Brooke Huff grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. She is a high school graduate and attended some college. For most of her life, Brooke did not experience substance use disorder. She avoided substances due to seeing members of her family struggle with addiction. However, in her young adulthood, difficult issues from Brooke’s past caught up with her. She says that “instead of dealing with all those feelings, I just turned to drugs instead of processing them.” Brooke experienced addiction for three years before beginning treatment at Comprehensive Mental Health Services. “I wanted to get sober, but I didn't know how to get sober.”
She says the federal government helped her get on the path to recovery by sending her to Comprehensive. Brooke says that “they put my life right in front of my eyes.” They told her that she either needed to go to a treatment program or she was going to go to prison for the rest of her life. She spent 28 days at Comprehensive Mental Health Services, which helped her significantly in her recovery. When she finished her 28 days at Comprehensive, she attended a 12-Step program for six months. Aside from attending Comprehensive, journal writing and finding God have helped her greatly in her recovery journey. Brooke’s sobriety date is April 4th, 2019.
Brooke recommends that those starting on their recovery journey attend 12-Step meetings regularly. She also wants individuals who have not experienced addiction to understand that addiction is not a choice. “I do believe that addiction is a disease,” Brooke explains. “I think life takes its toll on us and instead of dealing with what life throws at us a lot of us get lost in addiction. I don't think anyone wakes up and says ‘Oh I'm going to be an addict today.’” She also believes that reaching out for help is the most important thing those experiencing substance use disorder can do for themselves. Brooke believes that “there's always someone that is willing to help you get out of that lifestyle before it’s too late.”
Brooke works as a monitor at Safe Haven, a harm-reduction program for veterans needing emergency housing at Benilde Hall. She lives with her husband and their two children. In her free time, Brooke enjoys cooking with her kids and doing family activities. She is also involved with her church and participates in community outreach groups to help individuals in need. “The life we have today is way better than the life we ever had in addiction,” Brooke says.
