{"id":26,"date":"2023-09-08T17:06:58","date_gmt":"2023-09-08T17:06:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2023-volume-4-issue-3\/road-to-recovery-alumnus-gives-hope-amid-drug-epidemic\/"},"modified":"2023-10-16T20:06:09","modified_gmt":"2023-10-16T20:06:09","slug":"road-to-recovery-alumnus-gives-hope-amid-drug-epidemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2023-volume-4-issue-3\/road-to-recovery-alumnus-gives-hope-amid-drug-epidemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Road to recovery: Alumnus gives hope amid drug epidemic"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cCan you give me one day clean?\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

J<\/span>esse DeLeon, Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans treatment program manager, sits across from an 18-year-old addicted to crack. He instructs the young man, head down, slumped in his chair, to sit up.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you can give me one day, you can give me three,\u201d DeLeon says. \u201cIf three, then seven. Separate yourself from high-risk situations. One week from today, we\u2019re going to sit down, and I\u2019ll ask you the same question.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Alumnus

Alumnus Jesse DeLeon guides others from addiction to hope. (by Courtney Morris)<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Working with teens and adults struggling with addiction, DeLeon has learned to let them hit rock bottom. Only if they\u2019re willing to change can he help.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rising above dysfunction<\/span><\/h3>\n

DeLeon understands addiction firsthand. In the 1970s, he grew up in north Houston with a functioning alcoholic father and an enabling mother. Several of his seven siblings later struggled with addiction themselves.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGrowing up in that era was crazy,\u201d he said. \u201cEveryone was getting high. In school, people wore marijuana leaves on necklaces.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

At 13, tired of his dad stumbling in drunk and beating up his mom, DeLeon ran to an aunt\u2019s house, where he lived throughout early high school. Only years later did he realize he\u2019d grown up in a dysfunctional home.<\/span><\/p>\n

Later, working in IT in Dallas, DeLeon returned to school after the tech industry bottomed out. He pursued bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degrees and a new career path: teaching developmental college classes. Once again, he came face-to-face with drug addiction, this time among his students.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2008, DeLeon moved back to Houston to help care for his dad after surgery. Just before his dad passed away, he told him he forgave him for everything he\u2019d done to their family: \u201cBut I\u2019m doing this for myself so I can move forward.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHis whole life, he didn\u2019t feel he did anything wrong,\u201d DeLeon said. \u201cThat\u2019s what addiction does to you. You live in denial and don\u2019t realize what you\u2019re doing to others.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Becoming a drug counselor<\/span><\/h3>\n

Tired of the drug epidemic, DeLeon finally decided to become part of the solution.<\/span><\/p>\n

At this point, San Jacinto College entered the picture. Cayman Tirado, currently San Jac\u2019s mental health services program director, met with him to plan his academic path. In a year, he finished five drug and alcohol abuse counseling classes and became a licensed chemical dependency counselor.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the start, Jesse stood out as ambitious and dedicated to helping individuals with substance use disorders,\u201d Tirado said. \u201cHe has unwavering compassion.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2019, DeLeon completed his associate degree in mental health counseling to become a full-time drug counselor. Today, he helps teens on juvenile probation and adults with DWIs and small drug possession charges in outpatient\/reintegration court cases.<\/span><\/p>\n

To commit to lasting change, each person must see the addiction lifestyle isn\u2019t bringing success.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you show them dollar for dollar how much they\u2019ve spent on drugs and alcohol for the last 10 years while living in a $20,000 house, it\u2019s getting them to make that decision themselves,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can\u2019t force change on anyone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Promoting change<\/span><\/h3>\n

In substance abuse counseling, DeLeon\u2019s reward is not earning a fat paycheck but seeing someone get sober and move forward.<\/span><\/p>\n

Up to 30% of clients, like DeLeon\u2019s dad, deny the problem. The other 70% accept how drugs disrupt their lives and begin to think and carry themselves differently.<\/span><\/p>\n

When former clients message him that they\u2019ve bought houses, married, or reunited with kids, DeLeon always responds the same: \u201cIt wasn\u2019t me. You did the work.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Even so, he plays a part, showing the path from dead-end addiction to hope.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the ultimate goal of a person\u2019s being?\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s leaving this world better than when you got here.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Courtney Morris<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Be Part of the Solution<\/span><\/h2>\n

Want to make a difference in the drug abuse prevention and counseling field too? Learn more at sanjac.edu\/programs\/areas-of-study\/health\/mental-health<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cCan you give me one day clean?\u201d Jesse DeLeon, Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans treatment program manager, sits across from an 18-year-old addicted to crack. He instructs the young man, head down, slumped in his chair, to sit up. \u201cIf you can give me one day, you can give me three,\u201d DeLeon says…. read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":73,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1],"tags":[],"article_type":[],"class_list":["post-26","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-success-story","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nRoad to recovery: Alumnus gives hope amid drug epidemic - Fall 2023, Volume 4 \u2013 Issue 3<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sanjac.mycareerfocus.org\/fall-2023-volume-4-issue-3\/road-to-recovery-alumnus-gives-hope-amid-drug-epidemic\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Road to recovery: Alumnus gives hope amid drug epidemic\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cCan you give me one day clean?\u201d Jesse DeLeon, Association for the Advancement of Mexican Americans treatment program manager, sits across from an 18-year-old addicted to crack. 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