Eight years ago, I ended up in AA and got sober. That was just the beginning of a long journey through healing and self-discovery. Life continued to throw uncomfortable challenges my way—COVID, betrayal—piling onto the traumas I needed to work through. Then I found Kratom. It feels like the missing dopamine that once made every challenge seem like an insurmountable, life-ending saga is finally in place. Now, life is not only bearable, but I can learn again. I can participate in the world in ways I couldn’t before.
AA gave me something priceless: a sense of being loved, even through my messed-up thinking. When people who don’t know you love you, it gives you permission to love yourself—enough to believe that your solution is out there, and that you’re worthy of finding it. Do I go to AA all the time? No. Would some of my AA brethren consider my use of Kratom to be drug use? Probably. But it doesn’t matter—because I love me now. This is my journey, and I claim it fully.
I’m here to take care of the soul inside this human meat-space suit while I’m on this earth. And taking care of that soul means loving it as it learns, heals, and explores. That’s how I love myself—through growth, through discovery, and by embracing every modality that helps me move forward.
Like You Mean It 