trenches again. One minute I am overwhelmed with emotion and I cry at all the damage I have yet again left around me. Damage caused in an instant when the damage from last year isn’t even fixed yet. The next minute I am full of strength. I try and remember where I got the strength from last time hoping that I will be able to get that strength again. Perhaps it is one of my strongest weapons this time… the knowledge that it is not impossible. I did this all before. Sure, I stumbled in the end… but I got up and I am trying again. Day by day… one day at a time I am trying again!

Day 329/0 – “All over again”

My Heroin Recovery (Friday, 19 October 2007)
Day 329/0 – “All over again”

The wind is squeezing through the slightly opened window in my humid room. I can’t close it because inside I am boiling up. I don’t want to leave it open because I’m shivering from the cold and covered in goose bumps. Every single bump hurts while the wind blows its cold air onto my skin. I get nauseous at the mere thought of food. Even though I am hungry I can’t eat right now, at least not food. I’m devouring chocolates like it is going out of fashion because it is all I can manage to keep down and it at least helps with the cravings.

I’m lying on the bed watching TV. I don’t care what I watch and even if I did I wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. Changing the channels takes an effort out of me that right now feels equivalent to climbing mountains. I just want to lie here and be forgotten or maybe it is just the opposite.

Emotions of happy and sad, strength and weakness, bravery, hopelessness and misery are all ping-ponging in my busy mind. It is a mind scared right now! It has chosen the easy path for too long and now it has to face reality again. It is a mind ashamed at the things it has though up and done and even the lengths it still would have gone to. It is a mind humiliated at the insults of what it has become and at the words it’s most important friends and family scratch on its clammy skin.

It must be a nightmare because I would never do this to myself again. I would never put my family or my friends through that torture again, would I? It must be a gimmick or a lie – some attention seeking plot for a lonely mind. Oh please, please… please… today I would be that lonely pathetic attention seeker rather than have this be true again!

Regrettably, it isn’t a dream that I will wake up from tomorrow morning. It isn’t a gimmick that I could stop when the suspicious start seeing through it. It is the cold hard truth of how I took heroin again and again and again. It is, how in true addictive style, I couldn’t stop until I lost almost everything again. This time there is no safety ‘pre-written’ net conveniently placed at the top of this page. This time I have to face the truth in the honesty I have always somehow managed to achieve on this blog.

I am an addict, addicted AGAIN to heroin for more weeks than I have fingers to count it on. I took my last hit earlier today and already my world and my body is crashing down. Tomorrow I begin what I vowed never to be at ever again - I begin Day 1 again. I begin My Heroin Recovery - all over again!

Day 307 – “Triggers (Part 4)”

My Heroin Recovery (Thursday, 27 September 2007)
Day 307 – “Triggers (Part 4)” (PRE-WRITTEN)

Taking heroin isn’t something that happens one day. It is something that is trying to happen every day. When a “Yes” comes through, people tend to completely forget how you said “No!” everyday before that. We do what we can to be strong and make sure that when we fall we don’t fall far – but there are no guarantees. Not for somebody that is clean for one week, one year or even 10 years.

I learned over the past few days that I will never be able to do this alone. I will always need the help of people around me that might never understand the reason for me being in that position or placing them there with me. I learned that triggers like alcohol or other drugs can lead me towards heroin but that there are millions of other things out there and I won’t see them coming.

I know that even though this happened and the friends and family around me are angry and disappointed, I do still have their support. It shows more of their character than it does mine. The only thing I can show is strength. I have no doubt in my mind that I can beat this, infact my previous success is a great motivator. Even so, the truth is that I can only guarantee today.

Perhaps, out of the all the lessons that is the one I should remember the most. Forgetting that is a daily fight and fight only for today is what makes you lose your grip and fall into relapse. So… I guess here is to being clean for today!

Day 306 – “Triggers (Part 3)”

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 26 September 2007)
Day 306 – “Triggers (Part 3)” (PRE-WRITTEN)

I got the heroin from the dealer, purchased the needles and prepared it. The sequence of events was so familiar and, unfortunate to say, exciting. I know that in that short time millions of warnings went through my head. I knew better, I had months and months of better and I was about to end it all, but I couldn’t stop myself from going through with it.

The needle entered my arm and I threw myself in a hole I wouldn’t be able to get out of. For weeks and weeks after that day I used or tried to stop. It was like I went to bed last night a heroin addict and today I was just the same, nothing had changed. The past months of trying desperately to stay clean lay momentarily forgotten. I was in a vicious cycle of taking. I couldn’t stop… and the worst thing was that part of me didn’t want to stop!

I was really nervous when I saw my parents the night because they’ve become experts on seeing when I was high on heroin. They had to become experts to try and help me. They probably noticed something different about me but the changes were so subtle that they didn’t question it. I was trying my utmost best to try and hide it from them, if they noticed anything perhaps none of it would have happened.

Looking back at that day I remember the two previous times I had lapses. They noticed it almost immediately and because of their guard being up I didn’t continue taking. It dawns on me now, that the seemingly strong recovery from those lapses where I miraculously only used once – were only because I was stopped from taking a second time!

This time nobody was there to stop me. It still frightens me thinking that if I stayed on my own – this might still have continued at this very moment! Can I ever stay on my own then, I ask myself? Can I ever be responsible enough not to slowly kill myself?

(Triggers concludes tomorrow…)

Day 305 – “Triggers (Part 2)” (PRE-WRITTEN)

My Heroin Recovery (Tuesday, 25 September 2007)
Day 305 – “Triggers (Part 2)” (PRE-WRITTEN)

I stopped my car at a shop close by to get something to drink. It was in the middle of the day and a car pulled up next to me. The face was all too familiar: it was one of the HEROIN DRUG DEALERS.

What you have to understand about drug dealers is that most of them will not sell crack or heroin to their customers. Not only is it incredibly difficult for them to find good quality, but heroin addicts soon get to point where they have to phone the dealer a few times a day EVERY DAY. It takes a lot more work from them and they know sooner or later their “customers” will end up in rehab, prison or dead. So most just stick to the seemingly harmless stuff like ecstasy or cocaine.

The face I was looking into was one of those dealers that DID sell heroin. He started talking to me and before the conversation ended I was on my way to getting heroin again. Now, perhaps he was the trigger just by showing up or maybe something in the conversation we had. Perhaps he was only a solution to a trigger long before that day.

What you probably don’t understand about addiction in general, is that once you start the sequence of events there is no turning back. You don’t go from wanting heroin, to getting it and then deciding it is a bad idea and turning back. From the very first moment you get that thought to the time the needle enters your arm it is almost automatic.

I really have such a big support system in place. I know that I can contact a number of people in a number of ways and they will help me through it. The problem is that you just aren’t thinking rationally. So, you won’t be stopping yourself, thinking about what this does to you or your family. You won’t be calling your friends or your family to try and talk you out of it. You just sent a rolling ball down a cliff and until it completes its run at the bottom, no force will stop it!

(Triggers Part 3 continues tomorrow…)

Day 304 – “Triggers (Part 1)” (PRE-WRITTEN)

My Heroin Recovery (Monday, 24 September 2007)
Day 304 – “Triggers (Part 1)” (PRE-WRITTEN)

I got a ‘Medic Alert’ bracelet last year to state that I was allergic to ‘Morphine or Coedine or any Opiods’. I did this because not only can an intake of this be fatal to me, but codeine products will make me crave (even though I won’t know why) and all those items will cause withdrawal symptoms – regardless of how much or how long I take them.

It is Day 2 and I am using medicine to help with those withdrawal symptoms. They are doing their job and physically I am feeling the minimum of pain. Sometimes I can’t sleep (even with a prescribed sleeping pills) and my actions still haunts me when I’m awake, trying to sleep and even in my dreams. I’m very uncomfortable in my own skin at the moment but no medicine can help with that. No medicine can help with the effects heroin has caused in my life yet again.

My parents are obviously disappointed and feel like they want to lock me in my room again. I went through, what felt like, hours of painful speeches, warnings and begging to not walk the same road again. Each time it looks like it hits them lower, like the news hangs on them heavier and the disappointment and more then anything hopelessness shows on their faces more clearly.

I won’t lie to you, I am craving heroin right now. I did yesterday and I will tomorrow. The insanity of it all makes me nauseous more than the withdrawal symptoms can ever try and do. Why would somebody that went through the hell of heroin recovery EVER take heroin again? And then, even if it was a “mistake”, why would he continue after the first lapse and again and again…

(Triggers Part 2 continues tomorrow…)

Day 303 – “The not so pre-written blog”

My Heroin Recovery (Sunday, 23 September 2007)
Day 303 – “The not so pre-written blog”

It is Sunday morning and as promised here is my ‘not pre-written’ blog for the week. Or, after some criticism this past week, let me re-phrase… here is my less pre-written blog than the rest. As I mentioned many times before my blogs are not just a spur of the moment bunch of words written directly on 24.com and posted seconds afterwards. My pixilated words and sentences refreshes at 60 hertz on 17” 96DPI screen (the geek in me had to do that) until I feel ready to post them.

Some days I would have liked to wait a bit longer delaying truths that would again upset so many people, but they still made it on here. Other days, of course, I was all to happy to press the ‘Submit Post’ button that would reveal the good things to the world. And as ThisIsMe (my good friend) pointed out in one of the comments, this is the way I’ve always written.

The pre-written blogs at the time I wrote them couldn’t be posted, for many reasons, yes reasons… reasons as simple as I wasn’t ready yet and reasons as difficult as to still tell my family about it. I was asked how anybody could trust me now and ‘when did I start lying to the public’. While I apologize for not being able to post this sooner the intention was never to hide it from anybody and I would hope that every blog post you’ve read up to now would prove my commitment to honesty on the blog.

Perhaps we live in a world where people fake addiction or suicide to get attention. Perhaps you know somebody like that, I don’t! My best friends (who responded to some comments during the week) and who has been with me through every step of this recovery, knows that I am not one of those people. My family scattered across the country who comfort my parents when it is going bad, knows I am not one of those people. Even the people that read this blog know through my experiences that I am not one of those people.

Of course, not everything that was said in the comments about the entries on the three sites they are posted, was criticism. Same actually gave some helpful suggestions and comforting words. There are still loads more to tell about a story which is still continuing every day. Yes, they’ve already been written but it doesn’t make it lies or for that matter any less true. It doesn’t even make it easier to post them, but I believe they still have a purpose to me and to somebody, anybody out there – so I will continue to post them!

Day 300 – “I took heroin again!”

My Heroin Recovery (Thursday, 20 September 2007)
Day 300 – “I took heroin again!” (PRE-WRITTEN)

“I took heroin again.” I cannot begin to describe the feelings those words leave in my life. They seem to echo in the empty space that is my mind right now and I expect to hear in the distance answers coming back to me. There are none! I never thought I’d say them again and I presume my family and friends never thought they’d hear them again either. But nevertheless, it is true… I took heroin again!

I saw my doctor to get medicine to help with the withdrawals. My heroin intake wasn’t just a few days – so the withdrawals won’t be easy. They aren’t supposed to be, I guess. Some people believe you should suffer with your withdrawals, so that you don’t go and take again. Those people have so much to learn about heroin!

But I think we all do. As I told my loved ones about my relapse I found that many still don’t understand what it is all about. Of course how could they, when I still don’t understand most of it! That was even more reason to tell everybody about this relapse, to write about it – because it is happening out there - to the weakest and the strongest of heroin addicts everywhere!

I remember my one friend, after he relapsed. He didn’t want anybody’s help. He was aggressive at times and didn’t give his co-operation at all. And somehow I understand it today. I have always co-operated in my recovery. Perhaps not always giving as much as I could have at that moment – but nevertheless, I did co-operate. I was never aggressive or angry because I wanted to get better, I calmly tried what I could. Yet today, I feel almost hostile, picking fights with people that only want to help, perhaps not being as open to a helping hand as I should be. I feel like I just want everybody to leave me alone while I get rid of it by myself.

But I know I can’t do it by myself. I tried this for the past few days and unsurprisingly failed every single day. I really just wanted to spare everybody the hurt and disappointment of going through this all again. I didn’t want to look anybody in the eyes and say those words: “I took heroin again!”



Thank you to everybody that has contacted me regarding this. I will do a blog post tomorrow to address some of what has been said. Of course, many still want to know how this happened and for that please read Monday’s blog!

Day 299 – “Understand. Understood.”

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 19 September 2007)
Day 299 – “Understand. Understood.” (PRE-WRITTEN)

The cat is out of the bag and I’m guessing there are currently loads of people with a lot of questions to ask. However before we get to the ‘how’ or the ‘why’, to the ‘what the hell is wrong with you’ or ‘what went through your mind’, there are a few things I think I need to address first.

When I first started this blog it was as a diary to keep track of the progress I hoped I would be making. From the very first day my blog entries were very surprisingly, received extremely well, which gave me so much more reason and determination to make it to the next day. Before long, many of the devoted readers literally counted the hours until I made my next post and if I disappeared for too long it was only a matter of time before the messages came through to check up on me.

After a few weeks my blog became a tool to the many friends, mothers or fathers and brothers or sisters who were either fighting their own battle with heroin addiction or trying desperately to help a loved one fight theirs. I realized back then that telling my story was much more than just a diary for me to look back on one day – to some people it was their last hope, hope that against the odds it was possible, it didn’t have to be a death sentence.

I am a heroin addict, currently addicted to heroin!
I am saying these words to you today not to invoke sympathy, because remember by the time you read this, I would hopefully have stopped taking. I am not trying to give excuses or hide behind default answers that you might keep getting from your own loved ones – because remember, I could have kept quiet. My purpose with the posts of the next few days and weeks is what it has always been – to try and understand this addiction and rise above it and in the process help other to understand it too.

Day 298 – “Relapse!”

My Heroin Recovery (Tuesday, 18 September 2007)
Day 298 – “Relapse!” (PRE-WRITTEN)

I have been thinking about this for weeks now. Should I say something or should I just keep quiet? Should I embrace the image created by the strength I have shown over these months and continue as a “recovering heroin addict” that miraculously manages to stay clean from heroin against all the odds? Or should I tell the truth about how heroin found a weak spot and wormed its way into my life again? The answer is easy, I guess… this blog has always been known for its honesty, infact it is almost famous for it. I would have to tell the truth!

And the truth is that I used heroin again. And what makes it so difficult to talk about this time is not only does it come months and months after I last took heroin, but it wasn’t just a one time occurrence like the other times – it lasted a while! How long and when it happened is something I have decided to leave out of the blog for now. I have my reasons for doing so and I hope you’ll respect my privacy regarding it.

In my numerous talks to those close to me over this period I realized just once again how little any of us understand about this addiction. That is, above all else, my main motivator for telling the story on the blogs again. After all I went through and learned, after all I put my family through and promised never to do again – it still happened again. I find myself almost helpless, clueless at this moment to give an answer to something that just doesn’t seems logical.

I know that I have a lot of explaining to many angry and disappointed people. The entries still to follow have all been written already and I must say after writing them the answer still doesn’t seem that clear to me. I hope you’ll share your comments, views and opinions with me. I have kept certain days open to respond to them and I’m hoping some of you will help me get an objective view on these events.

It is sad to say but moments like these it feels like everything I endured and survived over this period means nothing. It is like this long road of recovery I endured, lies almost non-existent with the new headline news posing on the front page: “I relapsed!”

Day 297 – “The answer to the question” (PRE-WRITTEN)

My Heroin Recovery (Monday, 17 September 2007)
Day 297 – “The answer to the question” (PRE-WRITTEN)

The answer to the question is: “Yes!”

The words that fill the sentences on each of my blog entries are not just a spur of the moment creation written 5 minutes before I post them. No, they are planned! They have been thought about over and over again, pondering on each word. Their emotion, by themselves and as part as a series of other emotions all play a factor when deciding to use a particular one.

On some odd occasions a certain blog entry may take a few days to complete. Those blogs are filled with words that twirl in my head when I lay in bed at night waiting to fall asleep. Their message might be a bit more difficult to get across and no matter what words I try and use or how I try and put them – they will still seem so wrong in the end!

The answer to the question is “Yes!”

The words you are about to read today, tomorrow and the days that lie ahead of us have been twirling in my head for a number of days now. Today they finally make it to a sentence typed on the same keyboard that has typed all the sentences that came in the months before it. These sentences are of actual feelings and events that are real to me at the moment and even though you will only get to read them at an undetermined time in the future – I have no doubt that even then they will still be as real to me!

The answer to the question is “Yes!”
Did I take heroin again?

Day 294 – “Open eyes”

My Heroin Recovery (Friday, 14 September 2007)
Day 294 – “Open eyes”

It is Friday again after a week that literally flew by. The weather is not too hot and not too cold and it is actually a pleasure to work outside. This weekend I’ll be inside catching up on some outstanding computer work but more importantly finishing a series of pre-written blogs.

Since last month I have mentioned that I have a collection of blogs that I’ve been keeping “secret” for a while. Keeping them private for the time being was intended for many reasons, some of which I will discuss with you over this period. I feel that the content of them is very important in my continued story of heroin recovery and in the end just as much a learning tool to anybody that has ever found use in my blog.

I really hope that you’ll read what I have to say and give me your comments, opinions or questions. Even though the blogs are pre-written I will respond to your views on Fridays. I’ll try and be as honest with this as you’ve come to expect from me! Enjoy the weekend and see you all on Monday!

Day 285 – “Blackness becomes me"

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 5 September 2007)
Day 285 – “Blackness becomes me”

I would love to give you all the juicy details regarding my day at the job. However, I decided in the beginning that any details would just get me in trouble with management so I’ll have to be vague.

One thing I can tell you is that when I got home today I was covered in black dust. From my shoes to my hair everything was black. On my way to the guesthouse I stopped at the Pick and Pay in Ellisras to get a few things and you should have seen the way some of the people checked me out with my black face.

Ellisras is actually very busy in the mornings, I presume because of the mine and because of Eskom. I’m not sure how big it really it – but it appears much larger than I think it actually is. The people are surprisingly… uhm… sexy in this area and I had to stop a few times today to admire the talent that Ellisras provides. 

We even went out tonight as a group to a lodge nearby that has a bar, pool tables and a swimming pool. If our accommodation had a swimming pool we would probably all have dived in when we got home. I got black in places I didn’t know I had!

But the most important thing I want to say is how much I enjoyed my day. Really, it has been one of the hardest days I’ve had in a long time if you take in account that we worked in the scorching heat for the whole day on a black surface that most definitely attracted heat. And THIS formally glorified PA enjoyed it! I do still surprise myself daily at how much I enjoy what I do now and the challenges it provides in my life.

I cannot wait to go home on Friday and I miss my family and my home and my bed – and definitely my boyfriend whom I hope I will see. And of course, I miss my friends in blogworld and facebook!

Day 284 – “Off Blog Off”

My Heroin Recovery (Tuesday, 4 September 2007)
Day 284 – “Off Blog Off”

The Blog Off competition ended on Friday and the general opinion: “it is about time!” I am actually excited to see what will happen on the blogs now. Will we get to see some really creative content from the bloggers instead of pasting and begging? I really hope so.

I’d like to think my blog has stayed cleared from those things even though it has had it share of criticism because I won the competition more than once. Still, I feel proud to have shown those awards on my blog because I didn’t beg for votes and I believe the award was on good, original and honest content.

Maybe now, we will see a lot of people that left 24.com returning. Perhaps more because the ending of this competition sends a sign that somewhere out there, there is/[are an] editor(s) listening to our views, requests and concerns.

My facebook profile has a Notes section, only visible to my friends, that updates every time I make a blog post. Sooner or later some of them come across it and I really had some good feedback the past few weeks. It appears to still be doing some good even to those that has no connection to any drugs.

Placing the blog on facebook was something I thought long about. It is different from posting on blogspot or 24.com because it is right there for them to find and read without even searching for it. Then I just remind myself that the blog has never been a secret and up to now the content has proudly been shared with friends, family and strangers everywhere.

As long as it continues to do good – to myself and to other people, I have no problem posting it anywhere!

Day 283 – “Batteries and Signal”

My Heroin Recovery (Monday, 3 September 2007)
Day 283 – “Batteries and Signal”

It is Day 1 of my week visit to Ellisras. I forgot this was one of the places the government wasted money with name changes on and had to double check when I started finding the Lephalale signboards.

I got here just on time this morning after yet another way too early wake up. We are all staying in a big house just outside of Ellisras and it is actually a very nice place. I haven’t slept in the bed yet – but I’ll still miss my own bed tonight.

The cellphone reception here is struggling to stay at one bar. I quickly made a few calls earlier on but even my SMSes aren’t going through. I thought I was really clever and set up the internet on my cellphone before I came. I was going to use it this week to post blogs and check on my facebook profile – so much for that idea!

These past few days have been really hectic. I’ve been up and down between Limpopo and Mpumalanga and Gauteng. I had a terrible week of tooth pain and drugged by pain killers and of course, they stole my office laptop. I thought this week would just add to the chaos of the preceding few weeks but I might be wrong…

It is so quiet here and I am actually enjoying the people I am with. The normal routine at the house and even the chaotic “non-routine routine” of the office is miles away. I think I can really take this time to charge my batteries, just what I needed!

Day 282 – “Don’t quit your day job"

My Heroin Recovery (Sunday, 2 September 2007)
Day 282 – “Don’t quit your day job”

This weekend was the first weekend in a long time that I didn’t see my partner. It felt totally empty not having him with me. He went fishing for the weekend – which I must say is something I haven’t done since I was little and have no intention of adding to my ‘to do’ list soon. Then again, if it means spending time with him – I wouldn’t think twice.

I think that the best of couples get insecure at times, but I must say sometimes the ‘long distance’ thing is a real bitch. It is so much worse when you can’t look somebody in the face to tell them something or when audio over a cellphone is all communication you have for the day. But I’m usually the one that make reminds us both that we both knew this when we entered the relationship.

I went to a “karaoke party” this weekend. It was actually quite fun, luckily I only sang one duet with a guy that thought all the choices were “gay” but who can blame him with an ABBA’s Greatest Hits DVD. I had an interesting evening with one of my friends, somebody with whom a visit was long overdue and I hope we get to do party soon.

Tomorrow is off to Ellisras for the week. On a scale from 1 to 10 my eagerness for this week is hovering in the lower regions. I should be excited because it is a new place which means meeting new people (which is one of my favourite pass times). Then again, it is for work – so that will all depend on how busy they keep us.

My dad is also gone for the week which leaves my mom and brother home alone. It really feels strange being the one who is away from home for a change. Normally everybody else disappears for a few days and I always stay behind. Going to Pretoria or Cape Town for a week would have been a whole other story – but it is a start!

Day 280 – “Two Eighty”

My Heroin Recovery (Friday, 31 August 2007)
Day 280 – “Two Eighty”

It is Friday night and after an exhausting week I can finally relax – at least that is what I thought. At 4 o’clock today I heard that I had to be in Ellisras on Monday morning for 5 days. Due to (once again) bad planning I wasn’t informed of this during the week. Such a pity that a professional company providing a professional service forgets details like those.

But it is part of the job, I guess. So on Monday morning early I’ll be entering the area of Ellisras for the very first time. I’ve decided to take my PC with me, since Ellisras probably only has a KFC, a Total Garage (and we know how I love those) and a Spur. I’ll be able to write blogs but I doubt I’ll get any internet access to post them, so they’ll probably follow the week after.

‘My Significant Other’ got internet this past week. I am very happy because this extends the little time we have to communicate. Unfortunately, I’ll be without internet for a week – so back to the cellphone we go! In that area things are progressing very nicely. I might even go so far as to say I’m in love, more than I’ve ever been before.

I am continuing to write blogs whenever I have something to say but due to my hectic work schedule I only get to post them on certain days. Please bare with me while I try and get some routine with them again – as I mentioned before my new job doesn’t know the meaning of the word.

And I’m finally posting a few blogs in September that I’ve been keeping secret for a while. Their content will be revealed and I’m sure we’ll have loads to talk about afterwards. So, for now all I have to say is watch out for them. Thanx for still reading and following the story of My Heroin Recovery!

Day 279 – “Soccer”

My Heroin Recovery (Thursday, 30 August 2007)
Day 279 – “Soccer”

The first thing I took this morning were pain pills. My mouth looked like a soccer ball and I spoke funny. When I opened my eyes this morning I knew today this tooth had to come out – it couldn’t go on like this. I got an appointment after work today and had the wisdom tooth removed. It only took a few minutes in the dentist chair and even though I can’t really tell at the moment I have to say I can just feel the pain is finally gone.

Some people wondered regarding the dentist and my addiction. Even though I cannot take anything with codeine or morphine in it, the dentist uses something else – and according to my doctor this will not cause a problem. After the dentist appointment tonight I didn’t feel well at all. This week’s medication overload is starting to show!

The tooth is gone now, but unfortunately so is something else in my life! At work today (in another town) I was sent to go and get some water because we were working in the sun and it was a scorching day. I went into the shop, got the water and when I got back to the work bakkie found the window broken and my office laptop stolen! come people… gasp with me!

I spent most of the day at the Police Office getting a case number. While I was there a tourist couple drove in, also with a broken window. Apparantly the same happened to them, not even a block from where I was parked. According to them they are in South Africa for ONE day only from London and now this happens. I said that I hoped this didn’t create a bad impression and she quickly replied that it most certainly did and she was going to spread it. I just thought of the Soccer World Cup at that moment – what a field day these criminals will have then!?

Anyway it sounds asif the laptop will be replaced and my MD didn’t look too upset when I saw him today. However well they take it – I didn’t exactly want to be the one that loses a laptop not even two months into his new job!

Day 278 – “The pain of wisdom”

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 29 August 2007)
Day 278 – “The pain of wisdom”

Like I explained last night I had to stay in Pretoria for an extra night. Normally I pack for an extra day so fortunately I had clothes to wear today. I got a call from the guest house this morning on my way back to Polokwane to inform me that I forgot my extra denim there this morning.

So, I phoned the office to ask one of the ladies if they would fetch it for me. On asking her if she’d go fetch my denim she queries what I was wearing then… I replied: “only my underwear, it looks nice… you want come and check!” Bad Christiaan!

I forgot it this morning because I almost overslept. This one guy at the office arranged that we meet each other at 5 o’clock to load the stock. So, at 5 o’clock we pitch up and waited for him for 30 minutes. How nice for him… I really hope he enjoyed the few minutes extra he could sleep when we got up early! Again, with the bad arrangements – seems to be a habit in the office.

This day was one big disaster. My tooth was acting up and I was on a trip because of all the medication I was taking. But this meant nothing to the people that worked with me. They sent Courier Christiaan up and down and up and down the whole day. We did the job we were supposed to do and found a problem somewhere. So, we redid everything to double check and after an exhausting day of doing everything twice – found that the stock we received were faulty. I am just reserving comment on this one!

I guess you get good days and bad days. This week’s tooth pain is really getting to me and because of the medicine it is affecting my work. I’m trying to get an appointment to get the tooth removed, but as dentists are – I can’t get an appointment, especially not one that meets my schedule at the moment. It will have to wait until Saturday it seems. This week won’t be getting better soon!

Day 277 – “Souvenir”

My Heroin Recovery (Tuesday, 28 August 2007)
Day 277 – “Souvenir”

I thought I’d be in my own bed tonight but find myself in Pretoria for another night. I decided that I won’t be spending tonight all alone in a guest house and called one of my friends. We haven’t really spent that much time together in a while, infact, if it wasn’t for facebook we’d still be looking for each other. The plan to do something for the evening then was actually a good one.

I started having tooth pain last week but due to my hectic work schedule couldn’t get close to a dentist. I’ve been taking pain pills and disprins when the tooth acts up. This weekend my tooth decided to punish me for all the times I forgot to brush in an unbearable pain that I have never felt before. First thing yesterday morning I made a dentist appointment and had the tooth fixed.

Last night and today during my training I ate disprins like they were going out of fashion to help with the unbearable tooth pain that… yes… still continued. I don’t know what the dentist did, but the pain was now worse. I was actually surprised at how well disprins helped for the pain and since I am limited to the type of medication I can take it was the safer choice aswell.

My friend and I went to a very nice place in Centurion that even had a performer for the evening. Luckily we were done when he started singing because even though he wasn’t half bad he was extremely loud and communicating to somebody sitting next to me was nearly impossible. I can’t remember his name now, but the crowd made it clear he was a regular and a favourite.

Our waiter was one of the sweetest characters around and it was really nice chatting to him. I had a few drinks (yes, I know… spank me why don’t you) and this mixed with the pain killers I took left me giggling like a little school girl. Our poor waiter got most of the silliness and I think I asked him if I could take him home with me at one point. Of course this would just be as a souvenir for my evening out and nothing more!

Slightly better day even with the tooth pain. Who knows where I’ll find myself tomorrow!

Day 276 – “Talent”

My Heroin Recovery (Monday, 27 August 2007)
Day 276 – “Talent”

In a week I will be at my new job 2 months. I have surprised myself just how much I enjoy this despite view of some of the people around me. Lets face facts, I sat in an office in front of a computer for most of my working career. And personally I think I was good at it. Now, I’m climbing masts and doing much more physical work. Whether I’ve got any talent for this remains to be seen, but nobody can accuse me of not giving it a try.

I’m in Pretoria today. We have training tomorrow morning early again and I decided it best to come through tonight. I had to take a detour of 2 hours to fetch something for somebody but due to poor arrangement this item was not there. I have to say, I’ve found myself in a lot of poorly planned situations lately and it really creates a bad impression of the company – perhaps one area they can work on.

I stopped by my ex on the way to Pretoria. I had a little bit more time this time around and decided to stay for a drink. He recently met somebody and you can clearly see how happy he is. Unfortunately, he has a tendency to ruin most of his relationships in attempts that sometimes look like pure sabotage. So I hope that this one works out for him.

Of course, I’ll tell my partner of this, even though I haven’t yet. The visit was really innocent, so I have no need to hide it. Afterall, I do regard him as a close friend now. One thing I can say about my job is it keeps me on my toes and it keeps me busy. It is exciting and new and features little routine events. It is looking more and more asif this was exactly what I needed in my life!

Day 275 – “Pulse”

My Heroin Recovery (Sunday, 26 August 2007)
Day 275 – “Pulse”

I have to be honest; I haven’t had much time to blog the past few weeks. Work has kept me extremely busy and it doesn’t seem as if it will get any better in the weeks to follow. So, I apologize for the late, little and scattered entries over the past few weeks.

Since I’m barely keeping up with my own blogging I have got no idea what is happening with the rest of blog world. I did see ‘badges’ added to the blog site, which is a step up towards widgets and I am extremely (out of this world, because we’ve been begging for ages for this) happy that the ‘recently updated list’ has a ‘more link’ added. All I can say is: FI-NA-LLEEEEEY!

Besides being an addict of many things, as you know, I think I’ve become a facebook addict aswell. It has also drastically cut into my blogging time. I have found that either you love it or you hate it, but I think that the people that hate it, just hasn’t had enough time to play around on it yet. It really combines so much of what I already do on the internet on one place.

If you are a facebook member, remember that we have a group for all the ’24.com Bloggers’ and those want to reveal their true identities. There are also weekly chats on Fridays where all the bloggers get together and talk about the latest stuff.

I’ve taken some time lately to update my BlogSpot Blog, My Facebook Profile and also the Mailing List (all of which can be found on the badges on the right). I also finished a collection of entries that will follow in September (something I’ve been working on for a while). If my recovery meant something to you or a friend or if you found it informative at all - I will urge you to read the collection of entries.

Day 273 – “Violently Serene”

Kirsten Squared (Friday, 24 August 2007)
Day 273 – “Violently Serene”

A piece of fiction, amongst daily reality. Or a part of reality that too many see as fiction. Written by Christiaan/TristanB...

She remembers that grisly day all too well. The smell of his sawdusted clothes entering the house. The trail of his muddy shoes which scratched a footpath to the room, her room, always her room! She used to close her eyes when he opened the door. Her deceiving mind told her that she heard the slightly muffled cry of thunder each time, but deep down inside she knew it was him. It was his smile, his intense glaring, his hands… oh, how she hated those hands!

"No, please. Not again!" she always seemed to whisper.
A whisper so soft even if her paralyzed hands could move it would not hear her cries for help. Her diminished voice could manage only a few sounds after its screaming all those years. He moved to the window and pulled on her rosy curtains almost ripping them to the ground.
"I told you to leave them closed. You hear me! Leave them closed!" he screamed. He always wanted them closed. She used to think that it was just so that he could come into the room at any time, but she never really understood it. She didn’t understand any of it.

She knew how to read him a like a book. She could tell how much sugar he had in his coffee that morning just by the way he opened the door. He loved sugar, a lot of it. He loved it almost more than he loved drinking. She wished he loved it more. Too much sugar made him grumpy – he never did this after sugar. His hands were never sweaty after sugar. He never touched her, after sugar!!!

"P… Please… don’t!" she said again. This time echoing through the whole house. She knew he was going to do it even before he knew – ‘cause she knew him too well. But knowing him wouldn’t help stop it. He lifted up his right hand slapping her, making her 11-year-old head twist in an unnatural position.

"Don’t you ever scream at me again. You hear me!" She didn’t say a thing. It pained too much to talk; it pained too much to move. So she just lay there, lay there like she did before… to tired to move… to afraid to speak!

His hand started moving down her petite breasts. "I can’t wait" he always grinned at her. "I can’t wait ‘till your older, your gonna be a fine woman!" Her mind screamed, screamed so loud it wanted to burst, but not a sound came from her frightened mouth. No. Please daddy no. Not again. No…

Day 264 – “Now you see me, now you don't”

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 15 August 2007)
Day 264 – “Now you see me, now you don't”

As I mentioned on Thursday’s blog I stopped to quickly say hi to my Ex. I’ve been promising to visit him for ages and when the opportunity came along I just couldn’t let it pass. Of course, the very same night I informed my partner that I was there. I don’t think I did anything wrong – but I didn’t want this little fact to come and bite me on the ass in the future.

Things between us were a bit rocky the past few days. Everything in my life was thrown a bit upside down with the working here and out of town. We barely get to see each other and because of the busy schedule we barely had time to communicate over the phone aswell. Funny thing is, if he had internet at home we’d probably see a lot more of each other on facebook!

One thing that still comes up on a regular basis is the distance between us and amount of time we get to see each other. These are probably the biggest obstacles we are facing at the moment. Even thought the distance isn’t really that far apart, we can only see each other on weekends and even then it is only for a limited time. So, I can imagine anybody can relate to the frustration that can cause in a relationship.

But as with any other problem in a relationship we are learning to deal with it. One thing I know for sure is, that either one or both of us will not be happy with the ‘arrangement’ as it is at the moment for too long and at some point it will have to change. And that day will make for a really interesting blog!

Day 262 – “Thinking the worst”

My Heroin Recovery (Monday, 13 August 2007)
Day 262 – “Thinking the worst”

His reaction to the news was somewhat surprising. I gathered from those few moments that he still cared about me… well, I still cared about him, but too much happened back then and since then for it to ever work again.

When I told him about my Heroin Addiction he was shocked. I am not really the ideal poster boy for heroin addiction but then again, who really is. A lot of feelings were thrown around: disappointment towards me, anger towards the other people involved and after all that, still support towards a friend he hasn’t seen in over 2 years.

I keep thinking that people will think the worst of me when they find out I was a heroin addict. Let’s face it, it is not really on the list of morally righteous acts to tick off before one dies.

The blogs and the blog entries from the beginning have really placed me in a public light (if I could put it that way). My friends and family, regardless of who or where they are, get the sometimes unpleasant details without ever speaking to me or seeing me. To some, the images created gives them nightmares and instigates prayers that I will recover from this safely.

Facebook, I guess is much worse, because even though blogging is public, it is still something that people have to either learn or happen upon. On facebook, you only need my name and my whole life is laid out there as an advertisement for anybody to see. The blogging section, though, is only visible to my added friends.

Regardless of who reads the blog and where, I have decided to continue with it as always. The rules have changed a bit, but in the end you will still get the honest recovery of a heroin addict – despite that of what anybody might think!

Day 258 – “Rest of story on this page…”

My Heroin Recovery (Thursday, 9 August 2007)
Day 258 – “Rest of story on this page…”

He picked up the phone and I could hear in his voice he was glad to hear from me. I told him he had 0.23 guesses where I was at the moment. He couldn’t believe when I told him I was in his town - and he insisted we quickly meet. So, I took a 5 minute detour to quickly said hi.

Seeing him was really great. It brought back so much memories of the time we first met and how nice that was. Of course, the relationship ended really badly and for months after that we didn’t speak. At least now, we are good friends again – not many people can say that about their ex’s.

I recently posted a blog entry on how certain people in my life didn’t know about my heroin addiction or recovery. He was one of them. I just could never get the courage together to tell him something like this over the phone. One night a few weeks back a similar subject came up and I decided to just go ahead and tell him, even if it was going to be over the phone…

*** Continues...

Day 257 – “Rest of story on next page…”

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 8 August 2007)
Day 257 – “Rest of story on next page…”

I was informed on Monday that I had to be in Pretoria for training the following morning at 6 o’clock. This meant I had to wake up at 1 o’clock to make it in time for training. That is not really my idea of a good night sleep, so I drove through on Monday, slept over and just drove to the office on Tuesday morning.

Training on Tuesday was really interesting. It was a basic course at Duxbury and the instructor was brilliant. I’m not sure if he gives other courses as well, but he really knew how to get his message across and definitely knew enough on the subject he was giving. I would definitely recommend Duxbury for training.

I stayed over at a very nice guest house in Centurion. It is just around the corner form some mall in Botha street, I think. I was really amazed at how a place located in the middle of the city could still have such a relaxing out of town feel to it. Perhaps I’m sounding like a newspaper advertisement today – but even this guest house I would really recommend… just can’t remember the name at the moment.

I woke up bright and early the morning to drive through to a site in the Witbank direction for work. I was on the N4 Highway for the very first time. It is really a different side to Pretoria and the Highways and the tollgates to which I am used to. On my way to the site I passed the home town of my ex. I decided to take a chance, phone him and see if he is available…

*** Continues...

Day 252 – “Luister na my geheim (** Afrikaans)"

My Heroin Recovery (Friday, 3 August 2007)
Day 252 – “Luister na my geheim (** Afrikaans)”

Ek staan op die oomblik in die gang en wag vir ma. Ek wag om ma se aansteeklike glimlag te sien, ma se hande om my lyf te voel en vir my te vertel dat alles reg gaan wees - dat ma daar sal wees vir my. Ek skryf hierdie brief met die hoop dat ma dit sal lees en dat ek nie vir die soveelste keer hoef om te draai en in trane na my slaapkamer toe moet hardloop nie.

Ek staan in die middel van my kamer, ma. Die honderde prente van een of ander kaal manlike bolyf staar my in die gesig en hier en daar maak 'n prent van kastige seks godinne soos Madonna, Pamela en Marilyn hulle verskyning. Vergeef my asseblief, ma. Ek probeer myself indink wat die dag gaan gebeur as ma moet uitvind. Wat gaan ek sê? Wat gaan ma die res van ma se lewe lank vir my voel? My vriende sê, hulle het dit vermoed, ma! Hulle sê hulle weet al lankal. Weet ma al lankal dat ek gay is?

Ek wens ek kon sê dit was 'n fase, ma, maar ek voel dit al my hele lewe lank. En nou waar ek op die ingang van my grootmens lewe staan wil ek nie meer elke dag 'n leuen lewe nie. Ek hoop dat ma hierdie brief lees. Ek hoop dat hoe meer en meer woorde ma lees, ma sal weet dat ek van ons twee praat. Ek hoop dat die trane en hartseer wat ma gaan voel nie lank sal hou nie en dat ons eendag weer mekaar se beste vriende kan wees... tot dan sal ek in die gang staan en wag vir ma!

** Translation to English available soon!

Day 251 – “Repercussions”

My Heroin Recovery (Thursday, 2 August 2007)
Day 251 – “Repercussions”

My ‘Significant Other’ and I were talking about My Heroin Recovery this past weekend. I told him about my heroin addiction before we even met face to face and he was supportive and caring from that day without any hesitation. He asked me a question, a question I’ve been asked many times before – “If I get offered heroin right now; If somebody holds out their hand and open it to reveal heroin – would I take it?”

I heard a story one day from a friend of mine, it was still very early in my recovery. She told of one of her close family members who had been clean for a year and she got offered heroin one night by a friend. Of course, she couldn’t say “No” and destroyed a year of progress.

The sad thing is, that it wasn’t that she wasn’t strong or determined to get her life back or stay on the right track. It was just heroin still having that tight grip on her life. It’s not an easy fight and it definitely isn’t simple. If it was just a choice between “yes” and “no” it wouldn’t only have a 2% survival rate. Heroin has a hold on your life that most can never understand. Most can never even imagine.

So, perhaps it is not the answer I would have liked to give. And predictably it is not the answer you would want to hear. But it is the truth – I don’t know what I would do if I got offered heroin. I stay away from the people and the places that tempt me towards heroin in the hope that I won’t have to make the choice, because as much as I don’t like the answer to the question – I definitely don’t like the repercussions of it either.

Day 250 – “Result Great”

My Heroin Recovery (Wednesday, 1 August 2007)
Day 250 – “Result Great”

Today (Wednesday) is Day 250 in My Heroin Recovery. Somebody asked me yesterday how things are going in my life. I wouldn’t even know where to start…

I started a new job a month ago. The job has its challenges and I’m learning new stuff every day. Sometimes I should have gotten acquainted with these things years before; sometimes it is something that most people will never get to experience. But one thing is for sure - no two days seem to be the same and it really keeps me on my toes.

Overall it is very healthy because I’m getting more exercise, definitely seeing more sun and experiencing different areas in this and adjacent provinces. These points are already good reason to justify the job change, and even though money isn’t a big factor for me when choosing a career – I am receiving more money as well.

The love life came unexpectedly one day when I wasn’t really looking for it. Even this dry part of my life took an interesting turn as I got involved with somebody I normally wouldn’t have liked. Or perhaps not exactly ‘not liked’, but more that our paths never would have crossed because of our different interests, cities and social relationships.

We live about a 100km apart and only get to MXIt during the week and visit each other of weekends. I’ve met his family and he has met mine and everybody is getting along like they’ve known each other for years. The relationship is still new and I think both of us need to adapt again to being part of a group and not make single decisions anymore.

With work keeping me so busy I am getting less and less time to do the normal stuff that used to make part of my day. I am still blogging whenever I can and checking in on facebook on ‘n regular basis. In between I also try and make time to visit my friends. My two best friends got engaged a few weeks back. I’ve been promising them a decent blog post dedicated just to them – so you’ll get all the juicy details soon enough.

Seems that no matter what area of my life you may ask the question, the answer is unanimously obvious: It’s going great!

Day 249 – “Cause I like guys!”

My Heroin Recovery (Tuesday, 31 July 2007)
Day 249 – “Cause I like guys!”

Perhaps one of the most popular questions you get asked is when you first knew you were gay. To me, the question brings the memory of that holiday. Not because I suddenly turned gay as I stared into the eyes of another man, not because something happened in my life that exposed me to that world, but because for the first time what I was my whole life, what I was for as long as I could remember, made sense to me.

It took several years for me to finally come to terms with what I learned about myself that holiday. I finally came out of the closet a few years later to the amazement of some people and no surprise by others. In much the same way some have been accepting and others narrow mindedly cold towards me.

When I started this blog it was to deal with an issue greater than anything I every experienced in my life before. Sexual preference not only seemed insignificant at the time, but way off the subject of the topical heroin blog. So a conscious decision to leave it out of the blog was made from the start.

Over the months there were times that I vaguely discussed certain issues pertaining to my love life but I knew that I couldn’t really talk about it as TristanB at the time. Any reference to love could usually not be gender specific. So I started another blog which sometimes covered the issues that TristanB just couldn’t.

I started blogging as Conrad Daly, with occasional stories to tell, but never really award winning stuff. The blog was more a medium to get creative with stuff like ‘Hottie of the Day’, ‘Mr. World Experiment’, ‘Stranded’, ‘Hottest Men Alive’ and ‘Villiage People Directory’.

Conrad’s Blog ended on Monday night and any future stories I have to tell about that part of my life will be posted here. I can only hope that they will be greeted with the same loving arms that helped me through heroin recovery!

Day 248 – “Opening the doors!”

My Heroin Recovery (Monday, 30 July 2007)
Day 248 – “Opening the doors!”

There are a few defining moments in my life. I remember my vacation in the Cape Province with my family when I was younger. I remember being so happy because I was young and perhaps a bit naïve. I hadn’t been hurt by people, by feelings, by love. I hadn’t been abused by money. I probably never even heard of drugs.

The sea was cold, impossible to swim in, but we had our feet in the water fighting the cold because the sea wasn’t something we got to see every day anymore. Seeing a movie on the big screen was almost unique to me so the IMAX theatre was an out of a world experience – which was appropriate seeing as we watched ‘Blue Planet’ at the time. We took a boat ride on the open side past ‘Seal Island’, a journey up to misty Table mountain and checked the marine life at the “Two Ocean’s Aquarium”. I remember all of it!

I remember walking down a street in one of the places we visited. As I crossed the street I looked up and found this beautiful face in front of me. Our eyes met for brief seconds but it felt like an eternity that we stayed locked onto each other. In what perhaps was a hidden instinct to be at the time, I smiled… we both smiled.

I wasn’t in love – love would be something I only experienced much later in my life. I was vulnerable - this wall I had inadvertently build around me collapsed and for the first time I saw its bricks scattered around me. I was excited – this rush of emotions charged over me and for the first time in my life everything fit into place.

It was on that holiday that a lot of things in my life made sense for the first time. For the first time there was a word for something I had been all my life but now I knew what it was - I was gay!