Recovering Addicts Deserve Credit For Openness

Recovering Addicts Deserve Credit For Openness
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It’s not a normal occurrence for convicted criminals to speak to the media openly about past indiscretions in an effort to spread awareness and education about their individual circumstances. That happened twice this week.

Typically, jailhouse interviews are requested by prisoners because they want to explain their innocence and how the system has worked against them in one fashion or another.

In the case of Chase Fehrenbach and Wes Bresnahan, nothing could be further from the truth, and the maturity these two men showed during their interviews this week is commendable.

For addicts, a part of the recovery process is to own their wrongdoings and not make excuses. These two men are doing just that behind bars. These men have a disease. They are addicts. They are each now facing the consequences of that disease and the actions they took while in full blown addiction.

They have stories to tell and hopefully they will continue to share their experiences openly so we can all learn from them. They essentially did that this week with our interviews, but even larger audiences need to hear what they have to say.

Among some of the most powerful comments involved what the men want to do after they have served their time.

Fehrenbach said, “My hope is to someday help change the system so it allows people, both the victims and the offenders, to heal, to love themselves, and re-connect with who they used to be, their families and all they lost sight of. That’s how you treat the disease of addiction, not by locking someone in a cage and throwing away the key.”

Bresnahan, who recently told a parole board he was not ready to be released without a detailed treatment plan, had similar comments to share. He said, “Addiction is a disease of the mind, so I have to focus on being honest and truthful to myself every day and I can’t get caught up replaying all of my failures in my head. I want to create a whole new identity for myself, and I know the person that I can be. I just want to start anew as a sober person.”

We sincerely thank these two men for sharing their personal accounts and wish them the best moving forward as they live their life with a disease. They did not have to speak with us, but we are glad they did. That’s a huge step in their recovery process in our opinion.

Actions speak louder than words, of course, but these guys know that. They have had plenty of time to contemplate that. It looks like they will have plenty of more time to deliberate. They know they have a lot to prove upon their release, but they appear on the right track. We are hopeful for them and their families.

About The Author: Steven Green

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The writer has been with The Dispatch in various capacities since 1995, including serving as editor and publisher since 2004. His previous titles were managing editor, staff writer, sports editor, sales account manager and copy editor. Growing up in Salisbury before moving to Berlin, Green graduated from Worcester Preparatory School in 1993 and graduated from Loyola University Baltimore in 1997 with degrees in Communications (journalism concentration) and Political Science.