Kicking off our November series, “Dual Diagnosis: Mental Health in Recovery,” is the story of Francisco—a man who lived in the chaos of addiction and mental illness, and who found his way back from the edge of suicide through grace, surrender, and the healing power of recovery.

From childhood, Francisco lived in two worlds—the one around him and the one he created in his imagination to escape from pain. Born with an active mind and a restless spirit, he was diagnosed with ADHD at a young age, placed in therapy, and medicated to make him “manageable.” While his peers went to football games and school dances, he spent his Friday nights in therapy, learning early what it meant to feel different. That isolation slowly carved a distance between him and his family—a quiet ache that would follow him for years.

He began using as a child, experimenting with whatever he could find in his father’s garage, searching for relief he couldn’t name. By the time he reached high school, his drug use and behavioral problems led to his expulsion from private school. In public school, things only worsened. He stopped caring, sleeping through his SATs, and letting the dreams his family had for him slip away. Yet Francisco became a master at masking—wearing a smile to hide the pain, the lies, and the growing darkness inside.

His first true consequence came in the form of a DUI. Watching the disappointment on his family’s faces as they picked him up from jail planted a seed of shame that would one day turn into surrender. But for years, he continued using—functioning enough to get by, but dying inside. He married a codependent partner who didn’t see the depth of his illness until his life began to fall apart. Rent went unpaid, lies unraveled, and Francisco was trapped in a cycle of survival—chasing his next fix while losing himself piece by piece.

Then came the day he planned to end his life. But just as he was about to follow through, grace intervened—a former therapist called him out of the blue to check in. That unexpected voice of concern interrupted his plan and set into motion a new beginning. He entered a treatment facility, where he was introduced to recovery meetings inside the hospital. There, he heard the message of hope—that if he went to a meeting the day he was released, he might have a chance at life.

And that’s exactly what he did. Francisco went to a meeting—and never looked back.

In treatment, he found the balance he had been seeking all his life. The right medication helped him stabilize, but it was the program that helped him heal. Step by step, he began to rebuild himself—learning to show up, to be honest, to connect. His recovery taught him how to be a dependable son, friend, and worker—someone who could finally face reality without needing to escape it.

Today, Francisco lives clean, centered, and free. He no longer hides in his imagination or uses substances to escape reality. Instead, he walks in the light of truth, one day at a time.

Francisco reminds us that when life brings us to the edge, grace meets us there—a Higher Power ready to pull us back, lift the mask from our pain, and guide us toward a new beginning written in truth, light, and recovery.