Macon Man Given a Second Chance to Recover from Addiction of Drugs and Alcohol

“It was like I was going out to a party for a weekend, and that weekend never ended.”

But the party for Darren Jackson only led to destruction and a life of turmoil.

Darren began using drugs and alcohol in high school, more than 30 years ago. As he continued on in life, the drugs became more severe, and more frequent.

“It was like I wanted to do right, but I couldn’t,” Jackson explained. “I didn’t have the power to do the right thing.”

Jackson lost his wife, his daughter never came to see him, and he couldn’t hold a job for more than a few months. He took to living in the streets, stealing, and looking for the next time he could score more drugs.

But Jackson says it was one day while he was lying on a park bench in downtown Macon, that changed his life for the better.

“I just got tired, I guess I got really tired. I started walking and crying…for the first time, I looked up, and I asked God to help me. And He did.”

With the help of the River Edge Behavioral Health Center, Jackson was given a second chance at a job. He now works in the warehouse for Parts Central in Macon. He has re-married his wife, who left him 10 years ago. And his daughter, who didn’t have a father to watch her walk across the stage when she graduated high school, had a proud and sober father watch her graduate from Mercer University.

If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, you can go to the River Edge Behavioral Health Center by clicking here.