Choice magazine_Final

for Recovery Building Lasting Connections The Right Path “Forever, forever, forever, and ever.” It ’s how long Mary Williams says she’ll be working as a counselor, whether paid or volunteer. She’s currently an independent counselor at the CHOICES’ location in Toledo. Since starting at the agency, Williams says the most rewarding part of her work is seeing the change in her clients throughout their time in the program. “It’s something I can identify with, so seeing it happen and seeing their progress is phenomenal.”

While counseling her clients, she is transparent about her previous struggle with addiction. Williams started drinking when she was 16. That habit grew to include using drugs like cocaine and stimulants. “It was basically whatever I could get my hands on at the time.” She dealt with this addiction for six years. When beginning her recovery process, Williams never went through a treatment program. Instead, she relied on caring counselors to help assist her in her decision for a better life. She says she believes her experiences allow her to understand and connect with her clients in ways she couldn’t if she hadn’t dealt with addiction. “I can identify with them because I was lost too. “When you don’t have the right people in your life to help guide or nurture you, you can become attracted to the wrong crowd. That was my story, and from what I feel, that ’s a lot of my clients’ stories.” Being open with them about her journey gives insight into the process of recovery from an individual perspective. “I want them to see that they’re not alone, that I was in their shoes. But this is where I am now. I stress that I’m no different from them. I say, ‘The only distance between you and me is that I just have more clean time than you. And that’s something you can achieve. "

8