Youth & Drug Addiction

100% of the proceeds will go to AADAP!  And ya'll know what we support!

Miranda, who is a part of the Olympia Academy staff, has been training for months for the upcoming marathon on behalf of AADAP and supporters.  She's been a friend of mine for about 5 years now and she's one of the nicest people I know! Genuinely nice (which is hard to come across now a days).  She's got a big heart, is always supportive, and loves unconditionally.  I love her and am so proud that she's a part of this marathon.  By donating any amount, you will be supporting AADAP and Miranda during the marathon.  Miranda is basically going to be representing everyone who donated through her link to AADAP during the marathon and I know she's going to complete all 26.2 miles! 

So support a wonderful person for a good cause.  Support the movement!  Please!  Anonymous donations are an option..and again any amount is appreciated! 

More AADAP graduates & a little info about the program!  Enjoy!

Got any questions for me?  Click the link below!

As promised, the video interview with the graduate is finally up!  Enjoy!  And if you have any questions for Oliver, you know where to send your questions!  If not, click the link: http://addictedtol1fe.tumblr.com/ask

This was my first live interview, so you'll hear the nervousness in my voice.  I gotta work on that.  I promise future interviews will be better :)

Thanks for watching guys!  Please re-blog if you feel this might help someone out!

I was rummaging through some of the old stuff that I kept as memories during my stay at OA and came across this awesome motivational poem.  I hope this will help motivate people going through any struggles to keep pressing on and to never give up!

In OA & TC (Therapeutic Community) we need "Concepts" (positive quotes or sayings) to help us through tough times.  It works when you tell yourself positive things and have a positive mindset starting from the beginning of the day.

So here it is!

THE QUITTER

Fate handed the quitter a bump, and he dropped; The road seemed too rough to go, so he stopped. He thought of his hurt, and there came to his mind The easier path he was leaving behind. Oh, it's all much too hard, said the quitter right then; I'll stop where I am and not try again. He sat by the road and he made up his tale To tell when men asked why he happened to fail. A thousand excuses flew up to his tongue, And these on the thread of his story he strung, But the truth of the matter he didn't admit; He never once said, I was frightened and quit. Whenever the quitter sits down by the road And drops from the struggle to lighten his load, He can always recall to his own peace of mind A string of excuses for falling behind; But somehow or other he can't think of one Good reason for battling and going right on. Oh, when the bump comes and fate hands you a jar, Don't baby yourself, boy, whoever you are; Don't pity yourself and talk over your woes; Don't think up excuses for dodging the blows. But stick to the battle and see the thing through. And don't be a quitter, whatever you do.

--Edgar A. Guest

Don't give up!  Recovery especially is tough because it's ongoing, and never-ending, but trust me--IT WILL BECOME EASIER AS TIME GOES BY!  Take it ONE DAY AT A TIME!

Pictures up as promised! :)

A picture of Oliver (One of the 5 graduates) and myself!

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Check out this video of inspiration.  He is the first graduate of Olympia Academy and I'm proud to announce that he has achieved his goal in becoming a counselor!

So Oliver's graduation was a huge success!  Lots of people came out to support, including the adults at the adult residential rehab facility, Oliver's parents, other alumni (including myself), and even the CEO of AADAP!  His sister was in New York, but, thanks to technology, we were able to face time her on an iPad!  It was such a great feeling to see the confidence and proudness that Oliver carried that night.  I remember that feeling as well. 

Graduation day is ALL ABOUT THE GRADUATE.  The graduate gets to pick the food that will be served on the day of graduation, and is prepared by the kids who are currently in the program.  There are congratulatory speeches from family, kids in the program, staff, guests, and CEO so that the graduate knows how proud we are of him/her and how they've impacted our life.  Then there's even a funny skit of them to remember how they've progressed over time.  I attend every single graduation and haven't missed ONE!  It's a huge accomplishment and we all consider each other family and now Oliver is officially part of our alumni family!

Graduates have the privilege of being able to come back to the program to visit the kids that are currently there and also staff.  We don't necessarily HAVE to, but the program teaches us to give back.  When I was struggling in the program and saw an alumni come through, it gave me a sense of motivation, which these kids often need.

Oliver's interview will be done this Saturday at the annual AADAP Dinner Dance so please stay tuned!  If you're curious about what a "dinner dance" is, it is a function that takes place every year in January to celebrate ALL of the graduates that have graduated that previous year from the adult & youth residential facilities.  It usually takes place in a banquet hall at a hotel and there's fancy dinner, speeches, videos, and dancing at the very end!  Quite lovely!  (And I'll be sure to post some pictures of that as well, don't worry!)

Here is a nice picture of the graduate and his mom & dad!

P.S.  Thank you for the comments that were sent to me in regards to Oliver's graduation!  I have passed along the message and he was very grateful and inspires him to continue to do well!

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Less than 10 hours left to go before Oliver gets to officially join the alumni group of Olympia Academy and gets to forever be a part of a 2nd family.  I've only gotten one message back!  Leave a message by clicking the link below!

http://jennchun.tumblr.com/ask

He's going to be so surprised when he sees how supportive people can be! Thanks again, hope to get some new messages soon! ♥

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Graduation is a HUGE accomplishment in the world of Olympia Academy, and I'm happy to announce that Oliver N. will be graduating this Thursday!!  He is, I believe, the fastest person to complete the program after 10 months.  You may think that this is a long period of time, but a residential program like Olympia Academy can typically take between 12-18 months to complete.  For me, personally, it took the entire 18 months, believe it or not!

You have to remember and keep in mind that this program is developed to rehabilitate someone to become a productive member of society again.  Before stepping into a program, we weren't used to any restrictions.  We did and got what we want, whenever we wanted.  Nothing was impossible and authority doesn't exist in our world.  We begin to disobey our parent(s), teachers, guardian(s), social worker, or anyone who seems to actually care about our future.  Following simple instructions begins to get harder to do and bad habits begin to develop.

Checking into an institution like Olympia Academy helps to try to get us to follow a simple structured day, and abide by their rules (something that we were never used to).  They help to start to break our bad habits of self destruction and try to build a brighter future.

We've all heard the saying "Practice makes perfect" and PRACTICE is definitely what we do, what I did, for 18 long months, but I'm going to keep it real and let you know that no one comes out perfect.  We are always a work in progress  Understand that recovery is on-going, never-ending, and a daily struggle.

Let me wrap up and say that Oliver has shown IMMENSE progress and extraordinarily fast over his 10 month stay at OA (short for Olympia Academy) and I am very proud of him!  Programs such as these are really really hard to complete (and I can't stress that enough).  To give you an idea of how hard it is....there have only been more or less of 15 graduates total over the past 10+ years.  There is at least a constant average of 10-14 teens there everyday!!!  and GRADUATIONS are important for this very reason.  Unfortunately, many teens do not complete this program..and it shows how strong and dedicated the GRADUATE has to be in order to have completed the program.  So congrats to you, Oliver!  I wish you much success in the future, and I will always be here to support you!

If you have any questions for either myself or Oliver, please ask!  I will be doing an interview with him on Thursday after his graduation ceremony and will be sure to ask him then.  Also, I will be taking a few pictures to give you all an exclusive sneek-peek of what a typical graduation ceremony looks like at OA.

**If you know anyone struggling with drug addiction or if you have a question in general about the program please feel free to ask!  Anonymous questions are accepted!**

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It's obvious that drug addiction is an epidemic that doesn't discriminate any race, age, religion, or sex.  It's becoming even worse for the youth community.  This is a major concern for me because I see these kids as the future of the world.  They have the potential to be someone great & influential in the world, but their future has been derailed due to various reasons such as: learned/taught bad habits, wrong influences, traumatic experiences, neglect, etc.  Don't you think it's unfair to deprive these kids of their future without even giving them a chance to be better and to try to reach their full potential?  We should provide opportunities for 2nd chances and set-up them up for success rather than failure.

But where is the help when these kids want to finally pursue recovery?  If you're a parent, guardian, or friend of someone who is going through drug addiction where do you begin to find help to get their life back on track?

The answer is:  There are different types of facilities out there including In-Patient/Residential (where kids reside in a facility for the duration of their recovery) and Out-Patient (kids are able to go home but report to a facility for treatment) programs, and more.

For more information for more youth & adult programs that are available see: www.aadapinc.org

If you have checked out that link, you will notice a link for "Olympia Academy".  http://www.aadapinc.org/programs/olympic/

Olympia Academy is the residential program and their location is confidential.  It ensures safety for the kids as some may be in gangs, gang-affiliated, etc.  The kids' identies are also kept confidential because they are minors and also for safety reasons.

I am a graduate of Olympia Academy, and I still have strong ties to the AADAP organization.  I volunteer on my free-time (mostly weekends) and support the organization and what they stand for, to the fullest.  My posts are to answer any questions you may have about the how it is living there and working the program.  Also post-grad experiences as well.  I will be providing advice as a graduate and former resident of a rehab from my personal first hand experience of living there for 18 months.

I hope to be able to answer and help anyone who is going through struggles.  There is help out there and I am here to support and guide those who are seeking help or is in need of advice.  Pod casts are currently in the works, but for financial reasons production is being slightly postponed.  Donations are greatly appreciated.  It will strictly go to the production for the pod casts.  I promise to make them full of information and as helpful as possible!

I hope to educate everyone about the life of recovering addicts, and the institutionalized life.