“My name is Derek. I am an addict in recovery. I’m 27 years old. I had my first line of cocaine at 17 years old, and things just kind of went from there.”
Derek is a self-described “good kid” who grew up in a loving, supportive home. He attended a private school where his dad was a teacher. But in his early teens, he began “acting up” and was asked not to come back for his high school years. Going to a new school in grade nine was a turning point in Derek’s life—one that would set him on a path to struggle with addiction for the next 10 years.
This is Derek’s story of recovery and how the Alberta Recovery Model provided the right care at the right time to support Derek’s decision to get on a better path. Supports such as peer mentorship, employment preparation, housing stabilization, and community, alongside clinical addiction treatment helped him rebuild his life and become a Recovery Coach.
It is well known that the earlier a person starts using a substance, the more likely they are to develop addiction to it. In grade nine, Derek and his friend tried alcohol for the first time at a party. He says alcohol temporarily gave him “this feeling like nobody can tell me what to do and I get to kind of live free” though that feeling of freedom was short lived.
By grade 10, he was drinking every weekend and experimenting with other drugs. By grade 12, Derek had tried cocaine, a substance that subsequently came with significant costs for him.
When Derek started grade 12, he was far from being able to graduate. Through significant effort and determination, Derek earned the last 55 credits that we would need to graduate. Despite already facing the illness of addiction, Derek was a capable person with much to give.
“I actually dug deep and I put my mind to it and I was able to still graduate on time and walk the stage with my class.”
After high school, Derek entered the trades, moving from concrete to a metal galvanizing factory. He worked hard and saved his money.
Yet Derek’s addiction didn’t just go away, despite his successes. According to CoRE’s Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Nathaniel Day, “substance use often progresses over time when individuals haven’t developed the skills and tools they need to manage their emotional burdens and successes without substances.”
It was this way for Derek as well. His addiction was getting worse and he couldn’t keep a job for more than a few weeks at a time. Even after meeting a girl who he really cared about, the addiction didn’t just go away on its own.
“Unfortunately, I introduced her to cocaine and then we started using together. We were at a point where we were using cocaine five times a week.”
When Derek looks back, he says drug use caused a lot of problems. When his relationship ended, he was left heartbroken. This is when he went into addiction treatment for the first time, but after completing a short 19-day program, he relapsed within the first 48 hours of leaving.
“That’s where things really spiraled. … [addiction] just continues to progress and gets worse and worse and worse.”
The next few years saw Derek living on his own, spending his money using drugs, and then accumulating debt on top of that. “I wasn’t happy. I hated my life. It was not a way to live as a young man.”
He felt very alone. When he was no longer able to support his expensive cocaine addiction, he turned to crystal meth, which made things even worse.
“And that whole year of 2024, honestly, was quite blank.”
By October, his bills were adding up, he couldn’t pay his rent, and he couldn’t care less about his life. This bright young man, who previously mustered the courage and effort to finish high school and succeed at training in the trades now faced homelessness. His mom made one last effort to help by reaching out to family, friends, or anyone who she thought could help. On Friday, November 8 at 10 a.m., Derek entered a publicly funded detox centre, a major turning point in his life.
“I wanted to leave every day, but they had already set up a plan for me that if I stay in the detox centre for 10 days, I could go directly to this brand-new treatment centre called Lakeview Recovery Community.”
“I arrived at Lakeview on Monday, November 18. I did not show up in the greatest shape. I had a bad attitude, and I didn’t want to be there. I looked for any excuse or reason in the book to leave.”
Derek credits the approach taken at Alberta’s Recovery Communities for the different outcome he has now experienced compared to his previous short treatment stay. Dr. Day points out that Recovery Communities function with the belief that a person living in the community belongs, in fact is a member of the community with accountability, and the ability to contribute.
Derek says that residents and staff at Lakeview truly cared about and supported him even in his darker moments. He could be helped, and he could help others. This approach helped him get through those hard first few months. Then something clicked for Derek, and he wanted to be there to get his life back.
“For the first time in my life, I felt like I knew I was doing it for myself.”
While at Lakeview, Derek took Recovery Coach training. He completed extra courses and even challenged the panel interview while still a Lakeview resident. He is the first resident at Lakeview to become a Recovery Coach Professional. From Lakeview, he transitioned to a sober living facility and began volunteering with Lakeview.
Derek’s impact at Lakeview has been profound. In early 2026, thanks to his skill and experience, he was offered full-time employment helping others. On April 1, 2026, Derek moved into his own place; just five days later he once again had full-time employment, this time as a Lakeview employee.
“Recovery has just been incredible. I feel so honoured that I get to be a part of other people’s recovery journeys. My life has completely changed. I have now rebuilt my connections with my family. My relationship with my dad is stronger than ever. My relationship with my mom is stronger than ever. And I’ve made some real, true, genuine friendships.”
Derek will reach a significant two-year recovery milestone on November 9, 2026.
“I’m so grateful for my life today. I truly am. I’ll forever be grateful to Lakeview and everybody who supported me on my journey, who didn’t give up on me. And they loved me until I learned how to love myself.”
Recovery Coach Program
Recovery Coaches help Albertans move from addiction to recovery. They provide structured, one-on-one support, facilitate groups, engage families, and collaborate with community-based recovery supports.
Recovery coaches provide both virtual and in-person services to ensure Albertans can access recovery support wherever they are.
From October 2025 to March 2026, Alberta’s Virtual Recovery Coaches:
-Helped 620 people with an average of 82 people per month
-Provided care for an average length of more than 68 days
-Connected 749 people to community resources.