When my best friend decided to get clean, and stop using drugs & alcohol. Hear me out...

He and I grew up across the street from each other, and were the best of friends for nearly 20 years. Throughout all of high school, and most of college, we would party together, A LOT. We loved to drink and smoke weed together, however at some point he started using opiates like Percocet and Vicodin. Luckily, I never had the stomach for it, and it would always make me sick... He, on the other hand, had an iron stomach, and could pop 4 or 5 at a time without anyone noticing a change in his behavior. In fact, he was SO good at hiding it, I could never tell the difference between when he was high, and when he wasn't...

Fast forward about 18 months, and he is stealing money from his friends, his family, and constantly making excuses for never having any money.

Sure enough, a few weeks later, he admitted to his parents that he had a serious addiction, and decided to go to rehab. I visited him three separate times in rehab to bring snacks, and some comfort items, which I could tell he really appreciated. Now, he has been clean for 7 years, and I could not be happier for him.

The reality is... I still drink and smoke weed frequently. And despite my best efforts, we simply don't hang out anymore. I understand that he is living a sober life now, and I am extremely happy that he was able to turn his life around for the better. But unless I decide to go clean, we will never be close friends again, and I will always respect that.

A few months ago, I asked him to be a groomsman in my wedding, and he happily obliged. We will always care about each other, but it’s very unlikely that we will ever be close friends again, and I'm ok with that :)