Dallas Bragg, sober from crystal meth for nearly seven years, explains why living alone is dangerous for gay men in recovery and shares four concrete strategies: blocking hookup apps with his son holding the passwords, daily check-ins with an accountability partner, a three-times-daily grounding ritual of journaling and prayer, and making his plan public.
Well, I'm living alone for the first time in my life as a 48-year-old man, and even though I turned away from meth almost 7 years ago now, I am still taking safety precautions because of the— if not the top triggers for crystal meth relapse among gay men is living alone, because the buffer between you and the Party with a capital T has been removed, and now it is up to your own willpower And guess what? Willpower is bullshit. You have to take the precautions needed to eliminate the option of relapse. So here's what I've done. Number 1, blocked access to Grindr and Sniffies, both downloadable apps and web-based platforms, on my phone, my iPad, and my laptop. My son has the password, so I have no way to get on those digital drug dealers. Number 2, I have arranged 90 days of daily check-ins with an accountability partner who understands the nature of meth parties in the gay community. He knows what questions to ask and he knows when to ask them. He doesn't mind a late check-in before I go to bed. Number 3, I have instituted a grounding ritual that happens morning, noon, and night: journaling, music, and prayer. Not because addiction's doing push-ups in the parking lot, because I have to continually remind myself the vision I have for me. Number 4, making this all public awareness is my way of holding myself accountable as well. I know that the more people know of the risk of living alone, the less likely I will act upon it. So what have I missed? What have you done? Tell me in the comments.
