Recovery is Possible

When I was thinking about what I would draw to bring awareness to addiction for the upcoming month it really came naturally. I immediately thought of the darkness of active addiction and what comes along with it. Losing loved ones, overdosing, losing your own life, being in jails and institutions, and the unthinkable things that we would do to get one more. The skulls in this picture represent that darkness.

But then I thought of the pure beauty that comes from making your way through active addiction and overcoming that constant battle. To see the light come back in a torn down hopeless addicts eyes is beautiful. That is where the flowers come in, to represent the beauty and growth that comes from recovery!

     I decided to create a picture of “hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil” because personally this is a part of my journey getting clean. I was in denial for years and when I finally realized I had a problem I thought that if I just ignored it or didn’t speak about it it didn’t exist. No one knew, which was not the case. It wasn’t until I brought light to the situation when I was able to get help and heal!

       The flowers coming out of second skull represents the mental aspect of addiction. It is a chemical imbalance of the brain and is more complex than just a drug and alcohol problem. It’s deeply imbedded in the way we think, feel, and love. Our decision making, impulsiveness, obsession etc. learning that the substances was a symptom of my addiction was a game changer for me. It allowed me to take focus off of the substances and turn it on to me!

     The colors I chose for the flowers of course represent the two ribbons: addiction awareness, which is teal. And overdose awareness, which is purple! I wanted to include these colors to tie everything together and complete the message I’m trying to get across.