Lifting up the voices of those impacted by substance use lets others in similar situations know they are not alone.

NEWSLETTER

Stories of Struggle, Triumph and Resilience

Those with lived experience share how their lives and those of their family members have been impacted by substance use and addiction.

🔊 Last month on our “Heart of the Matter” season 4 finale, actor and producer Frankie Grande shared his story with host Elizabeth Vargas. He describes his history with addiction as a slow evolution starting at a young age when he found himself fixated on achievements, craving praise from teachers and his mother. And when he got older, he turned to alcohol and other substances when the achievements were no longer enough.

When Frankie was cast in the Broadway show “Mamma Mia!” in his early 20s, he felt like his career hit its peak and he found himself misusing alcohol and other substances.

“I joined Mamma Mia! That was when my disease was allowed to be kind of like, ‘Oh, you’ve kind of achieved everything you’ve wanted to in life. You’re 22, you’re about to turn 23. You’re on Broadway. You got nothing left to grow toward, so maybe you can just sit where you are for a minute and learn how to party.’”

Frankie describes being very close with his family. When a tragic bombing happened at his sister Ariana Grande’s concert and he wasn’t the one his family turned to for support, he realized he needed to make a change.

“I was very used to being the person that my family turned to in those times, and then when I wasn’t anymore, when I was the person that they like turned away from, they were like, ‘There’s no way you can help in this situation,’ it was a very big gut check for me, where I was like, ‘Whoa,’ … kind of like knocked the air out of me, and that’s when I realized I need help, and that moment is when I asked for people to help get me to treatment.”

Family support to and through treatment has been an essential part of Frankie’s recovery journey.

“Asking for help was the hardest part, for me anyway. It was very difficult, but once I did, everything started to fall into place ... [In treatment] my mom visited all the time. My sister visited. My best friends visited ... I felt like I was recuperating at a wonderful facility where my friends and family get to come and check up on me.”

Frankie describes his life after treatment, his support system and the tools he is using to continue to help him move forward.

“Definitely meetings ... Just had such wonderful support around me 24/7, with my friends and my family, and meetings, and sober people ... I mean, I can’t thank those people enough for getting me to where I am today. I wouldn’t have made it ... So I’ve replaced drugs and alcohol with intelligent, loving, supportive sober people in my life."

For information on helping a loved one returning home from treatment visit our Recovery Resource Center ([link removed] )

Frankie offers advice for how to provide support if someone in your life is struggling with addiction.

“I would say it’s important to understand that this is a disease. So be as empathetic as you can be if it’s someone in your life, understanding that they’re struggling with a disease. They’re not trying [or] going out of their way to hurt you. It is truly something that’s happening inside of them that, at a certain point, they can’t help anymore.”

Listen to Frankie’s full podcast episode here ([link removed] )

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