Jason was 18 when he first experimented with cocaine and pain pills, marking the beginning of a 3-year spiral of heavy drinking and substance use, which eventually resulted in a car wreck while driving the…

From the outside, Joy Reybein seemed to have it all together. She had a job as a paralegal, was married and had raised her children. But deep down, she was struggling to keep it all…

Kendal Smith, 30, is a survivor, beating cancer as a young child and facing heart surgery as a teen. While his early life was rocky due to illness, when he looks back at his childhood…

Healing Transitions’ Recovery Outreach Department, incepted in 2018, made 8,308 outreach attempts in 2023. Recognizing the challenge of maintaining and tracking such a significant volume of calls and data, Recovery Outreach Specialist Trish Wuchte, who…

Ashley’s addiction-to-recovery journey was a quick spiral from a sheltered, middle-class childhood with her family to being homeless.   “I had my first drink at 16, and I immediately fell in love with it,” she…

Timmy Fox’s remarkable journey from a participant in the Healing Transitions Long-Term Recovery Program to Silver Chipper #984 is a testament to the transformative impact that recovery has had on him. His unwavering commitment to…

Daniel was raised in a loving, two-parent home and according to him, he had “everything anyone could ever want or desire.” When Daniel, 38, left home for North Carolina A&T State University, he was introduced…

Caroline would tell you her childhood growing up on the Outer Banks of North Carolina was anything but typical. Her parents were both drinkers, and Caroline always felt a little different, like she just didn’t…

For many, finding support after starting their recovery journey looks like attending a regular AA meeting, meeting with their mentor for coffee, or serving as a peer mentor to help others seeking freedom from addiction.…

Addiction affects everyone in the orbit of a loved one battling the disease. And miraculously, so does recovery. Jake and his close-knit family were faced with the terrifying reality of addiction not long ago. His…

Many people come to Healing Transitions to find recovery. Rhonda Spence came to help her son as he sought freedom from addiction. Ultimately, she found her own recovery too.   “I started coming to the…

Arriving in Raleigh on a Greyhound bus with only eight dollars, two pairs of clothing, and two sandwiches, Myron shares, “I didn’t have any hope. I had to borrow hope from someone who believed that…

Patty’s early years were shaped by financial challenges and a lack of support. Raised by her mother alone who faced difficulties stemming from violence, untreated mental illness, and trauma, which affected the way Patty and…

Chad Aultman, 41, describes his life before sobriety as “darkness with glimmers of light.”    On top of battling addiction, Chad experienced several traumatic events, including the devastating loss of his wife in 2019. Left…

“I was afraid that at any time I might hear that he was no longer living,” shares Kirk Long’s mother, Kay. Kay, 84, has seen her son through deep darkness. A hard lifestyle of addiction…

Lindsay Smith, a 33-year-old mother of two, had a transformative experience at Healing Transitions. Her journey has been tumultuous. Wrapped in addiction and in an abusive relationship, Lindsay looks back on this period of her…

At the age of 37, Travis Hill is a testament to the transformative power of healing and recovery. His life before coming to Healing Transitions was a whirlwind, trapped in the throes of drug addiction…

From a well-respected, affluent family in Kinston, Kathy has suffered from the relentless disease of addiction since high school. What began as social drinking spiraled into a dependency on hard drugs through a career in…

As we approach Veterans Day, we celebrate not only the bravery and sacrifice of those who have served our country, but also their remarkable journeys of resilience and recovery. Russell Wooley’s journey to healing is…

Felix Pulido’s early life was marked by obstacles and addiction, but that’s not where his story ends. Healing Transitions was a cornerstone, the turning point where he found recovery, hope and a future.  In foster…

When Sara Crawford first entered Healing Transitions in 2017, she was not yet ready to own the responsibility to address her addiction. Because the disease of addiction is not a linear path, the journey to…

“Before Healing Transitions, I was homeless and living on the streets. Most nights, I’d sleep with a knife under my pillow because I constantly lived in fear.” But that’s not Terri’s story anymore. She’s been…

Bryan was a smart kid. It was easy for him to get good grades until he started using drugs. Despite his parent’s disappointment, he stopped caring about his schoolwork and mastered passing his classes by…

I grew up in a very comfortable home. I went to school and did pretty well for myself, though I did start experimenting with drugs in high school. I graduated and started studying psychology at…

Like so many children who experience abuse and trauma, Freddy started experimenting with drugs and alcohol at an early age as a way to escape the mixed-up emotions of his childhood. “I started smoking weed,…

When Stephanie Pleasants looks back on her life, she acknowledges,  “There’s no reason why I should be alive today, but Healing Transitions gave me a life to look forward to in recovery. My calling is…

On December 15, 2022, I graduated from Healing Transitions’ long-term recovery program as silver chipper #1000. And even though I’m no better than anyone who’s come before me or who will come after me, being…

Bob Goodale. If you’ve been around Healing Transitions for awhile, you know his laugh all too well. And if you’re lucky, you’ve heard a few of his stories. We had the absolute gift to hear…

  Meet Trey McBreyer – or better known around HT’s campus – Triple Nickel. He’s Silver Chipper #555 and lives out Recovery Life by giving back to Healing Transitions as a part of our Rapid…

Gina Martin   Meet Gina. This is her story.   In addiction, I was only living to get high. My drug use put such a strain on my family. Eventually, they did not know what…

Holly Thomas  Silver Chipper #165   I am so proud of that number: 165. Because I wanted to leave Healing Transitions every day for seven months. But I stuck with it and finished the program.…

Jason will celebrate his 10th “recovery-versary” in March 2023. He began using drugs and alcohol in college and eventually started using heroin. He was addicted to heroin for nearly 10 years and ultimately lost his…

William is looking forward to celebrating 20 years of sobriety in September 2022, just in time for National Recovery Month! He has worked as the Planning Room Coordinator, helping to run the operations at Healing…

Millie Jones will be the first one to tell you that she never thought she’d end up sitting in a jail cell without enough money for bail. She grew up in a stable home, but…

Michael was always small for his age which made him an easy target for bullies on the school playground. He also struggled with a speech impediment as a boy.    “I never really acknowledged it…

Meet Timmy Foxx. Recovery Engagement Specialist. Silver Chipper #984. Addict, alcoholic, unicorn, and member of the recovery and LGBTQ communities.   Timmy was introduced to drugs and alcohol at an early age growing up around…

Before I came to Healing Transitions, my life was screwed up because of drugs and alcohol. My using caused me to go to prison for a little while. Then, even after I got out, I…

My name is A.J. and I am Silver Chipper #10 at Healing Transitions. I completed the program in 2007, and if it wasn’t for Healing Transitions, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I was…

Before I came to Healing Transitions, I was living in a rooming house and was behind on the rent, facing eviction. The place was really a crack house because of all the drugs being used…

Note: This article is a continuation of Healing Transitions’ SEE RECOVERY series. Some of what is told in this story reflect what was told in the previous two articles, so you will want to go…

Note: This article is a continuation of Healing Transitions’ SEE RECOVERY series. Some of what is told in this story reflect what was told in Chris’s recovery story, so you will want to go back…

Growing Up I had a pretty normal childhood, growing up. I’d never really get in trouble, I was a straight-A student, and had really good parents. I did feel a little socially awkward but had…

For the last five months before I made it to Healing Transitions, I disconnected from my family and my first child, Brody. At the time he was four years old. I was couch surfing and…

My name is Dorothy Matteson Pierce and I am silver chip number 84! I came to The Healing Place, now Healing Transitions, at the age of 25 and was completely broken emotionally. I grew up…

I came through the doors of Healing Transitions on January 9, 2012. I was a 33-year-old high school dropout, and I had spent the better part of my adult life incarcerated as a direct result…

When Casy and Jason had met in 1999, they were already actively using. From the start of their relationship, drugs and alcohol were a big part of their relationship. “We were together for a year…