INTERVIEW ASSIGNMENT 1
Interview With a Person in Recovery
SaQuisha Oliver School of Behavioral Sciences, Liberty University
Interview With a Person in Recovery
Introduction
This assignment involved interviewing a former coworker, Michael Richardson (name
changed to protect anonymity), a 48-year-old African American man, who has been sober for
over 6 years. He struggled with alcohol and prescription drugs for more than ten years. I chose
Michael since he shared his story publicly in local recovery events and was willing to speak
about his experience. I contacted him in a private text to tell him the aim of the interview and
assured him of his anonymity. He immediately agreed, stating that he gives back to others in
recovery by sharing his journey. We met on a Wednesday evening in his office; it was informal
yet private enough to allow an honest and open discussion. Michael was warm and gentlemanly
and showed a genuine ability to dig deeply into his story. He shared how his experiences, while
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personal, serve to illustrate what many people confront in the recovery process. The interview
helped shift my views of addiction and recovery away from clinical concerns to deeply human
experiences that are rife with pain, growth, and resilience. It was a reminder of how vital
empathy, cultural humility, and trauma-informed practice are in facilitating others' healing
processes.
Observation and Inquires
Onset of Use & Early Substance Use
Michael's first encounter with alcohol happened at 13 years old during a family
gettogether where drinking with cousins was considered some sort of rite of passage. Although
it seemed harmless at the time, it was the beginning of a long haul of using substances to
manage emotional stress. He regularly drank and experimented with marijuana by the age of 15
in a social environment that reinforced substances used for social connection and identity. "If
you weren't partying, you weren't really 'in' with the crowd," he recalled. After an injury at 17,
he began using prescription opioids, starting with Vicodin and other prescriptions obtained
through peers. His experience resonates with Stritzel's (2022) findings that adolescent
substance use is, in many ways, constructed through peer dynamics and community context,
often in conjuncture with unresolved trauma.
Course of Substance Use
His use escalated dramatically in his late teens and early twenties. By 22, he had
developed an addiction to daily opioids and, at night, to drinking heavily. Substance abuse was
used for numbing anxiety, failure, and isolation in his life. After just one semester at college, he
dropped out due to problems both academically and behaviorally, patronizing a cycle of
shortterm jobs, toxic relationships, and financial wreckage. "The pills came first. However,
alcohol was always around; it was to ease the guilt," he shared. Over the years, he noted that
the social aspect of substance abuse came to an end. "I wasn't partying anymore. I was using it
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in my room, alone, lying to everyone." His addiction further led him to legal troubles, with
charges of DUI.
He described nearly losing everybody's trust around him.
Road to Recovery
Michael's recovery began in his late twenties after an arrest that left him facing jail time.
The emotional impact became more pronounced through the visible distress of his mother and,
days later, the tragic news of losing a close friend to an opioid overdose. These were two of
what Recovery sometimes calls "rock bottom." There were no options, as he ended up having
180 days of a state-funded inpatient rehab program, instead of jail time. While in the program,
there were structures to help him, but deeper emotional work really happened after discharge.
Postdischarge, Michael put his focus onto the 12-step program with daily meetings, therapy, and
community work. Moving forward, he did not remain strictly abstinent; instead, a lot more
came to dump down on him restoration, identity, rebirth, pain surfing without the cloud of
drugs. As stated by Stokes et al. (2018), the actual sustenance of recovery comes from the
ability to tell one's story as well as the ability to establish meaning in connection and
development.
Roadblocks and Triggers
Michael's recovery was not at all straightforward. Perhaps the biggest challenge was
attending to those emotions he had buried for so long. Sobriety didn’t fix me overnight; it just
stripped away the disguise I was hiding behind, he shared. The first year was the roughest, filled
with depression, cravings, and pressure from old friends who could not understand his
commitment to change. “They’d say, ‘Just have one beer.’ But one is never just one for someone
like me.” During this struggle, Michael made that life-changing decision; he gave his life to
Jesus Christ. That spiritual turning point has now become a wellspring for strength and clarity.
Along with grace, he leaned also toward his sponsor; weekly therapy; and a men’s recovery
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group. He built structured coping tools such as journaling, exercising, and mindful prayer. For
him, recovery became not only sobriety but surrender, healing, and walking in grace.
Sobriety and Reactions of Others
Michael has identified “being present” as the most significant dimension of sobriety
because it lets him engage as a husband, son, and friend much more fully. He is married, has
two kids, and works as a peer support counselor giving back professionally to the recovery
community. His family generally distrusted him at first because of past relapses, but over time
behaviors changed for the better with the result that trust was gradually regained. His
relationship with his parents has improved greatly, and now he helps others in early recovery. As
Davidson et al. (2021) describe, recovery-oriented systems of care emphasize restoring
meaningful roles and integrating into the community principles evident in Michael’s journey.
"Helping someone else through their darkness is one of the most fulfilling things I've ever
done," he says. "It reminds me of where I came from."
Application
Michael's recovery is a fine illustration of the stages of change model, from
precontemplation at early use to contemplation during DUI and a friends' overdose, into action
and maintenance through structured programs. His attendance at 12-step meetings, sponsor
relationships, and so forth exemplify the usage of mutual-help and cognitive-behavioral
strategies, particularly regarding trigger management. The addiction was underpinned by his
genetic vulnerability and emotional distress in the contexts of clinical and social isolation within
a biopsychosocial framework. Clinically, the therapeutic resources applied to support his
recovery were motivational interviewing, relapse prevention, and strength-based rehabilitation
resources to grow into resilience. Ogilvie and Carson (2022) discuss how trauma and recovery
cross paths through post-traumatic growth, and Michael's path exemplifies this intersection-
how organized support and personal insight can foster sustained change.
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Personal Reflection
Michael's story expanded my understanding of addiction, emphasizing that it is an
everchanging chronic disorder influenced by the internal and external circumstances—not
something that reflects one's moral failure. It also brought to my attention the importance of
compassion, active listening, and cultural humility in the handling of clients who suffer from
substance use disorders. What struck me deeply was that recovery is much more than
abstinence; it is the rebuilding of self-image, reconciling personal relationships, and building
emotional resilience. His honesty and strength were truly inspiring. This interview made me
think about my own biases and how stigmatization subtly affects my way of thinking. As I
prepare for my future role as a counselor, I feel even more determined to meet each client with
empathy, respecting their unique journey.
Conclusion
Michael's is provided to show how complex the concept of addiction is and how complex
yet possible the path of recovery can be. His experiences support another variable in his
recovery: the importance of environmental support, access to resources, and building inner
resilience. From his very first use all the way through the hurdles of sobriety, Michael's journey
speaks so powerfully of the possibility of change and growth in the human spirit. As a student
preparing to work in this counseling field, this interview has helped enhance my understanding
of addiction and has reaffirmed my commitment to support patients through empathetic and
evidence-based care.
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Reference
Davidson, L., Rowe, M., DiLeo, P., Bellamy, C., & Delphin-Rittmon, M. (2021). RecoveryOriented
Systems of Care: A Perspective on the Past, Present, and Future. Alcohol research :
current reviews, 41(1), 09. https://doi.org/10.35946/arcr.v41.1.09
Lisa Ogilvie & Jerome Carson (2022) Trauma, stages of change and post traumatic growth in
addiction: A new synthesis, Journal of Substance Use, 27:2, 122-127, DOI:
10.1080/14659891.2021.1905093
Stokes, M., Schultz, P., & Alpaslan, A. (2018). Narrating the journey of sustained recovery from
substance use disorder. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, 13(1), 35.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13011-018-0167-0
Stritzel H. (2022). Peer and Community Influences on Adolescent Substance Use in the Context
of Adverse Childhood Experiences. Sociological perspectives : SP : official publication of
the Pacific Sociological Association, 65(2), 413–432.
https://doi.org/10.1177/07311214211018718
