One year of recovery: the journey from opioid addiction

When Rebekkah was 14, she blew out her ankle during cheerleading practice and was prescribed opioid painkiller pills. Instead of getting better, she quickly found herself addicted.

In 2018, then 26-year-old Rebekkah began her fight against opioid addiction as depicted in the truth® campaign The Truth About Opioids. The second phase of the campaign, called “Treatment Box,” captured Rebekkah’s story through a multiscreen installation in New York City, bringing Americans face-to-face with her opioid addiction, withdrawal and treatment. Now, she’s celebrating one year of her recovery.

In a video marking one year, Rebekkah says: “What the world didn’t see was the year I spent fighting every single day, learning how to love myself and rediscovering the potential of tomorrow. Working toward long-term recovery is the hardest thing I’ve ever done — and it’s something I’ll do for the rest of my life.”

truth launched The Truth About Opioids to prevent and reduce the misuse of opioids among youth and young adults, destigmatize addiction and tell the stories of young Americans with an opioid use disorder. Young Americans are particularly vulnerable to the risks associated with opioid misuse, addiction and the dangerous spiral down from prescription to illicit use. Every day in 2017, an estimated 1,300 young adults misused an opioid prescription for the first time.

The Truth About Opioids is designed to help young people understand the facts about opioids and the risk of addiction. For example, the campaign highlights that opioid dependence can happen after just five days.

For more on Rebakkah’s story, visit opioids.thetruth.com. For more on The Truth About Opioids, read “The unseen struggle of opioid addiction, withdrawal and treatment.”