06/09/2026
Living sober in Lafayette requires several gears of thought, pulley systems, and spiritually and physically machinated mentalities. It can be a tug-of-war at times — shifts in feelings, relying on your gut, improvisation, routine and spontaneity.
When I say sober, I mean the unnatural way — like, living sober because of addiction, and for me specifically, alcohol.
Do I possess ethos? I don’t know. But for context, I checked into Victory Addiction Recovery Center for 35 days in September of 2018. This comes after a spiraling life, fallen deep into depression and darkness — lost in who I once identified as before the magnitude of alcohol overwhelmed my life.
It should be noted that I didn’t check in to Victory on my own accord — I was still in denial. I shouldn’t be here right now. I shouldn’t be around. I don’t know how I am still here. Grace.
Two close friends and former colleagues took me to rehab, and since then I’ve been sober for over seven years. One day at a time.
I’m often asked by people who know my story if I can still go out to bars to share time with friends. It’s a question that represents a certain culture, and my response is usually, “I can, but I don’t want to” or “why would I want to?”
While I can’t speak for those who are living in the same way as me for the same reasons, especially here in Lafayette — as living in recovery is truly an individual experience — I’ve found ways to find peace in living sober in a town and culture where alcohol plays a significant role in our lives. When I left Victory, I mainly kept myself limited in where I went —Barnes & Noble and Starbucks, and that was it, and then the occasional lunch with a couple of friends.
When I drank, I didn’t drink because I wanted to hang out with friends or be social. I went out for one reason and one reason only: to escape my reality through alcohol. For those who are in the same situation, we call it an allergy, in the sense that our body and mind react differently than those who can drink and stop themselves.
Read more at thecurrentla.com/2026/its-not-easy-living-sober-in-lafayette/