Kyle’s Path to Recovery

 In December 2018, with no money, no clothes, and weighing only 130 lb., Kyle Arnold came to The Salvation Army’s Journey to Life Centre in Thunder Bay, Ont. He wanted to finally get out of a cycle of addiction that had taken over his life for almost 20 years.

This move would eventually become the beginning of a long journey to recovery, that now allows him to work with other people who are going through what he once went through.

Kyle grew up in Victoria. Due to several traumatic events he experienced throughout his teens, Kyle would try to find ways to bury feelings of despair any way he could. This led to addiction. One day Kyle along with a friend, decided to drive to Moncton, N.B., to start a new life. This plan came to an end once they ran out of money and ended up stuck in Thunder Bay.

“Never heard of Thunder Bay, knew nothing about this city. And for the first time in my life, I was truly out of options,” Kyle said.

“They made me feel valued and helped me to start seeing that I was more than just using drugs.”

He arrived in November 2018 and went into a detox program. Two weeks later, he ended up relapsing. Soon after, Kyle came to The Salvation Army. At the Journey to Life Centre, he met with staff who had gone through similar experiences as him, and they recommended some support groups. During his first month at the centre, Kyle was using on and off. He was attending the meetings while also doing some chores around the building to try to keep his mind occupied.

“When I went to The Salvation Army there were some amazing staff members. They made me feel valued and helped me to start seeing that I was more than just using drugs,” Kyle added.

On Christmas Day 2018, Kyle witnessed a man overdosing right in front of him. This event was a turning point in his journey to recovery.

“As they carted him away, I looked down and there was a needle, in the needle there was fentanyl. I picked up that needle and I did it. That was my rock bottom. That was the last time I ever used to this day,” Kyle shared.

After this, Kyle realized he needed help. With the help of the Army’s staff, he was able to access an addiction recovery home. Six months into his recovery, Kyle started volunteering at the Norwest Community Health Center. Right before completing his first year clean, Kyle was hired by Norwest as an outreach worker. To this day, he helps clients struggling with addiction and he is a strong advocate for change within his community.

Even though Kyle was only at The Salvation Army for about a month, he still keeps in touch with the staff.

“There’s no such thing as ‘too far gone’. We all can recover.”

“I don’t think the staff at The Salvation Army will ever understand the impact they had on my life,” Kyle said.

Kyle is now a stepfather, and he will be getting married next year. He says that he never would’ve thought he would be able to rebuild his life.

“There’s no such thing as ‘too far gone’. We all can recover,” Kyle said.

By Juan Romero