The Voices for Voices Podcast Episode 30 with Guest, Chris Carter

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please join me today in welcoming Our Guest Chris Carter Chris thank you for

joining us today thanks for having me Justin I appreciate that absolutely  very excited to have you with us to

have you share your experiences with  our viewers our listeners people here in

Northeast Ohio and across the world to share  some of the good the bad the

ugly and I think let's start with some of the good, so introduced to with one of my board members Rebecca Masters and

you've shared this super uplifting video which the topic is not uplifting when

when you think about it but to see what a little bit of music and see what

getting in front of people and actually just talking about what is actually occurring how that is

 it's important that we're all going through this whether we think we're going through it or

not can you just walk through maybe just to highlight of the video and

what was in in that documentary for those that haven't seen it and then we'll include it in our show notes

yeah absolutely so you know back in 2016  I basically got this huge fire that

was lit by a lot of you know people in the community that were losing their loved ones you know whether it be their

their husbands mothers sons daughters brothers or sisters you know and

they were basically not knowing where and where to turn they were not having that extra source you know of

recovery whether they could go to meetings or they could go to recovery

resource facilities that could show them that they would they didn't have that outlet and they were losing we were

losing a lot of people the OD rate was just astronomical at that point in my

eyes when I did research back in 2016. so me and a friend Greg Henry  he is a

videographer got together and we decided that we would create this  video clip

and we would post it throughout you know Facebook and on the internet and you

know see what we could do to bring more awareness  to our communities not just the Vermilion where this all kind of

took place but pretty much surrounding communities which actually developed going out of different states and made

it to different countries as well the community video that we made started out

with talking to me about my personal experience you know with you know drugs

and alcohol and where it took me and where it led me to recovery and how now

I turn my life around being able to help other people we talked a lot about the OD rate of

course you know of the course of time in the video and people were running out coolers it'll state that in the video

the core owner is running these trailer coolers because they have nowhere to put them and you know that's alarming that's

really alarming if you really think about it you know so basically after

that we  we had a rally and this rally was huge it was a really cool a lot of

police departments were there the mayor was there the community was there

was a lot of people that were there and they you know they got to speak about their loved ones they got to

show the pictures they wanted you to know who they were that they were someone that meant something so dear to

them their family member so in that video if you see that

you'll see me speaking there and I shared my experience just a little bit of it basically that you know I was

using for so long I once you know was a drug dealer I once was  you know

full-blown addiction and eventually I became you know into recovery you know

went into recovery they told me that I was a junkie I was an addict I would never make anything of myself I would

never graduate you know and get my GED you know I would always be this menace

to society is what they told me and that stigma just kept playing the part where I believed it I was going nowhere I

honest to goodness thought you know what I'm stuck there's nothing until that

recovery piece came in until my family members came in until I met a wonderful

lady into my life  and you know in 2011 you know I was able to find

recovery you know and now I have a job I have two children and I'm in

business development I'm a counselor by trade I help people get into treatment and I'm able to help people now that are

with mental illness as well as finding places for them to live and clothing and

Etc. so the video basically it shows death I like saying this it shows death

but it also shows life beyond the death right we do we do recover we do have

that other outside brightness that shining Glory through the darkness

that always say that through the darkness the light shines that's true it really does you just have to allow

yourself basically to be a mole of clay you know what I mean can be refined by

this huge hands that are that are doing it right the people around you that care about you always tell people right

nobody dictates who you are only you do you make the path and the choice of if

you want to go into recovery or not sometimes you have to let people help you and show you right so by doing those

steps right that's your recovery base you know you're getting recovered there and then you go further and you're

you're thinking and you're looking at all the tools or laid before you're right and then that's your sobriety you

know and then after that you're opening those doors you're coming straight through with fire and that's your story

that's your story of sobriety and Recovery that's what brings everybody

full tell and shows one person in my show too but it's that one person that sees that hey

that lady that guy they did it so you know what I bet you I can too so that's kind of a little bit where I

went with that video yeah and I and I love it because it shows like you said it shows kind of

the both kind of the low and then and then the positive and  so just on like

a personal level like how does it make you feel when you make a video like that when you get in front of an

audience when you do media and talk about  you know but things that are

out there that can be fixed and it needs to be worked on but  you know now

versus when you know the drugs and the substances we're kind of ruling

ruling your life how those your energy and then how do you feel when you're

when you're doing it talking about right the positive things and you know you're impacting at least one person right so I

really think about that you know it's a good that's definitely good question you know the light was definitely

snuffed out you know you have a candle it was it was snuffed and the wax hardened you know my life it was just it

was crippled you know and when I found a different way of living through you know

programs that were suggested of me you know  it molded me into a different

person a person who the light came strikingly back on you know the doors

were open it was a hole you know the rose glasses that they say came off I was just this person that was on fire

and I had it where I was going to save the world legitimately save the world and eventually it had to be tweaked too

because it can't save the world right but you know to where I was of dealing drugs and you know then doing them and

robbing people of their lives robbing myself of my own life children involved

as well not being a good father  you know not being able to be at baseball games or soccer games or being a part of

going to the park and playing with my kids you know not taking responsibility and paying my child support you know

being that like I said that Menace to Society you know it robbed not only me

but the people that really cared about me around me you know but once I got clean and sober oh man I

mean and I am still on fire the light it shines brighter than ever do I have my ups and downs absolutely but are a

lot better to deal I'm a lot better dealing with them now I'm not using in order to cope with you know the trials

and tribulations that I go through now I find a different way of meditating or

reading or just being slow to speak and not doing anything at all listening to music you know working out you know

 but you know my big thing that I always you know I filled this void and it's

helping people yeah I love helping people I just recently I was explaining before we came on here you know I  got

a load of toys and I'm in the middle of this blizzard you know going to go to

these churches and these shelters and dropping these toys off there was nothing that was going to stop yeah almost did a couple times with cars but

nothing was going to stop and get in the way but I it was in the thing if you'd asked me back then it had been about me

me and now to watch the tears and the smiles come across these kids

and these families because they weren't able to have Christmas because they couldn't provide but someone else who

cared you know and loved them we were able to help them that's that just says

it all you know what I mean and you can't there was no price tag on that you know but I wouldn't have been there if

I'd still been out there qualifying or using right so you know it's really nice to have people also so support you and

help you in your journey you know I always tell people it's like now you know they're able to stick next to me

and here is the keys to your you know car once you pull around back in this net or leaving the person in the room before

they're like how you know hide your kids hide your daughter hide your card your car keys your Chris is coming over yeah you know what I mean and that's

sad you're creating a whole you know the wrong the wrong mood and the wrong lighting for the whole scene you know

now it's I work with the police departments I work with the hospitals you know I work with the courts the

States you know it's really cool and really interesting that I you know where I've come you know if you would

have told me that in 2010 and I told you you're ludicrous you know you're crazy

 I can tell you this which is really neat 2011 I'd stole my girlfriend's car I stole 20

grand from her I was off for three days on a binge and

she found where I was at and I was just I was at my website I

was crying it was spent was broke  doing the drugs for that long a period of over you know 72 hours I was just no

sleep I was lost she came and you know grabbed me and got the car out of impound and you know detox me herself

which I definitely don't recommend that to anybody definitely get help and go into treatment for that to do that on

your own is definitely not safe but she did and the next day she said she was going to give me help and I said

great you know that is definitely what I want to do well you know she dropped me in front of the police station that

definitely was not what I thought was going to happen and  long story short they came they got me

they locked me up the next day I had warrants so the next day I had court

they went before the judge  the judge looked at me and he said I'm done I'm

giving you three to five years of Mansfield I'm done with you I didn't even know what to say I was I'm

like this is going to be bad I've never been to a prison in my entire life jail yes but now prison

and he reads you have anything to say for yourself and I said no I don't I don't what am I going to say I'm going

away you know I'm happy no I'm not happy I'm scared anybody want to speak on this guy's

behalf the girlfriend Rose her hand am I oh great he is going to feel sorry for it he is going to give me seven years now

instead of five you know so I'm just in there just don't say nothing don't say nothing well she rolls her hand and

she's like you know this guy does not need prison this guy needs help he's

sick putting him in prison is not going to do it's not going to fix the what he's got going on we need to find a way

to get him help so long story short the judge you know said ah I guess she sees something in

you that we don't so they gave me four months into the cbcf Lorraine County was locked down

facility but it was cognitive based which was amazing  you know came out 2011 and sober since then

that is my sobriety day 11 11 11. been sober for 12 years I married her she's my wife now I got two beautiful kids

she's a therapist I'm a counselor kids are in school I coach baseball bat the

whole nine yards this big family and now like I told you my job is you know I

always tell people it's not the facility I work for it's my name my last name you know my last name is my brand I

help people because I know that's what needs to be done you know my me getting

a second chance third fourth sixth seventh all the way eons right this is now my chance to give that person the

same chance that I had you know so yeah so you talked about

the team the support the going from kind of the me to be the diversity of

have a my story experience about that but I found that once I got myself out

of my way and believe that I wasn't able to solve

everything I wasn't able to Google the solution I wasn't able to do everything my myself and wanting that control at

the time like no like I will take care of do not worry about it even though I'm miserable again crying I'm

not eating dropping 40 pounds withdrawing from teeth things that you

like you love to do  like I'll take care of it and that acceptance so how hard was it for you to

have that acceptance personally and then to go from that

me to we to having that that support system around you if you like so being

the center of attention being an only child that was a thing that worked you know against me of course you know I

didn't have  brothers or sisters I had stepbrothers but they really went in their picture  too much it was just me

my mom and my dad so I was doing an interview with a news channel one time and it was called

the snow plow  syndrome it's where parents basically do everything for their kids because

they feel sorry from what they did to their kids not being there my parents of

course some things have happened when I was little my parents what they did basically bought me everything I wanted car BMWs Camaros pool tables foosball

tables it was I mean they just everything I wanted right when that word became no

it was like all heck broke close there was like you told me you know what breaking my trophies putting holes in

the walls calling my parents explicit names I mean it was just ungodly it's very unruly in that house right so you

know it used to be all about Chris but now you're telling me that it's not about Chris so then when you get the

drugs you know and the alcohol and all that still going on it's still got to be about Chris whether it's partying

whether it's in high school right so when you pulled all that away from me that was like you pulling my brother

away from me that was a coat that was a counter that was my  co-pilot so

now that there's a we being sobriety right you have that we and the people

around me who actually love me and caring about me it gives me a whole different look at life

so it's really definitely a blessing I mean and it's really I like

to say this when my kids are misbehaving when I'm going through trials and I don't know why these things are

happening it takes me a minute don't get me wrong but eventually I'm like man I really do I'm really glad I get to

experience this because you know at one point in time I didn't have that I was

so much in trouble I was having the CEO telling me to hit my DOT it's time for you to get ready for bed Chris you need

to hate your dad get ready for child at the at the hall I didn't have that luxury because that is a luxury that we

have of people taking care of us and loving us and providing those things over us right but what we do is take

advantage of that not all but most take advantage of that because we're selfish you know we have that got to have that

instant gratification and let's get it now you know and it took me some time even the first couple of years

being sober it was a it was a rough situation I was still I didn't know who I was yeah I went into using and doing

all that stuff the age of 16 years old so getting into recovery in 2011 I'm

still thinking it's lone soldier me I don't have a wife I don't have a

little brand new baby I'm still Chris Carter but eventually he had to learn through working the program that yeah

it's the three of you not just you so and I found it

the same personally but family of having

yeah I mean you're doing things not so much for yourself and I kind of

feel like myself I've done so many things and traveled and before I got

married and all with all like negative and unhealthy things I did I

did so many things like I've I I've done a ton I've had a ton of fun I maybe

it is time to like shift into that other gear or turn the other the other

direction and I and I say much like you

 yeah well, I'll speak for myself for this I haven't have my daughter it is probably one of the main things of

like well I'm here of you know being married there's still that sense of like me

 in that narcissistic side yes whereas bring a child in and

seeing them born and holding them and caring for them and just

wanting to like to be there like for whatever they need it is a whole

different ball game than it's all about me and then on the flip side it's going

to the professionals that I they don't want to believe like I don't have a problem like it's not mental health

related it's the whole stigma I'm a guy like I you know guys don't cry guys

don't go through this and there are times my wife was like why are you

crying like what's like what what's the deal here and it's not that bad like why can't you just get out of bed and

those were just things that it was just so hard to explain and there were I just

had so much hurt personally not only did others have done to me but that I've done to others and I think

that's important for people to find that there are things that other people have

done whether they know they have or not what they intended to or not  but then there's also things that

we've done it's like oh my gosh like I treated this person this relationship

really horrible I treat my family I would blow off getting together with family to go pre-game to get ready to go

out and  you know try to date multiple people at the same time and all the

things it's like isn't that like what you do like isn't that like what life is about and then take that that flips I

did today with having a daughter and we just celebrated her fourth birthday yesterday awesome and it was like  it

is like one of the funnest times of seeing her happy and

like together and it was like one of the it wasn't like it was my birthday it

wasn't about me it was like okay like I actually legitimately to your point of taking those toys and those things

and like I'm going to get those to those families that don't have like I'm just going to do it that's just there's no

I don't care about the snow I don't care about what I'm seeing like people in the wrecks and I'm just going to do it

and I could I think people if they see that I think a lot of people do they

they see that and they're very  good parents very good people but then there's people that are

still good people but they're just going through kind of rough patches like you, and I like okay like finding my way

through life of maybe not having supportive parents growing up and so

their first step isn't going to college or isn't being introduced to somebody

that wants them to work for them it's the first step of you know going on the

streets and those are those are my friends how important was making that

obviously from the health standpoint of you being here but making that that shift just from like a health

perspective of having a clear mind and helping people versus you know just

helping yourself I guess that kind of goes back to you know how you how you feel when you

help others right  but again that energy that infectious positive energy

of you know I'm happy to be alive like I there's how there's people that

have died like this morning like I could have not woken up but I could have gotten an accident driving here  so

many of those things if you want to just touch on that yes, I think you know when I took the light off myself

you know in early sobriety you know it was about basically it was about me you know I wanted to show people

it's Chris Carter I'm sober look what I'm doing right and when I was missing

that key component the key component about being sober and now sharing with others but sharing with others the right

way it's not about going and showing people that you're wearing all these jewelry rings and got the nice clothes

and you know you are basically being a Facebook Star right I mean or

you're being  a person out there that's really not you you're living first second and third shift you

have to pick a shift which is it you know what I mean so finally when I picked my shift right I like picking

second reason being is because I like working in the day and also work working in the night it's both right so when I

start you know peeling back the onion a little bit layer by layer I finally

found out that yeah you know what I was I was definitely molded to help others I

just didn't know how to get out of myself in order to do that even helping sometimes others I had to add that look

at me I did this and did that I needed to do it for the right reasons and taking a back step stage is that it's

okay to post and it's okay to let people know you did that as long as it's for the right reasons and only you know that

right but you know what gives me the most I should say gratification  you

know with helping others is speaking I love speaking I love Power speaking

 motivational letting someone know that they're loved, and they and you know that they're definitely cared

about and no personal like what do you mean and you have one person in the room it's me I care about you I love you I

don't know you but I'm here for you I'm in your corner you know the stigma you've been beat you've been told all

these things and I'm telling you that's not true right the first thing we need to learn is how to love ourselves that's

where it starts we got to figure that out how do we love ourselves after being beat down so much by society and by

possibly even the people around us so what do we need to do so we need to step back we need to have somebody possibly

show us you know that person sometimes could be a person like myself or a counselor or someone needs in that

person person's life that actually care and do love them  you know but the big thing is once

you're showing that person you're also showing them by what you're doing you have to walk the walk and talk

to talk you can't just talk to talk and not do anything about it right because that person is totally looking at you

for all that support they're believing in you they're having all that confidence Chris Carter can do it so I

know I could but here's the thing if they're looking at that the next thing you know you see me in a car one day at

a stoplight this person you know rolls down the window and said hey you cut me off and start swearing at me I try to

look at that person roll down my window do the same then what am I really doing right not living by example have I done

stuff like that in the past absolutely man we are not we are all right but

it's the thinking it's a thinking that's so that's what I always tell people anybody can pick a beer up or a drug up

right but thinking that we can drink and use normally like other people we can't

you know I know I can't if I'm having one I'm having two three four and five you know what I mean and if I'm going to do

this I'm doing to the full measure full extreme there's no half so I have to be careful if I'm going to sit there and go

help people right then I'm taking a Full Tilt there's no stopping but if I'm playing soccer I can't play soccer I'm

48 years old, I am not eighteen. That is so true oh my gosh.

 so turning a little bit to the kind of current events things have been

happening recently with   the opioids the whatever you want

to call it  I mean there's so many so many different ways we can go

I guess it I guess we sort of if somebody is in that position and

they're listening and they're here this podcast what can they and again they

have to they have to believe it themselves they have to accept it at the you and I and anybody else can you know

tell them anything but they have to believe it what would be something to you know an individual that is kind of

like they're at the end of the rope and they're like what's the use in living and you know

you know why do why does everybody matter why does

everybody you know deserve to you know have dreams and live them out and go

towards them versus going the other route so I believe wholeheartedly thing you know you people are not made to be

garbage okay I believe wholeheartedly that we become transformed for sure by

again Society it can be either dictated bad or dictated good I believe

definitely that the individuals at that last rope and always says and that's happened to me quite a bit when I speak

they'll say you know I just I can't do this I don't want to do this anymore every time I touch something it turns

just a junk you know it turns horribly wrong so why even bother where I go

with this is that you have a story a story that you might not even see a story that I can see in your eyes by

looking at you and you see that little that little piece of glistening up top there that you don't see yet it's fog

that you have but it's if you take my hand and you trust me and let me give you a chance to see the same thing that

I'm seeing I can definitely tell you I bet that you will definitely be in my shoes doing the same thing possibly or

possibly even though they're doing something great and getting back to where you used to be something that definitely was stripped of you in the

very beginning right so building that person up that was torn down by

something whether it was a tooth being removed and they were given opiates breaking an arm giving opiates or was it

something they were depressed about and they were coping with something and this is why they're using that whether it was alcohol to start with and then it turned

into smoking weed and then it already turned in from cocaine to crack to hair it just went down the line everybody has

their own Bridge right everybody has their own story you know but the biggest thing that we

have to understand is that bridge that you have are you going to allow it to be cracked and crumble or are you going to

keep on building those pillars those pillars of recovery that you were meant to be and have but you have to be

open-minded to know if I'm standing before you right now and telling you this then you know it can be done

because I was that person that built my own bridge out of newspaper my own

bridge out of a dumpster my own bridge out of living in a ditch I was homeless

I came from a prominent Blue Cross Blue class family I chose to do those things

because of the fact of the matter is I was again all about Chris Carter I had

to do it my way or the high it was going to be the highway bottom line then I had things that happened to me absolutely

did they contribute to those things absolutely but when it comes down to it it's it comes to a choice that you are

going to have to make one me emphasize that a choice that you're going to have

to make your choice was strict of you okay when something possibly happened to

you again like it was possibly a broken arm or it was a tooth being removed or

something that was mental that went on in their life or a PTSD but the choice can still be given to you of recovery or

to staying in the state that you are so you have to make that choice one leads to life and one leads to death

I always tell people they're incarceration it doesn't exist anymore it's Taking Lives now bottom line

we have a huge crisis that has never gone away

the giant was sleeping it's all what happened when covet hit the giant was sleeping the giant

resurfaced again with coven right now we're not seeing so much of it anymore on the news like we were it's still here

but we are not seeing as much as we were on the TV let me ask you a question yeah when is

the last time you heard on the news about someone coding or the numbers of

the overdose rate oh it's me it's been right it's a long time yeah and the thing is the

reason that is my opinion is it doesn't make news it doesn't make news you know what I

mean it's not something that we in society are really concerned about I feel I feel that you know we have  car

crashes or we have robberies or we have high speed car chases or fires or this

and that oh I can't that was right but if you put those numbers on there and you hit the streets and you start

showing that that's when people actually start caring we are all twisted and turned backwards in worrying about

things that literally are okay to worry about but we need to end up worrying about our fathers our mothers our

children our friends and family we need to start taking the reins again in the

household it starts with the household parenting you don't have parents you have outside family members you don't

have outside family members you have community members we need to start taking back our streets our houses our

schools we literally as a community need to start taking this back and putting

this at the front line I will tell you right now being on the front line there are so many people that pass away

with me on the phone or I found out later the next day that they've OD'd or

they have passed away because of suicide the youngest I've dealt with on a OD

was nine years old nine that's an that's I just can't

tell you how crazy that is nine years old and the drugs that were found on the nine-year-old right were in the sock

that's a learned behavior so the child's been doing that for quite some time right so again then you ask yourself

where are we missing the buck on this one right again if you are really looking and you step back you have

babies raising babies you have grandparents that have stepped up to the plate raising  their kids and the

kids are out there not taking responsibility they're out on their phones iPads doing stuff what they're

not supposed the living the single life instead of raising their children not all families are like that not all there

are a lot of great families out there are a lot of people out there that are doing the right thing but we need

more of it we need more of it the one thing that I think we're missing the key component Justin is the life skills we

have lost life skills nobody knows anymore how to meet anybody out in the

real world at all it's all by phone texting you know it's there's no inter

actually it's like desensitized they big time you know and then what happens is

next thing that steps in so-and-so has got so and so you know with drugs so let's go to this party if it you know if

it happens and  and then you have the whole other part of it you know I have to look a certain way or act a certain

way you know in school with teens and that becomes a huge another issue

and the recovery World we're struggling right now with aftercare what's your what's your view or what you

what do you think about aftercare  I think the

I think the balls dropped not just personally but some of the people that I've interacted with  and but

personally is it being okay you're out of treatment

for me is out being out of an five-day inpatient stay at hospital we recommend

you go to this this  this training or this  additional group therapy but

it wasn't like what you have to it was like okay you can and at first I said oh well I don't I don't want to do it and

somewhere some way like I changed my mind I'm glad I did but after that I

mean you're talking you're back on your own you're back with I mean I wasn't able to drive my dad was

driving me to my appointments and just driving was so like oh I'm taking it

so I'm taking this medication so what if I get pulled over and I'm taking it and

I was like so I'm asking the pharmacist they're like well you know it is kind of you know scheduled right so yeah you

could be right and so like then the Mind goes down that Rabbit Hole  but yeah

the Aftercare I think the balls drop to your point about not being on the

on the news it's not Sensational it's it doesn't get the clicks for whatever the

reason is  the part that I think people are I hope

are starting to see is it doesn't matter where you live it doesn't matter where you go to school it doesn't matter what

what Community you live in people are it is

it's happening are happening to great people great families great cities

townships municipalities  and to see your point I think that's something that

 until people are ready to just accept it and to move forward and whether it is to

put the money to put the politicians in the place or I don't know what needs to happen  I've even I know

from my experience even with  you know talking about you know the faith side of

things some  religions and some faith-based  institutions they don't

want to talk about it right they don't want to have they don't want to have that  you know they don't have a group that

gets together on grounds to talk about mental health

because well mental health it's not happening here, we need to call it if you're having the blues, we got to we

got to think about the words that we're using, and I think until it it's

everywhere where people are just like you know what things are happening like I don't know

how you can sugarcoat at him anymore we just need to agree and talk about it do

you want people I mean thinking from the face side of things if I'm a leader in

in a particular  church or faith do I

want my individuals my parishioners do I want them to feel included or not

well the blues and having the blues you know you know that's going to feel like

you're checking the Box well we have something we're you can get together talk about how you know the weather you

know it gets dark early and how things are happening well in the winter solstice you know that's gone and so

we're heading up  but that's one area that really surprised me because

that would be the area that I thought that would be the most accepting of

wanting to address it and to have a program not that you have to pay for but hey let's get together and let's just

let us just talk like if you want to if your faith has something to do with the rosary or another prayer you know have

some things that deal with faith but then just have conversation like I was

like how's life it does not have to be like from a book like we are going to talk about you know the word we can't use

these words mental illness we can't use depression it's having the blues it's not having depression it's not having

anxiety we just get nervous sometimes  so all that all the say that the

Aftercare in in the places where an individual and I know from experience would look for that support one of those

areas could be Church it could be faith-based it's not for everybody right

everybody has kind of you know their higher power or how they think of things but for me that was one thing that  it

was good because I was able to get into a program and to be with like-minded individuals from a man's side of

things so get together with men but as I want to help and continue to  yeah

just continue to help people of having a group separate just to talk about

those types of things talk about like is happening it can get up on the pulpit

and talk about how things aren't happening but things are happening to your point about having you know the

freezers and have it those things are happening they have happened because

don't we you know life's too precious and sure anyways

that why don't why don't we try to just help people instead of try to

appease or try to get the most clicks not my family not my problem not my community doesn't happen in my community

no you know  that's you know that that mental illness part you know that's a huge that's a huge  subject you know

you start talking about  different types of disorders being bipolar PTSD anxiety ADHD you know and those some of

the things that you've actually you know I actually have you know and I'll tell you if I wasn't able to go to a

counselor or a psychiatrist and talk about the things that were going on with me especially with the PTSD with what I

do as a job you know I'm going home and not sleeping because I've lost you know

a person from an OD or a person you know got in a bad accident or this

person individually can't find them I take those on you know I'm a counter I'm 268 right now people have passed away

since I've been doing this so all that luggage literally rides on my shoulders

right so I have to find a way of coping with them talking about it whether it's to a family member whether

it's to a counselor you know and I honestly goodnessly say sometimes you know you have to go to a route of

having medication if that's what needs to be done in order to help you function you know and I'm very blessed that

I'm able to have my life back in order to be able to help people and not be in

a depressive State not having anxiety being able to focus and concentrate wound here talking you know not looking

at the squirrels in the tree you know  but I will tell you

when it comes down to an individual getting treatment there are so many treatment centers out

there I would really like to say do your research on every single Treatment

Center that you're going to be looking at for your loved one or for yourself it's very important that you look at the

reviews and look at the consistency of what the negative reviews are don't look at the well bad food or I can't smoke

look at if you're seeing the same thing over and over not enough groups or there's no groups or stuff like that not

seeing my counselor have to look at stuff like that look at the  how the place looks inside I'm not talking about

extravagant gems and riding bikes and all that stuff but I'm talking about being clean in there having enough room

to have groups you know stuff that would be really important for yourself or your

loved one to help them get into recovery but further the recovery and be educated

the right way like I said before we have you know we have places all over the

place trying to help people out Ohio has become one of the largest recovery you

know I call it holes in the world it went from Florida model ripped up

through the East Coast come over into Ohio you know and we have one of the highest also medicated and uninsured

populations in the state so you know I'm very fortunate I work

for a nice facility thank goodness you know I believe in the program they teach I like the staff there they're very

they're in recovery so they are very passionate about teaching the individuals there there's lots of

meetings lots of groups and they have Aftercare that was what sold me working you know I am very firm on with the

Aftercare if you don't have Aftercare what are like we were talking earlier what are we doing we're setting them up

for failure they're going to go back to the community not knowing how to do life skills parent or you know like you were

talking about in one of your other earlier pies I get to see building a rese I mean and that's huge I mean

building a rese is a very important you know part of employment finding that particular job that you want you know

and I think a lot of facilities places they do not key up on that you know they get them detox which is good and

they get them in a residential too but they got to have of all the keys all the

pieces of the puzzle in order to make the picture of recovery right so

yes, it's what's important to

the patient might not seem like something that's important maybe to the caretaker the caregiver right so we

think of about a rese oh everybody has that anybody can do that well if you're

going through a very rough patch and getting just back on your feet you may

have learned about it you know five years ago two years ago ten years ago right but you need to

you need to start over you I know for me just okay I wasn't eating

for two months I lost 40 pounds and so that was like one thing like it wasn't just like oh am I taking my medication

am I going to my groups like okay like I feel like I'm allergic eating this food I lost 40 pounds and so it's just like

okay like I'm drinking an Ensure so I'll be out places and people be like oh like don't you know like old people

older people will drink that right I'm like well if I need to make sure that I at least get my vitamins and

nourishment and so that's kind of been like that one staple and so whether that's it's not important to somebody

else that's like right they're eating their meals and they haven't had like the depth the degree that things

that happen that I have you know coming back to just the Aftercare of

getting help on all the bases not just if they need medication okay let's take

a look at that  it we're doing group therapy or we're doing individual therapy  do we have a dietitian just

somebody do we have all the bases covered and then let's get them back to being productive not what I think is

productive in society what they think is being productive in society do they want to have a talk about a lot is do they

want to have a job and some people do that is just one hundred tied to the price

tag what they're making the salary like oh it's a job and I everybody in my family sends eons ago that you know you

have a job and it's always tied to you know if you're making not making enough money you just need to continue to look

and go that route or do you want to have that emotional side of things of like being bought into something that

isn't just an organization's mission and vision of helping them achieve their goals helping their shareholders

you know get their dividends and increase that where it is okay do I

believe in it because at the end of the day  at least especially for me it

doesn't matter how much money really you make I mean you can always be like well I'm making a million dollars I don't

want to make two I want to make five I want to make ten or whatever that number is  you're going to just continue to

one to get more so if you don't have that emotional side of things like where I'm bought in that okay even on

the worst days it's still a little bit better what I'm doing than if I was just going

into the corporation and this isn't against negative against corporations just my experience so for you to

be when you talk about Aftercare and to buy-in and to research facilities

whether you want to look at employment there or you want to check out the treatment that is particularly important one thing I am just curious about in

with your experience is you talk about losing somebody over the phone in all

different ways and going back nine years old has just got to be crushing how

do you how do you work through that like in in your mind because you're going through

recovery yourself recovery isn't an end point and it's just you know we still have bad days

 but how that that to me is it's got to be one of the hardest things that you

have to go through of  because you're already in recovery says

you're already kind of whatever like say we're working behind the eight ball like we're just in a different state or

a different area than like we'll say like the average person how do you work through that I would I'm devastated to

hear about it in this conversation but for you like I said to get back on your feet and continue on how do you do it

and so how do you talk to people about that of like going through a situation like right oh like I don't want to go

through this I don't I can't go on like look here are things that I'm the one and but

I'm still I'm still going on and I still got to be hope for that at least one person that I can change their life

so the other side of it is you know the emails and the texts okay and the calls

hey Chris I'm six months clean hey Chris I'm nine year

two-year three year clean I got my kids back I am still doing good got a job Chris those literally are the ones

that Chris this you're do you're doing what you need to be doing okay the Death part and the suicides and the od's and

people that just don't want to grab it right now and you know what what's possibly going to happen to them

that right there gets pulled aside and pushed down a little bit by the other

phone calls the other texts of people that are recovering and still doing a

good job if it wasn't for you Chris I wouldn't have walked through those doors in this net no it was you that did that

I didn't put your shoes on I told you where you could go I showed you what you

can do I showed you who you are now you know who you are now you're living what you need to be doing right those things

right there and I and I want and that I actually went  last Christmas a family

invited me to their house and  this gentleman got his  kids back got

his wife back and we provided Christmas for him for the whole family and I'm telling you that because it was the most

needed he let me hold his baby man and that was like just a reward you couldn't even give me any more presents man to

watch that and that baby to look at me and him with his smile and crying and that's everything man and that's I

wish I really wish the world could see that more honestly a people that are

that are recovering and people that are making it right rather than seeing with all the other negativity stuff that you

see on the news or possibly hear from somebody that there there's a lot of great things going on but then you go

back that's not news you know we as a society we depend on more bad stuff than

we do the good stuff it actually makes a lot of people tick and talk you

know I can tell you personally that I was going to tell you this too the hospital

in St Elizabeth Youngstown Mercy they have a peer support group that's in

there and they have a pilot program they have attached our facility with they recommend they refer 75 percent of the

people who need recovery are searching for it over to our facility and out of that 91 has been saying sober and clean

they do a six months to a year track on them and I was just like wow so what I did was then because I like to track too

I'm like what are they doing so Aftercare IOP which that's what we

offer right those things and not only that we're tying them up with employment we have employers that will hire people

with felons you know  felonies so that that's another thing that we run into problems with I mean man when I me they

wouldn't even give me a shovel to dig a ditch you know they would hire me at McDonald's they would hire me a Burger King you know and you have a felony they

tie you with every single felony you know this person's killed a person this person and I'm like oh my gosh man in

mind's child support you know I mean it's wrong but it wasn't you know what I'm saying and it's like I just want a

chance but nobody would give me back a chance in the 90s or early to they're like no way man you know what you're

this bad guy you know you're going to steal or you're not going to take care of responsibilities but it took one

person took a chance on me to change my life forever got this job in recovery and ran with it you know so it's good

stuff that's so awesome so inspirational to our viewers or our listeners to

dovetail and Chris is talking about career and really  you know closing that Loop for an individual

career Workforce transition wherever you're at that he does in his

his facility does that  have Voices for Voices we just launched

our Voices for Voices career center for job Seekers and employers so that is

really  to again just dovetail right on what Chris was saying is that's important for us as an organization to

close that Loop not just educate not just help people find or give

recommendations and  to  case-by-case basis provide financial

support and financial sponsorship but it's closing that Loop of like okay what about what about that employment  what

do they want to do they want to change industries did they lose a job  what are those things and so for

for us it's huge in 2023 and Beyond to at least have that

resource available so check out  the Voices for Voices.org website and then

you'll find a tab for career center that'll take you where you need to be in for job Seekers you don't have to share

your private information with an employer until you're ready to so there is some of that flexibility as well so

I'm what I mean what ages is that for does it like 16 17 18 so job board so

any type of job so it's not just we get to question it is it just behavioral is it just mental health it's anything from

like a market marketing specialist to an associate professor to an RN to a

license in Social Work therapist and that was the one thing going through

kind of the process of what to include what not to include at first

or third party they just want to include the mental health and behavioral but as we're looking at it it's like okay well

that's just a sec that's just a piece of the population there are people I mean I'm an instructor I'm a teacher so maybe

I want to look at another teaching position or see what's out there so just

to have that as an option that you don't have to go to like a monster and into

indeed and career but like you know we're we want to we want to close that Loop and so I love the fact that you

brought that up with your facility and that Aftercare that again we're not we're not doing

Aftercare why are we going to spend all this time all this money all these resources if a person if it's not going

to take the time to help them get to where they want to be not what you know my family or your family or my

colleague your friends and I've had to go against

all the time but I've gone against her in some decisions like no like I want to do this like this this is kind

of what drives me this this emotional tie to the organization so

what we're doing to reach out to people like yourself and to have people hear success stories and positivity of people

trying and not just trying but actually helping people  and that's where the

action comes in  just excited and glad for you to join us today Chris thank you

so much for those that might want to learn more about you how can how can they reach out well I mean if you learn

more about me you can I work at Midwest Center  Youngstown  we are

detox residential and like I was explaining to him we have Aftercare IOP as well you can reach out to me via

email   at C Carter at I am going to do

this true through healings Center true healing centers.com or I'm going to give

you my phone number is that okay to do that yeah I'll give my phone number it's  440-241-6604

everybody is like why are you getting your personal number out you know what man my phone number is stopped being personal 10 years ago when people call

me so if you need someone or you need help with substance abuse and we are a

dual diagnosed  you just give me a call to the best of my ability and also if you need help with clothing or

hygiene or any type of toys or any type of help that you think you can also call

me as well  I definitely going to team up here with Justin and we're going to do the best of our ability to help anybody that

needs help I would love to have you come out to our facility yeah and speak about this whole career you know this  job

thing I think that's a huge thing component too yeah I like that love too yeah give me a day and time awesome great well thank you for joining us for this episode of the Voices for Voices podcast and I want to give a huge thank you to our guests today Chris

Carter for spending some time with us until next time I am just announced hey

days founder and executive director of Voices for Voices host and humanitarian

until next time have a great day and be a voice for yourself or somebody in need

[Music] [Applause] [Music]

Please donate to Voices for Voices, a 501c3 nonprofit charity today at: https://www.voicesforvoices.org/shop/p/donate

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