Together It Adds Up by William Moyers on Creators.com

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Together It Adds Up

A few months ago in this space, I focused on the struggle of people who are "counting days" early in recovery. Stringing together hours or days or even a few weeks since that last drink or drug makes sustainable recovery seem insurmountable at first, especially when the craving is as relentless as waves against the beach.

But Tuesday night reminded me that the formula for transforming newcomers into old-timers really is as simple as that mathematical formula all of us learn before we ever get very far in life: One plus one equals two.

More than 150 people met at a church in St. Paul, Minn., to celebrate individual achievements of recovery by handing out sobriety medallions. A man named Bob took a 42-year chip. Two hours later, a young woman accepted a medallion marking 30 days of her new life sober. In between, 49 other men and women held out their hands and opened their hearts to the crowd. And when it was over, about 450 years' worth of sobriety was tallied.

It was a diverse group, from cashiers at fast-food restaurants to single moms to unemployed autoworkers to a handful of millionaires. Young and old, some had been sober since the day they first quit. Others had stopped and started a few times before getting in gear. A surprising number of them were marking a few months even though they had been at it for decades.

But there was a starkly common theme as they stood at the podium: None of them could contain gratitude for what had been gained. And all of them agreed they could not have made it by themselves.

Addiction kills.

Sadly, too many alcoholics and addicts don't realize what's at stake until it is too late. They die or kill somebody under the influence. There is no cure, either. Even as pharmaceutical companies and scientists search for a "magic bullet," the simple truth is that so far, at least, addiction remains a chronic illness.

Addiction also drives people into the long shadow of isolating shame. A bar is crowded with alcoholics. A crack house usually is teeming with addicts. At the end of the day or night, however, the time comes when the bar closes or the money runs out in the crack house. Then everyone disperses, to suffer in the loneliness of despair.

But there is a solution. From 12-step recovery groups to faith-based programs to doctor-prescribed anti-craving medications to therapeutic communities and sober housing, millions of people have found what it takes to successfully recover from the desperation of too much drinking or drugging.

"I don't know why it stuck this time; I really don't," a young man told the audience. He has relapsed three times over the past few years. "All I know is that for whatever reason, it did. ... Now I won't let go. I am sticking with you guys."

One is a lonely number. But one plus one adds up, in days and months and years of redemption from addiction — and in the number of people who are grateful they aren't counting alone.

William Moyers is the vice president of foundation relations for the Hazelden Foundation and the author of "Broken," his best-selling memoirs, and "A New Day, A New Life." Please send your questions to William Moyers at wmoyers@hazelden.org. To find out more about William Moyers and read his past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.