People in Addiction Recovery Find Support With Virtual Tools During Coronavirus

WALTON, Ky. — The coronavirus and addiction do not go together. Those who are recovering are balancing new challenges. Recovery meetings are now done virtually.

Almost three months ago, Danny Goldberg, 42, made a firm decision to recover after he found himself waking up in a Dallas hospital.

“It’s the longest I’ve been sober ever,” Goldberg said.

He’s been sober now for 89 days.

“I took five bottles of medications, three of which were sedatives, sent my oldest son to North Carolina so I could follow through with my plans,” Goldberg said.

The overdose incident woke him up with a new purpose for life.

“I hated who I was in my addiction, I was a horrible father, I was a horrible husband, I was a horrible human being and I suffered from major depression,” Goldberg said.

He turned his life around. Goldberg started attending programs offered at the Life Recovery Center in Northern Kentucky.

“I’ve been doing this without going into a detox, without going into a rehab, I’ve been working with life recovery since I moved here to Kentucky working with multiple programs and due to what Life Recovery has done for me and what the fellowship has done I’ve been able to stay sober this long,” Goldberg said.

But staying sober while in quarantine or isolation is not easy.

“The obsession to drink or drug has subsided for the most part but in times like these, again, your coping mechanism is to do, so with that being said the toughest part is not being able to meet with my sponsor or in person and work through things that I need to work,” Goldberg said.

Goldberg said the virtual meetings are a boon.

“Zoom is a great tool that we’ve been able to use we’re reaching anywhere from12 to 30 people a night,” Goldberg said.

Pastor and Executive Director of Life Recovery Center Chris Hamilton said support is a key critical factor to navigate sobriety.

“When somebody is isolating that’s a red flag. They have either returned to use or that they are in the process of returning to us. So we want to try and do our best to make sure that people are not isolated or if they are isolated as little as possible,” Hamilton said.

Goldberg said he has increased his belief in having faith to overcome the hurdles.

“This is when your faith is tested more than anything else,” Goldberg said.

The Life Recovery Center offers a digital recovery program daily each evening during the coronavirus pandemic.