Beating Heroin addiction truly a marathon for Pittsburgh man

Bricks & Stacks

Bricks & Stacks

Bluelighter
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North Side Pittsburgh
Jon Kissel remembers little about the night passers-by found him unconscious on South Pugh Street in State College, overdosing on heroin.

He later learned he had no pulse and wasn't breathing when the ambulance arrived and that a shot of Narcan brought him back on March 28, 2009. Police took him from the hospital to Centre County Correctional Facility when he stabilized. He did not recall that he'd left the dealer's house with 192 bags of heroin in his pockets.

"I got to that point ... I don't know how I really got to that point, to be honest with you," Kissel said.

Today, it is hard to imagine Kissel, 27, was a junkie. Sitting in a North Side park not far from the Spring Hill neighborhood where he grew up and the Pittsburgh Marathon finish line he will cross on Sunday, he is sober.
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Read more: Beating heroin addiction truly a marathon for Pittsburgh man - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_736806.html#ixzz1MExlqnzY
 
Kissel went to jail, charged with possessing heroin with intent to deliver. His bail: $100,000.

Penn State expelled him. His on-again, off-again girlfriend said she never wanted to see him again. Then, his father was diagnosed with cancer and died that October.

Unable to post bail, Kissel remained in jail for a month and a half, until a judge set the condition that he go to rehab.

Kissel said he never was much of an athlete but ran the Harrisburg Marathon in 2007 — during what he called a three-month period of "behaving" that served to rationalize partying again, with the false belief he could control himself.

At the Cove Forge rehab facility in Williamsburg, he found a nature trail about a mile and a half long. Everybody walked, but Kissel asked for permission to run. He's unsure what made him want to do it. Perhaps, he said, it was his body crying out for the motion.

"Any positive activity that will help someone physically, spiritually and psychologically is always a plus," said Tom Callahan, regional director for Cove Forge Behavioral Health System.

When his 30 days ended and he returned to Pittsburgh, he kept running. He built up his endurance and increased his distances. He helped care for his dying father. That fall, he again ran the Harrisburg Marathon, finishing in just under four hours.
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inspiring story
His life had to fall apart around him for him to want to change.
But he did it, and he gained the remarkable strength that he needed to gain.
 
I actually saw a thing about this, on I think, Real Sports. I believe it was in NYC, though.

Makes sense, though. IME, exercising can be "addicting."
 
Kissel said he never was much of an athlete but ran the Harrisburg Marathon in 2007 — during what he called a three-month period of "behaving" that served to rationalize partying again, with the false belief he could control himself.
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the FALSE belief that he could control himself. thats right. No addict can EVER, EVER use EVER again after getting clean, without immediately , uncontrollably falling right back down into devastating daily addiction again. Its just impossible.Unheard of. Addicts just dont get clean and then use occasionally in a responsible way. cant happen.

remember that , kids. You cant control yourself. You have no power over yourself. Youre totally, completely helpless and powerless to make your own decisions. Discipline is impossible. Your addiction owns you and will own you FOR-EVAR.

More 12 step propaganda, brought to you by (every fuckin newspaper that has ever ran an article about addiction)
 
^^most addictions are pretty all powerful and controlling though..

if it wasnt for exercise i would have relapsed many moons ago...
 
Of course intense aerobic exercise is an effective treatment for opiate addiction. It causes you to produce neurotransmitters similar to opiates. But it has to be kept up indefinitely and intensely to keep cravings completely at bay, from what I've been taught.
 
The night everything changed, Kissel went to an apartment and was told someone overdosed. An ambulance arrived. Fearing police were close behind, Kissel said he was talked into taking all the heroin.

"I was about 10 minutes away from OD'ing myself, so I don't have a very strong memory of this, and I haven't spoken a word to these people since," he said. "But I was basically coerced into getting the stash out of there."

Kissel lived a few blocks away and passed out halfway there.

"Had I made it back to my apartment, where I lived alone, I would have most likely died," he said
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Wow, thats nuts. When I first read this my thoughts were" What the fuck was this guy thinking shooting dope with 192 bags in his pocket" but I guess this scenerio is believable. Considering the circumstances, its about as good of a defense as you could come up with anyway.

good read!
 
mydoors-you are correct..ive always heard that exercise is great for depression and addiction..well no shit when you exercise you are basically getting high on your own neurotransmitters so of course u will feel better..lol...i admit im addicted to exercise but the feeling from exercise only lasts 2-3 hours tops and i cant workout twice a day..
 
Yeah I'm sure they had to "coerce" a junky to take 192 bags of d with him. They were prob like "we need to get this shit of here" and he's like "I'LL TAKE IT!!!!!" They prob gave him 4 bricks and he shot the other 8 bags and that's why he was comatose on the street haha
 
Khadijah said:
the FALSE belief that he could control himself. thats right. No addict can EVER, EVER use EVER again after getting clean, without immediately , uncontrollably falling right back down into devastating daily addiction again. Its just impossible.Unheard of. Addicts just dont get clean and then use occasionally in a responsible way. cant happen.

remember that , kids. You cant control yourself. You have no power over yourself. Youre totally, completely helpless and powerless to make your own decisions. Discipline is impossible. Your addiction owns you and will own you FOR-EVAR.

More 12 step propaganda, brought to you by (every fuckin newspaper that has ever ran an article about addiction)
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Those 12 step programs have saved a lot of lives. If you can name a more successful program, I would like to hear about it.
 
J. G. Wentworth said:
Those 12 step programs have saved a lot of lives. If you can name a more successful program, I would like to hear about it.
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I aint gonna turn this thread into another off topic NA discussion, but the scientific research that been done on it found that the success rates of the 12 step programs are actually lower than the success rates of people who dont get no help at all. You should def. check that thread out yo, youd be suprised.

For the record, my "program" was called "realizin I really needed to get my shit together and usin self discipline, willpower, and determination to get straight" and in September itll be 2 years since, so I know at least one person who didnt need no 12 steps to get right.

Back on topic tho....192 bags aint really that much....Im with B&S yall, he did 8 bags outa the 4 bricks thats why he aint have 200. Its only 4 bricks, alota junkies will have that much on em when they get paid (if they got a job) and when they coppin to bring shit back for the suburb feens. When I was usin and I had cash flow I would usually cop 2 bricks at a time like it wasnt no thing,you feel me, so it aint like 192 bags is like some kind of huge amount of dope. yea, it aint just like a couple bundles or watever but it aint some kinda crazy shit neither is all Im sayin. Lotta people deal with that amount everytime they go cop.
 
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