Not the Same Person – Narconon Helped Me Get My Life Back

I had a pretty happy and successful life before I started using drugs. I started a trucking company when I was 19 years old, moving drilling rigs, hauling water, and working unbelievable hours. I began using meth to stay awake and keep working.
In 2006, in the oil fields, it was normal to be using something. My dad and uncle were both doing it. You have to be on call 24 hours, and when you work those kinds of hours, in order to keep up, you’re either going to use drugs or lose everything you’ve worked for.
At first, I thought that using meth would make me more successful and help me achieve more. That’s until it takes ahold of you. I never met anyone whose life wasn’t taken over by it. At some point, it’s going to take over your whole life, and everything you’ve built up will be lost. Before you know it, it becomes a part of your life. It creeps up on you. For 5–7 years, I used meth under the assumption that I had to in order to maintain the life I had built. I wasn’t using it to party but to get work done. But over time, it turned into something where I didn’t want a day to go by without using it. My decision-making was no longer where it needed to be.
Over the years, everything in my life dwindled away. I had started a company in North Dakota, which grew into a big, booming business. I lost that. I used to have God in my life, but gradually, I drifted away from Him. Everything spiritual slipped away. I started living in an illusion in my own mind. My marriage fell apart, I wasn’t being the dad I needed to be, and the trust of the people around me was gone. I wasn’t being the person I needed to be.
I knew about Narconon because my dad and uncle went there in 2007. I saw the change in them. When they returned, they were doing things for other people.
The reason I decided to quit was because I knew I didn’t have God in my life anymore. I knew that if I put God back in the right place, He could fix things. I put my faith in that.
When I arrived at Narconon, I didn’t have a problem transitioning. I went through the sauna program, started working out, and began to feel good. Next, I took on the Objectives and used them to get closer to God. It was a big turning point for me. When I first left the program, I didn’t think about all the bad things I had done or the things surrounding my drug use. If it had all hit me at once when I left, I don’t think I would have known how to handle it. After completing the Objectives, if you take them seriously, you realize there’s not much you can’t do.
There were a lot of things I dealt with while I was there. I let God work on me, and that’s the only thing I focused on. It’s hard to describe, but it felt like He was speaking to me.
I felt great about graduating. There’s no doubt about it—if you go through the program, there’s work involved. But I felt proud of it because it’s not easy.
I am now a channel of blessings to everyone around me, and I preach in churches. I became an ordained minister, and I honestly believe that none of the successes or riches in life matter. The only thing that you will take with you when you step beyond the curtain is what you did to help others.
I now have a great relationship with my family. Any bad relationships I had, I made right again.
Two months after leaving Narconon, my wife opened the door and said, “Who are you? You’re not the same person.” I thought of the Bible and said, “You’re right, I’m not the same person.” She then told me, “This man, I can love.” We’ve been best friends ever since.
“It’s true; I’m not the same person. I don’t do the things I used to anymore. It’s just not in me. When I came out, I had completely transformed.”
Now that I’m drug-free, I’m not living in a delusion anymore. You get so wrapped up in the lies that drugs bring to you.
When God wants to speak to me now, I know when I hear His voice. You can’t get there while using drugs.
I work harder now, my mind is ten times sharper, and I get more done than I ever did when I was using drugs. I’m always on time, and people know they can call Skye, and he’ll get the job done—and done right.
I’m 7 years clean now. Narconon helped me get my life back.
—Skye R., Narconon Arrowhead Graduate