Proof That Recovery Is Possible

At least 14 people died of suspected heroin or fentanyl overdoses in the Cleveland area alone this past weekend. The deaths are in addition to 46 other fatal overdoses in January. The medical examiner in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, is investigating eight deaths from over the weekend — and the state of West Virginia is in the process of distributing 8,000 overdose antidote kits.

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Our nation is caught in a crisis of drug addiction. It is rare we don’t see or hear of more deaths each day from the opioid epidemic — and those who use and abuse these drugs aren’t the only ones suffering. Todd Crandell knows the cycle all too well, and feels blessed to have been given another chance at life.

He’s done heroin. For years he also battled the demons of alcohol and cocaine.

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The Sylvania, Ohio, native took his first drink at age 13 and never stopped. By his junior year of high school, he was snorting drugs off his desk during class, and he was cooking crack cocaine on his stove top in his early 20s. He couldn’t keep a job or friends. And by 26, strung out on heroin, he knew that if he didn’t pick himself up, he would end up just like his mother, an addict herself who took her own life when he was just three years old.

On April 15, 1993, he was picked up for his third DUI. His blood alcohol registered .36.

“You get a hole in your soul, you lose your self-esteem, you feel no self-worth.”

He quit cold turkey that day — and has since gone from addict to Ironman, 28 times over; he competes across six continents and 15 countries. He also started Racing for Recovery, a program that helps addicts overcome their dependence through healthy and holistic living. The program includes support groups, assessments, books, movies, and counseling. Most of all, it’s about learning how to live a healthy, full life again.

“Most often, people are coming into this [addiction] because of emotional traumas,” he told LifeZette. “There is usually something that has happened to somebody — I had a guy in my office today [who said that] at nine, 12, and 14 years old, he was sexually abused and never told anyone. Mine was the death of a parent. You get a hole in your soul, you lose your self-esteem, you feel no self-worth, and you’re looking for something to help you cope with those traumas. That’s when everything falls apart. I want society to know these aren’t bad people. They’re just hurting and making poor decisions to deal the hurt.”

Drug addiction costs the American economy $276 billion a year in lost productivity, Crandell added. He believes there are better ways to take individuals who are self-destructive and help them become productive members of society again — and use the assets they have. With 24 years of sobriety under his belt now, along with a strong faith in God, an education, a family, his health and a successful business of his own, he speaks with business owners, communities, and health officials about how make that happen.

Related: Heroin’s Harrowing Reality

“What do you do if your house is flooding? First, you shut the water off. But then you have to go back and understand why the faucet was leaking. If you don’t fix the leaky faucet properly, it’ll leak again,” said Crandell.

“I’m hoping that if people can see what I’ve been able to do for myself, they’ll know there’s hope for their loved ones, or themselves. That’s the point.”