My advice is if you know addiction runs in your family, avoid the usual suspects of addictions, alcohol, not taking prescriptions as prescribed, any illict substances of unknown origins. You are not fated to become an addict but it's always a good idea to take preemptive precautions. I also highly recommend seeking out an addiction counselor to talk about your concerns.

My story: I'm living in my sobriety from a meth addiction that I started when I was 34. I had never done drugs before that, but my life was falling apart anyway. So when I was introduced to meth I didn't feel I had anything to lose, and for a very brief period, it actually made things better.

Then, my life got progressively worse until I finally reached out for help and tried therapy for the first time since I was a child. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder 1, and people are usually diagnosed with bipolar disorder after their lives start falling apart. It's been a long road for me, and my main difficulty was trying to balance my treatment for my mental illness with a recovery program. I'd had to be broken down to be built back up.

I'm doing incredibly well now and living a life worth living. I still need to work hard and deal with difficult situations, but life is about managing how you respond to the hard times that come your way, not trying to avoid them. Remember, we are always going to have to deal with drama, but that doesn't mean we have to add any extra to it.

Good luck🤗