Avoiding substances has been a longtime challenge for Zach, a client at CSS. As a teen, he had easy access to cigarettes through family members and acquaintances. Smoking gave him a buzz and it fit his rebellious nature. Smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol weren’t far behind.

As he got older, Zach had conflicts with his family, battled mental health struggles and ended up incarcerated. He was repeatedly hospitalized and was diagnosed with schizoaffective and bipolar disorders. At age 18, he came to CSS after a hospitalization.

Through treatment, he has been able to take better control of his life and his mind. He’s taken steps to manage his anger, stay on his medication, channel his energy into art and make better choices. He quit smoking in December and has been alcohol free since January. While it hasn’t been easy, it has opened his eyes to the negative effect it had on his life, he said.

“I’m just glad I have an open mind and choose better,” he said. “I’m tempted sometimes to go back. I know it’s better not to. It’s better putting that money toward doing art.”

Art therapy at CSS has rekindled Zach’s childhood love of art and inspired him. He has participated in Art of Recovery and sold several pieces of his art. It has helped him focus and gain a new perspective.

“I went from not using my talents to using them to the best of my abilities,” he said. “Michelle (Morton, CSS’s art therapist) has taught me it doesn’t have to be perfect.”

Zach was joined at this year’s Art of Recovery by his mom and grandmother, which was especially important, given how strained his relationships with them had been in the past. “They wanted to tell me how proud they were,” he said.

In addition to art therapy, Zach credits counseling and medication with helping him to better his relationships and his life — a welcome new perspective.

“The medication and listening made life a lot easier. Talking about it is better than holding it all in when you’re smoking and drinking and stuff. That’s what I did, and it made my brain unclear. It changed me from what I was,” he said. “(Now) every day I wake up, it’s a fresh start.”