I barely recognized the man on the screen. His face was weathered, his voice gravelly and harsh. He still seemed stuck in the habits of our youth: partying, fighting, and brushing off responsibility. He looked decades older than his age, and I couldn’t help but feel a pang of grief for the friend I once knew.
This is what alcohol and drugs are doing in long term.
Recently I started to see this with multiple people in the cave/tent living community.
They drink a lot of alcohol, and they regularly take various drugs.
The whole cave/tent living community changed a lot in the previous six months.
It's so sad when substance abuse takes hold of someone. It seems seductively harmless at first but then before they know it they lose control of their own lives as the addiction takes presidence over everything and they spiral deeper down the dark path.