To Whom It May Concern,
My name is Diane, I am 43 years old. Sadly to say, I have been using drugs and alcohol for over half my life. I have held down a job and never been fired from a job, let alone never let drugs interfere with my work. I was a functional drug user, but I had no real reason for my drug abuse, so I thought. I figured my life was ok. I knew I could do better, but was settling for what I had, not understanding why I felt all alone. I was told that that is the way addicts are supposed to feel. I didn’t start getting into trouble with the police until 1996, the year my mom passed away. But lets not forget about the five or six drunk driving offenses I got back in the eighties. In and out of rehabilitation centers, counseling, and my share of probation officers. I pretty much have heard it all. Nothing really clicked. I knew there was something missing. I wasn’t going to settle for “ONCE AN ADDICT, ALWAYS AN ADDICT”. Being made to believe that I was less than so called, “NORMAL PEOPLE”, I figured they were right. I would always be looked down upon, and didn’t deserve to fit in and live a happy sober life because I was an addict. Until I was sentenced under Proposition 36, and met my counselor, Mr. Michael Oden, I didn’t realize that there was somebody out there that knew how I felt. My first meeting with Mr. Oden lasted about 45 minutes. That was a surprise in and of itself. Instead of a clod shoulder and a phony smile. I was greeted with a warm hand and somebody who understood. He wanted to know about my feelings! He asked me about my emotions!, were they being fulfilled and taken care of? What’s up with this, I thought, is this guy for real? Did he really care? The more we talked, the more comfortable I became. The one thing I always knew about myself is that something is missing. I never really felt complete. He knew that the minute I walked into the room. All these years I have been filling my emptiness with drugs and alcohol, not even knowing anything about me. “ONCE AN ADDICT, ALWAYS AN ADDICT”, that’s what I was and what I would always be. Mr. Oden wanted to know what made me tick and what I did to fill in the blanks when I was hurting and feeling lonely. I chose alcohol and drugs. I have now been drug free since January 2, 2002. I struggled through it until I met Mr. Oden. I knew then that I was on the right track. I finally realized that my head wasn’t screwed up, I just forgot to put myself first. Now all we need to do is to get the word out there, and let people know that they are not all screwed up, that somewhere down the line they have been cheated out of something that the human psyche needs to survive. Like I said, I have been clean and sober for two years now, I feel strong about myself, knowing that there is somebody out there who knows how to guide me in regarding myself, and to reassure me that I’m not doomed with the label of being “AN ADDICT”. Sincerely, Diane

My name is Ron, I’m 42 and have used drugs since I was 20 years old. I used to think that the reason I used was because I was “addicted” and because I had a “disease” I’ve now come to find out that this thinking was far from the truth. In fact, this kind of thinking probably did more harm than good. Through working with Michael Oden I feel major burdens have been lifted from me and my childhood and self-esteem is back . Thank You Mr. Oden!!!

Hello, my name is Dregory and I’d like t begin my story by telling you how my life got turned upside down, mind you I’ve been in and out of prison, the county jail, probation after probation and other institutions. These things took place because I used drugs. I’ve been to program throughout Los Angeles and nothing seemed to change. As of the year 2006, I was placed under the supervision of Probation Officer Mr. Oden who has helped me more in the 6 months I’ve been with him than any other place I’ve been too. He helped me to understand that the issue was my past is what caused me to run to cocaine to ease the pain an escape the things of my past I didn’t want to face. I can now talk about it because of the work Mr. Oden and I did to help me face the fact that as a child I had no male figure in my home to help me grow as a man. All I had was sisters and a mother who pampered me and gave me all the things I wanted. So, as I grew up I became depended upon that and felt if I did not receive what I wanted I would have what Mr. Oden called an adult tantrum. And the feelings that came with it would be the feelings of, “I’m not worth anything which in turn brought me anger and that it was my entire fault. I believed that I was not good enough. I was stuck in a child’s mind an as I grew older this became a problem because once I experienced that drug that made me feel better and forget about who I really am. However, Mr. Oden and I dug deep within me and brought out what was really the problem and now I understand that don’t have to run from the problem or any other. I need to face these problems because it’s not my fault. I now that I am not an addict but a person who is sort of like weak. When I say weak, I mean soft like a girl. I discovered through Mr. Oden that a lady cannot show/teach a boy how to become a man and give that sense of strength. Ever since Mr. Oden opened my eyes and gave me the understanding I don’t’ have to run anymore. I thank God for bringing me into contact with Mr. Oden and I also thank Mr. Oden for caring enough to help me to be FREE. Now, I’m not haunted by my past anymore but in acceptance of it. I’m also not just clean but FREE.

” FREE and At PEACE means the past doesn’t haunt you so you can live in the present so you don’t fear the future.” J. Hill