I received an e-mail recently from a 23 years old man that almost brought tears to my eyes, mostly because it brought back very bad memories for me, and secondly because I know how hard the road ahead for this young man is and I can’t help but wonder if he’s gonna make it or not…

I know this sounds horrible, but I’m speaking from experience, because I almost didn’t make it myself. I am so thankful today that I had great friends and family around me who loved me enough to stick around and help me the best they could during my journey through hell, and I pray that this person is as lucky as I was.

Out of respect and privacy, I changed his name to “MisterX” and removed any text giving away his location.
Here’s the e-mail below:

********************************

Hey there ronron, how’s it going?

I’m a 23 year old rider. Even though I mostly ride bmx and my streetbike (1996 honda magna 750) these days, motocross will always be my roots. I’ve been in love with it ever since my dad got me an xr 80 when I was seven. Shortly after that I started racing. I think my alltime favorite race has been the elsinore GP. I raced it when I was fourteen and by that time I had a 01 kx 125 between my legs (talk about power! It was a lot of bike for a 100 pound kid!). Have you raced elsinore before? It is such a blast.
Like most riders I’ve been plagued with injurys (broken femur, both wrists 3x each, ankles etc ect you know the routine). Just have never been able to stay off the throttle :). You’ve been an idol of sorts for me since I was a young teenagr. My dad and I have always gone to the sx season opener in anaheim, and also the last race in las vegas which is where I was born, raised, and still live. I have so much respect for you my friend, but now more than EVER.
You see, like you I’ve gotten caught up in the horrible cycle of prescription opiates. I’m writing you from my telephone right now, and my mom is driving me to a rehab where I can spend some time trying to get myself together, figure myself out, get the counseling that I need. I was talking to my dad on the phone this morning before I started the drive to the rehab center and he told me about your past problem and triumph, which is such an inspiration to me right now.

I’m not going to lie, I’m straight up fucking terrified out of my mind, but I’m very confident it’s for the best and am so so so looking forward to getting my life back. I had read a post that your girlfriend (I think?) Had made on a message board about how twmx published all the information about the problem you had gone through without you even knowing! I feel for you my friend, but I’m very glad that your story is out there. Knowing that one of my idols has gone through a similar situation give me some peace of mind, and I’m certain that I’m not the only one inspired by your journey.
Hopefully you get this, I don’t even know if this is your current e-mail address. Right now I’m about 2 hours away from the center, which is in the mountains of  “undisclosed location to respect his privacy”.  And like I said, I’m pretty nervous. I’m sure you remember the feeling well. My mother and father have both gone through the battle as well, and succeeded, which is also a great inspiration to me. I’m pretty convinced that addiction runs in our blood, we come from a long line of it. Of course if you write me back I won’t be able to read it until I get back home, but I ask that you try to send some positive vibes my way in the meantime my friend. Maybe you can drop my father an e-mail also? He’ll let me know about it when I’m allowed to start making phone calls to the outside world, which I’m sure won’t be for a month or two.
Anyways, wish me luck in my recovery please. I know it’s going to be a tough journey but I am really really looking forward to getting back to my old self again, and getting back on a bike!!! Like I said, any positive energy you can send my way I would appreciate so much. Please please know how much of an inspiration you are to me. I can’t put into words how much respect I have for you.
Wish me luck buddy,
Mister X

*********************************

I can’t stress enough about how easy it is to become addicted to pain pills, especially when you’re into any extreme sports like Motocross or BMX, Skateboarding and such, due to the injuries you can and probably will go through! And yes it can happen to anyone, even YOU.

Anyways, his e-mail touched me and I felt like sharing it with everyone. I wish him good luck and deeply hope he will get back on the right track!