Hey guys, I’d like to introduce you to Christopher Olsen! Inmate number 831898, age 43, and is from Olympia, Washington. Chris is an aspiring Substance Use Disorder Provider and is halfway through the AAS degree program which brings him one step closer to realizing that goal. He is a loving husband and father of 7 children and grandfather to 1 grandchild. Due to a recent change in Washington’s drug possession laws, Chris will be getting resentenced on his current conviction real soon and will be getting released in three to five years, taking between 20 to 22 years off of his sentence! Today I bring you a very in depth and personal interview detailing Chris’s past and struggle with the disease of addiction. So let’s get straight to it!
How long have you been sober? And how far along were you in your incarcerated journey when you got over your addiction?
“I have been sober for about fifteen years of the sixteen and a half that I have been incarcerated. I honestly don’t think you ever truly get over your addiction, I feel that you learn to live with your demons, and identify trouble/risk areas better, and that you continually grow and develop your strength over the temptations you face.”
What is your life like now? E.g. relationships with family? friends?
“Life for me is in a Starburst season right now … it’s a juicy contradiction … I say that because even though there is a lot of chaos and turmoil, struggle and even deep downslopes, I wouldn’t trade what I have now for any of the times and feelings I had when I was in active addiction. Even my worst days now are better than the best ones in my addiction, and my best days are so amazing that no high could ever touch the way I feel. What I find most amazing is the ability to face life as it is, instead of through the chemically induced pseudo-reality of a meth high. Relationships with MY family are very very complicated, as most of the family that I have remaining were involved in using with me, and some are still actively using, the wreckage and trauma of those toxic relationships are quite often hard to navigate, and wind up causing more harm than good. So, I keep them at a distance and try to help where I can. I find the relationships I have with my friends are stronger now than I ever experienced in my addiction, and that I am able to truly appreciate the friends that I have and am able to be a better friend to people after having survived the deeply ingrained toxicity of addict mentality and meth induced psychosis.”
What are the biggest changes in how you think about life?
“I find myself a little bit leery at times when it comes to dealing with others in active addiction. Not that I just immediately pass judgment or discriminate against the individual, I just find myself a little more cautious and discerning when it comes to behaviors that resemble the desperate actions of the addict trying to get high. I was that person, so I tend to look at it from the lens of experience, while still remembering that addiction is a disease, and not totally a behavioral choice that one just decides to engage in. In my own personal life, I find that I treasure trust, honesty, respect, and love very much, and when I have it or give them, I do it wholeheartedly, and I do not take it lightly when I receive it. I am always trying to find the silver lining in most situations, and I strive to see the good in everybody, even those of us that society has written off. I feel that most of my own success in life now comes from identifying choices and opportunities in front of me, and choosing the one that is either the best of them or has the least potential to cause harm.”
How old were you when you first used?
“My first swim into the deep icy waters of addiction happened at twelve and half years old, shortly after my father committed suicide on Mother’s Day in 1993. I used meth at a friend’s house while my mom and my friend’s mom where in another room, also getting high.”
Thinking back to the first time you ever took drugs. What were you thinking when you decided to try them? What did you tell yourself about whether you would get addicted?
“Honestly, I don’t think that I was thinking too much at all. My father had just killed himself and I was an adolescent struggling to figure out what I did wrong, or what was so wrong with me, that my father didn’t want to live, or that I wasn’t enough for him to want to stay. I had no idea what addiction even was, so that was not even a thought in my mind.”
When did you realise that you were addicted to drugs? What happened to make you think, this is actually a problem?
“I don’t think that I faced the fact that I was addicted until I came to prison for the first-degree murder charge that I am currently serving time on. And even then, I only came to that point after a year and a half of getting high every day in a closed/maximum custody penitentiary in Washington state, called Walla Walla. What made me realize that my drug use was a problem was that I am serving a forty-two-year sentence for a murder that I wasn’t even present for, and that I was only involved with the perpetrators because of a shared desire to get high, and the culture surrounding meth addiction. I also looked at my two oldest children and realized that they grew up without a father because I was too busy burying my face in a meth bag, or whatever girl I was getting high with.”
After you realised you were addicted, did you stop taking drugs immediately? If not, why not?
“Yes, actually I count myself as one of the lucky ones who were able to quit “cold turkey” when I came to the realization, or should I say faced the truth of my struggle. I felt like meth and addiction robbed me, and everyone I loved, of a life with any sense of “normalcy” and had finally not only robbed me of my freedom, but caused an innocent man to lose his life, and destroyed his family and his community of people for no reason at all, and that to continue using would be not only a great injustice to myself, but to the memory of this man, and his family, to whom I owe an unpayable debt.”
What happened to your relationship with your family? What happened to the relationship with your non – drug taking friends? did you abuse the relationships in any way and what were the consequences?
“Drugs ruined our trust, love, respect, and appreciation for each other, alienated us from non-using family and friends, and fostered a very toxic codependency between us. Which further led to toxic behavior and deeply seeded wounds within our family unit that persist to this day.”
What was the key factor in getting over your addiction?
“As I have said earlier, I don’t see it so much as getting over my addiction, as it is learning to live free of being controlled by it. I no longer feel I HAVE to use, and in fact I now recognize my strength and ability to say no when/if the urge comes on. I have only felt that urge a couple of times since breaking free of the bonds of addiction, however if I were to point to the few things that have helped me in this, first and foremost would be my Faith in God, HE has given me HIS strength and the relationship I have with HIM gives me the freedom to say I don’t need or want the high. And a very close second, would be my best friend of twenty-one years, and hugest supporter (who on April third of this year, made me the happiest man alive, and became my wife) Rita Olsen. And then my favorite little cheerleaders “Addyoncé” and William and my two oldest children Jordan and Sarah along with my grandson Nathan, and my community of friends and family within and outside these walls.”
What one piece of advice would you offer to addicts reading this article?
“If you find yourself in a moment of honesty being able to recognize that you are in fact an addict, and that you are suffering in this disease, reach out, ask for help, and don’t be afraid or ashamed to admit that you are in fact suffering from the disease of addiction, turn to your family, or even a friend. But do not suffer in silence, and wind up like so many of our fellow brothers and sisters in the struggle and succumb to the addict’s most common enemy death from overdose, or suicide. If there are any readers of this out there wondering if there is life after addiction, I urge them to read the book ‘Against Such Things’ By Rachel Kay Baldwin. I personally know and have known Rachel for decades and even struggled through addiction with her. She is now thriving in sobriety, out in the free world and has made quite the life for herself. Against Such Things is a memoir of her trauma, struggle with addiction, and her survival of the disease and associated pitfalls.”
You can reach Rachel Baldwin at:
www.rachelkbaldwin.com www.facebook.com/againstsuchthings
www.instagram.com/calmbeforetherach
You can also reach out to Chris directly at:
Christopher Olsen #831898 H3-A30-Upper S.C.C.C. 191 Constantine Way Aberdeen, WA 98520 USA
Or send Chris an email via www.securustech.net or download the Securus mobile app. Adding him by name (Christopher Olsen), Doc (831898) and facility (Stafford Creek Corrections Center). He looks forward to hearing from anyone who wants to know more about the struggle and life after addiction and most importantly anyone who feels alone in their addiction.
For a how to video on setting up an account on securus please visit our tiktok!: @prisonbaes
If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, suicidal thoughts, poor mental health and need or want help, then please check out the following list of resources:
Suicide Prevention:
1-800-273-8255
suicidepreventionlifeline.org
LGBTQ+ Support:
1-888-843-7386
glbthotline.org
Domestic Violence Help:
1-800-799-7233
thehotline.org
ncadv.org
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorder Services:
NAMI helpline 1-800-950-6264
nami.org
Narcotics Anonymous:
1-818-773-9999
na.org
Thank you for your time – Brian.
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