“I Was Always Going to Quit on Monday”
How One Man’s Recovery Journey Is Helping Break the Stigma Around Alcohol Use Disorder
By the time Lowell walked through the doors of River’s Bend, he had spent nearly a year searching for help.
Not because he didn’t want treatment.
Not because he didn’t know he needed it.
Because asking for help felt harder than living with the pain.
For decades, Lowell built the kind of life many people would admire. He spent 33 years developing his career, eventually rising into leadership roles in operations, sales, and customer service. He built a successful career. Raised a family. Retired early. Became a grandfather.
From the outside, everything looked fine.
Inside, however, alcohol had quietly become a battle he was losing.
And like many men of his generation, he carried that burden alone.
The Hidden Face of Addiction
When people think about addiction, they often picture someone who has lost everything.
Lowell’s story challenges that stereotype.
He wasn’t unemployed, nor was he facing legal trouble or sleeping on the streets. Instead, Lowell was a successful executive, a husband, a father, and a proud grandfather.
Yet he was suffering from the same disease that affects millions of Americans every year.
“My story doesn’t look like what people think addiction looks like,” Lowell says. “But it was destroying my life all the same.”
His relationship with alcohol stretched back to college. Like many people, drinking started socially. Over time, it became routine. Then dependence quietly took hold.
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated everything.
Retired and spending more time at home, Lowell found himself drinking more frequently. What once seemed manageable slowly became overwhelming.
The alcohol stopped providing relief.
“It got to the point where drinking didn’t make me feel better anymore,” he recalls. “Not drinking didn’t make me feel better either. I was trapped.”
For many individuals living with alcohol use disorder, this is a familiar experience. The substance that once seemed to relieve stress eventually becomes the source of it.
Yet stigma often prevents people from reaching out.
Especially men.1
Especially men who have spent their entire lives being the provider, the problem solver, and the person others depend on.
A Moment of Hope
One afternoon, while desperately searching online for treatment options, Lowell drove to River’s Bend’s Troy office.
He wasn’t sure why, especially since he didn’t have an appointment or feel completely ready to start treatment. Deep down, he simply knew he needed something to change.
Sitting nervously in the lobby, he met a special staff member- Amy Buchanan, River’s Bend’s beloved Practice Manager. She saw a person in need and stepped in to help.
The conversation lasted only a few minutes.
But those few minutes changed everything.
“She came out and talked with me,” Lowell says. “She told me there was hope.”
His voice still catches when he talks about that moment.
“I walked out of there believing for the first time that maybe I could get better.”
For someone drowning in shame and uncertainty, hope can be the most powerful intervention of all.
That brief interaction would stay with him for nearly a year.
And when he was finally ready to seek treatment, he knew exactly where to turn.
The Day Everything Changed
April 15, 2024.
Lowell remembers the date clearly. Ironically, it was a Monday!
After another difficult weekend, he woke up and realized he could not keep living the way he had been living.
He looked at his wife and said something she never expected to hear.
“I need help.”
Without hesitation, she replied:
“Let’s do it.”
That same day, Lowell entered treatment at Henry Ford Maplegrove Center.
The decision marked the beginning of a recovery journey that would ultimately transform his life.
Why Partnerships Matter in Recovery
One of the most vulnerable moments in addiction treatment occurs when someone leaves residential care.
Research consistently shows that continuity of care plays a critical role in long-term recovery outcomes.2
This is why the partnership between Henry Ford Maplegrove and River’s Bend is so important.
For years, the two organizations have worked together to provide seamless transitions for individuals moving from residential treatment into outpatient recovery services. While Henry Ford Maplegrove provides medically supported detoxification, residential treatment, and stabilization services, River’s Bend helps individuals continue building recovery through structured outpatient care and long-term therapeutic support. This coordinated approach helps reduce gaps in treatment and creates a stronger foundation for sustained recovery.
After completing treatment at Maplegrove, Lowell was referred directly to River’s Bend’s Substance Use Disorder Intensive Outpatient Program.
The connection immediately felt right.
“I realized River’s Bend was the same place where someone had given me hope a year earlier,” he says. “It felt like everything came full circle.”
Learning That Addiction Is a Disease
One of the most important breakthroughs in Lowell’s recovery was understanding that addiction wasn’t a personal failure.
It was a disease.
For years, he blamed himself.
He believed he lacked willpower.
He believed he simply wasn’t trying hard enough.
Many people living with substance use disorders carry the same belief.
The stigma surrounding addiction often convinces individuals that they should be able to stop through sheer determination.
But recovery taught Lowell something different.
“I learned there was something happening in my brain,” he says. “This wasn’t about being weak. This was a disease.”
That realization removed years of shame.
And once the shame started to fade, healing could begin.
The Power of Being Truly Heard
Throughout his recovery, one person became especially important: River’s Bend Clinical Director Jessica Hillen.
For Lowell, therapy wasn’t about being told what to do.
It was about being given the space to discover his own answers.
“Jessica never told me how to live my life,” he says. “She helped me find my own solutions.”
For a man who had spent decades leading teams, solving problems, and making decisions, that approach mattered.
Jessica helped him work through health concerns, emotional challenges, and the difficult process of rebuilding his identity without alcohol.
Rather than focusing only on sobriety, they focused on creating a life worth staying sober for.
Building a Life Bigger Than Addiction
Today, Lowell’s life looks dramatically different.
He has lost more than 60 pounds while exercising and walking a few miles most days. Additionally, he volunteers regularly and remains active in his faith community. He also values spending quality time with his family, including a granddaughter who is preparing to begin nursing school.
Most importantly, he has rediscovered a sense of purpose.
“Two years ago, I didn’t feel valuable,” he says. “Today, I feel like I have something to give.”
That desire to give back has become one of the most meaningful parts of his recovery.
Several times a year, Lowell returns to Henry Ford Maplegrove to speak with men entering treatment.
When he sees someone arriving with a suitcase and fear in their eyes, he remembers exactly how that felt.
And he wants them to know what someone once told him.
There is hope.
Why Sharing Stories Matters
Lowell understands that many people would never choose to tell this story publicly.
The stigma surrounding addiction remains powerful.
But that is exactly why he believes sharing his experience matters.
“If my story helps one person get treatment sooner, it’s worth it.”
Stories like Lowell’s challenge the misconception that addiction only affects certain people.
They remind us that substance use disorders can impact successful professionals, loving spouses, devoted parents, and respected community members.
Most importantly, they show that recovery is possible.
Not because someone suddenly becomes stronger.
But because they finally allow themselves to ask for help.
A Message to Anyone Struggling
For anyone reading this who sees themselves in Lowell’s story, he offers a simple message:
Don’t wait for another Monday. It is dangerous to hesitate until things get worse or until you have lost everything.
Ask for help.
Because recovery isn’t about becoming someone new.
It’s about finding your way back to yourself.
And sometimes, that journey begins with a single conversation.
Just like it did for Lowell who has developed a matra from his experience that we can all learn from: “Every fall is a chance to rise.”
References
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). (2026, January 26). Sex Differences in Substance Use Disorder Treatment. National Institute on Drug Abuse. https://nida.nih.gov/publications/research-reports/substance-use-in-women/sex-differences-in-substance-use-disorder-treatment
- Maoz, H., Sabbag, R., Mendlovic, S., Krieger, I., Shefet, D., & Lurie, I. (2024). Long-term efficacy of a continuity-of-care treatment model for patients with severe mental illness who transition from in-patient to out-patient services. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 224(4), 122–126. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.2024.9
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). (2026, January 26). Sex Differences in Substance Use Disorder Treatment. National Institute on Drug Abuse. https://nida.nih.gov/publications/research-reports/substance-use-in-women/sex-differences-in-substance-use-disorder-treatment ↩︎
- Maoz, H., Sabbag, R., Mendlovic, S., Krieger, I., Shefet, D., & Lurie, I. (2024). Long-term efficacy of a continuity-of-care treatment model for patients with severe mental illness who transition from in-patient to out-patient services. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 224(4), 122–126. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.2024.9 ↩︎
