This article features Eric Poston An ARMY Veteran
By the time I decided to stop drinking, alcohol had been part of my life for as long as I could remember. It was my constant companion, my way of numbing pain I didn’t know how to face. Letting it go felt impossible—but that decision changed everything.
My name is Eric, and I am a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Persian Gulf War from 1987 to 1993. Long before I put on a uniform, I had already learned to use drugs and alcohol to cope with life’s traumas. Growing up in the South, men didn’t talk about feelings. We carried the weight of stress, pain, and racism in silence. Drinking wasn’t just common—it was expected.
When I came home from the military, my alcohol use continued and soon was joined by pain medication and cocaine. I told myself it was normal—after all, a lot of people I knew lived the same way. But reality hit hard when I lost a job I had held for 11 years because of my substance use. My life had become unmanageable, ruled entirely by where and when I could drink or use.
I entered inpatient treatment at Perry Point to address my addiction, but therapy revealed something deeper. I had been carrying grief since losing my mother at just four years old. I had endured sexual trauma as a child. Those wounds ran deep, and alcohol had been my way of avoiding them for decades.
Over the years, I had been able to quit drugs and pain pills, but alcohol was the chain I couldn’t break. Walking away from it felt like losing part of myself. Still, I knew it was the only way forward.
In 2016, I made the choice—and I haven’t looked back. Since then, I have been free from all substances. I rarely take pain medication, and I’ve found a deeper fulfillment in helping others than I ever experienced in using.
Today, I work at Voices of Hope, a nonprofit recovery organization serving Harford and Cecil Counties. My role gives me purpose and allows me to share my story so others know recovery is possible. I’m active in Alcoholics Anonymous, and my home group, Joppa 12, meets every Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Edgewood, MD.
I have a sponsor, and I guide others through the steps, just as someone once did for me.
This is my journey—from pain and addiction to freedom and purpose. If you’re struggling, know this: you are not alone and change is possible.
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