Usually taking the stage to sing, country music star Trace Adkins took the stage of the ETSU Mini-Dome Saturday night for a different purpose – to speak about his story of recovery from addiction to alcohol.
A night focused on recovery and hope, ETSU Buctainment partnered with Frontier Health to hold the fourth annual Stigma Stops Now event Saturday, in which Adkins and three other guest speakers shared their stories about addiction and recovery.
Having been to rehab three times for his alcoholism, the Nashville icon shared his experiences with alcoholism and rehabilitation.
Adkins started to experiment with alcohol at the end of high school and beginning of college. His alcohol consumption escalated when he started playing music at bars and clubs.
However, in an industry where alcohol and drug use are common, he said nobody cared. It was almost expected of him. Three years after moving to Nashville, Adkins got a record deal. Not knowing how to handle the success, his drinking worsened.
Adkin’s family gave him an intervention in 2002, resulting in his first trip to rehab in Nashville. He said he left with new outlook on life. However, after about 11 years, the singer who’s sold more than 11 million albums fell back into his addiction even stronger than the first time.
“When it happened, it was full blown,” Adkins said. “It was not like I just eased back into it. It was like, this alcoholism thing had progressed despite the fact that I wasn’t drinking anymore.”
Adkins attended rehab twice more – the last time being in 2015. He said he has been doing well since, and he has not let his struggle with alcoholism define him.
“I have been successful in this business despite myself,” Adkins said. “I mean despite the fact that there have been really embarrassing moments in my career – in my life – but I haven’t been defined by those moments, by those shortcomings, by those stumbles. I haven’t let those things define me, and I won’t.”
Adkins also discussed the stigma surrounding addiction and the hesitation among people struggling to reach out for help.
“Don’t worry about what anybody else may say about it or think about it,” Adkins said. “You know – who cares? I mean really. It’s not their life. It’s yours, and you need to do what you need to do for yourself.”
Despite the stigma surrounding addiction and going to rehab, Adkins said that never affected his decision to go.
“I never had a second thought about it,” Adkins said. “I wasn’t afraid of that – being labeled or people looking at me differently because I went to rehab. I’d rather go to rehab then continue to do the stuff that I was doing. That was a lot worse.”
His time in rehabilitation gave him the knowledge and tools he needed to survive and succeed outside of his addiction – an experience Adkins called “life-saving.”
“I wouldn’t be here without those wonderful people,” Adkins said. “Like the folks at Frontier that everyday they’re trying to salvage lives and help people.”
Before Adkins took the stage, three other guest speakers also shared their stories of addiction and discussed the importance of breaking the stigma surrounding addiction and mental health.
Frontier Health Peer Recovery Specialist Polly Jessen shared her long-term journey of recovery from alcohol and drug addiction.
“Addiction isn’t a moral failure or a choice,” Jessen said. “It’s a human disease, and it can affect anybody.”
For Jessen, the remedy for addiction is connection. Seeking treatment and recovery allowed her to find what gave her life meaning – helping other people. With seven years of sobriety under her belt, Jessen now works on the frontlines of the Frontier Health crisis team working with overdose victims in local emergency rooms and providing resources to individuals seeking treatment for substance misuse.
Ballad Health Project Recovery Coordinator Jason Pritchard also shared his story of drug and alcohol addiction, his history of incarceration for the illegal distribution of prescription drugs and cocaine, as well as his struggles with depression and suicidal thoughts.
In recovery for eight years now, Pritchard is dedicated to using his testimony to break the stigma of people in recovery who have a felony record.
“I think the biggest message is the shame is over,” Pritchard said. “Like, we’re going to break this stigma by telling stories, and you see what we’re doing tonight. … Come out, and don’t be silent anymore. There’s hope.”
Mountain Empire Community College President Dr. Krisen Westover explained why she became a board member with Frontier Health by describing the struggles of a woman she knew growing up.
This woman struggled with the stigma of being a 15-year-old recovering alcoholic and a high school drop out. However, Westover said she went on to take her GED test, got a job at a fast food restaurant, moved out, eventually went to community college, changed her major, became an educator and taught high school math for 10 years.
This woman was her.
“She went on to get her associate’s degree, her bachelor’s degree, her master’s degree and her doctorate degree, and she stands in front of you today with 33 years of sobriety,” Westover said.
The presentation began at 7 p.m. with doors opening at 6 p.m. A VIP Meet and Greet was held between 5 and 6:45 p.m. prior to the presentation. At this time, VIP ticket holders enjoyed food and drinks and had the chance to have their picture taken with Adkins.
Frontier Health is a provider of behavioral health services for Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia that offers treatment for mental health, substance abuse and recovery and rehabilitation. According to Frontier Health President and CEO Kristie Hammond, the foundation exists to decrease the stigma associated with mental health and addiction by increasing awareness, education and service, and to provide financial support for various Frontier Health programs and services in the region.
Hammond said the Stigma Stops Now Event is the one big event they do each year for the foundation. This year, she hopes that people were able to take away two main ideas from the event: hope and recovery.
“There is always hope and recovery, and even at the most important time in your life when you really feel like maybe there’s not [hope], that it is true,” Hammonds said. “Hope and recovery is possible.”
If you know someone who’s struggling with addiction, depression or thoughts of suicide, seek help by calling the Crisis Response Hotline at 877-928-9062.
