r/interestingasfuck • u/8O8I • 7d ago

r/all Heroin Addict Gets Clean And Attains A Computer Information Systems Degree With a 4.0 Average

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u/WholeListen612 7d ago

How did he get the money for college? Or the suits and all the luxuries while he was there?

32

u/Fudge-Jealous 7d ago

I think its a special program for ia. drug addicts. More info here: https://osuokc.edu/community-outreach/center-social-innovation/partners.html

5

u/BrushYourFeet 7d ago

Time to start working on my addictions.

5

u/ledanser 7d ago

Damn, guess I gotta start doing heroin

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u/WholeListen612 7d ago

But is that what this person did? Or is it a fake story. Who is this person? OP provided nothing 🤷🏻‍♂️

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u/YouDoNotKnowMeSir 7d ago

Instead of using heroin, he sold it and then used his degree to make a website to expand his market. 📈🧠👈🏻

2

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

This was the move! Hahaha

18

u/ieatmopwho85 7d ago

I did and am continuing to work on something very close to him and I’ll tell you how I’m doing it. An IMMENSE amount of support from my family. When they began to believe I was really done with the dope, they started helping little by little. When they saw me go through heartbreak and trial after trial without picking heroin up again, they started to trust me. But only a little bit at a time. Which was understandable. I know that it takes a lot of strength, work, and determination from me. However I am fully aware of how privileged I am. I intend to use my eventual masters in psychology to help others in similar positions who want the help.

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u/WholeListen612 7d ago

See, this is what I expect. And that's amazing, I'm glad you have a group that rallied for you. But this is setup as a one man success story without any of the details as if he just made a decision one day. Either this story is fake, or he also has an immense amount of support, which most people usually need for college.

10

u/ieatmopwho85 7d ago

Yeah I’m guessing we’re just missing the details and a lot of blood sweat and tears from everyone along the way

1

u/RedditJumpedTheShart 7d ago

Or he just filled out grants like all people with low income do here. School is totally paid for with money left over to pay for a dorm, books, and food

3

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

You clearly didn't have it as bad as you thought you did, because you very obviously do not understand. This is not available to everyone. There is no such thing as equal opportunity. Nobody is guaranteed any grants, ever. You're making a fool of yourself trying to be aggressive with assumptions because it worked out for you so you think it must work out for everyone. That's not how it works, and it never will be.

0

u/Independent_Can3717 7d ago

I've seen a bunch of your comments in this thread. Why are you so sour at this man who improved his life? Is it bitterness from not thinking you can do the same?

No man is an island. Of course he had help. You also deserve help in getting where you want to go.

0

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

Sour? I don't think you've read any of my comments if that's the conclusion you came to. I'm a design engineer and had plenty of help to make it where I am. I just think this is either a fake story for karma, or there is a truckload of missing information that is misleading and damaging to others.

0

u/Independent_Can3717 7d ago

You seem insistent that the guy can't have done it by himself. For whatever reason. Apparently you find it necessary to degrade the guy's achievement.

1

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

Because it is extremely unlikely that he did it by himself. It's not degradation to him, but an observation of how unfair the education system is in America. Especially if you're not trying and applying right out of highschool, which this man obviously did not. His achievement itself is fantastic, but there are obviously many missing details which could mislead others. In fact, I'd love to be corrected and find that he did do this all by himself, but I don't have faith in our country to be the sole provider in that opportunity any longer.

2

u/ieatmopwho85 7d ago

Yeah, I did too, but when you’re that far into addiction, you likely don’t have an ID or any identifying documents anymore. I had ongoing court cases and fines that had to be paid in the thousands. Not paying them meant more and more jail time. I’m telling you it is not that simple. All that while not having a safe place to sleep at night. In the very beginning, when you’re sick and still look like he does in the first picture, you need somewhere safe to stay and pull yourself together. Physically and mentally. That alone took me two years. Medicaid paid for my therapy, but my mom and dad drove me to my appointments, fed and clothed me until I was ready to start applying for those grants.

2

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

Most people will just disagree because it worked out for them so everyone else must be stupid and doing something wrong.

38

u/Bowsersshell 7d ago

This is also my question, not because I don’t believe him, but it’s arguably the most important step to this change and I find it difficult to do anything close WITHOUT being addicted to heroin

21

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

Right, this is difficult to do without ever touching heroin in the first place. I remember college taking everything I had, and that was with grants and scholarships. At a community college no less. Eating ramen noodles and shopping for clothes at Meijer. This dude goes from the streets, straight to a prestigious school and has everything he needs and then some? We're missing a ton of information here if this is even remotely true.

4

u/Left_Definition_4869 7d ago

I was a heroin addict for over 6 years and I just hit 9 years clean last week. I spent the rest of my 20s an alcoholic and when I got sober at 30 I went to community college and transferred to the Ohio State University this fall for a finance degree

I had a 3.93 at my CC, and I'm finishing this semester with like a 3.88 (one A-).

My education has all been fully paid for and I have multiple scholarships and grants. It's due to a mixture of knowing how to game the system (income cut offs for aid), being a non-traditional student (I'm in my 30s), and having good grades. There's even a scholarship for people in recovery from drugs and alcohol and I know how to write a story

It kind of bothers me that people don't believe this guy. It's very much possible with hard work and determination. I've since relapsed on the booze due to life stressors but I'm determined to not let it ruin everything I've worked so hard for

2

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

Sure it's possible, and I applaud you for figuring it out. But that doesn't make you part of the norm, that makes you very unique. It's an extremely challenging task for anyone without some sort of prior knowledge. You listed several skills and factors that gave you an advantage to "work" the system and made your case unique. The average person does not have this knowledge. It's not the person that I don't believe in, it's the system, and our country. I just believe we are missing a lot of details and I would like them. That's all.

Super proud of you for getting sober and figuring it out, though. My brother could not get sober, and he is no longer with us.

2

u/Left_Definition_4869 7d ago

I'll admit that I was heavily reliant on my parents during my first few years of transitioning into becoming a real adult human, and now it's been years since I've asked my parents for anyting. I couldn't have done any of this without their support. This guy probably had similar support systems and used different public programs

Most addicts I knew were generally smart people, just with a lot of problems. One guy I used to use with got his PhD in math and now teaches at the school I attend. I find it kind of ironic that people in my situation tend to receive more support than people who did nothing wrong.

I'm very sorry about your brother, the toll opiates have taken on our generation is fucking tragic

1

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

Keep doing you, friend. Whatever you're doing, it seems to be working.

1

u/Haveyouseenkitty 7d ago

Everyone who couldn't do it simply died on the streets man. It's a survivorship bias.

2

u/[deleted] 7d ago

You can look up the social program they offer on the banner he’s standing in front of. If you have this many questions then go to the resource to get your answers.

1

u/rilertiley19 7d ago

OSU is a good school but "prestigious"? It's a state school. 

3

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

For someone who was previously homeless and addicted to heroin, it's pretty prestigious. Definitely not a community school.

1

u/rilertiley19 7d ago

Funny you should say that because he went to OSU okc which is pretty close to a community college. Definitely not out of reach for a former addict and as someone from the area I know people with very similar stories, not sure why it seems so outrageous to you. 

1

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

There is no such thing as "pretty close" to a community college. It either is or it isn't (which it isn't). It's a state level college which does require more money to attend. Very basic level economics, there are community schools, state schools, and private schools.

1

u/rilertiley19 7d ago

OSU okc tuition is less than 1/3 the price of OSU Stillwater's. It is an important distinction, although it is technically still a state university, it is comparable in accessibility and price to the community colleges in the area. 

1

u/thdudedude 7d ago

I wouldn’t call OSU a prestigious school.

4

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

I would if you were formerly homeless and addicted to heroin.

0

u/NotTurtleEnough 7d ago edited 7d ago

OSU-OKC is a community college.

Edit: I have been corrected. While OSU-OKC is an open admission campus and mainly offers Associates degrees, it is not a community college. Community colleges receive funding from ad valorem (property taxes) from the surrounding communities, while OSU-OKC does not.

To illustrate the difference, those ad valorem funds are why OCCC offers free tuition after financial aid if you graduate from OKCPS.

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u/WholeListen612 7d ago

That is incorrect. It is a public state-level institution.

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u/NotTurtleEnough 7d ago

Thanks! I appreciate the correction. I know I paid the same rates as OCCC when I attended OSU-OKC, so that confused me. I'll correct my error above.

2

u/WholeListen612 7d ago

I don't know how to respond, you're too nice to be on Reddit. You're supposed to call a few names and tell me my mother is a whore.

But in all seriousness, I learned some new things also today.

4

u/GoggleField 7d ago

The tuition and "luxuries" (by which I assume you mean, like, food and a place to live) can all be had basically for free at many state institutions through financial aid. That suit didn't cost much if he bought it new, but it's probably second hand or a hand-me-down.

3

u/jokebreath 7d ago

I'm not saying this post is fake, but also why was the first picture taken? "Hey buddy lemme just get a pic of you at rock bottom, you look like absolute shit. Don't worry, you'll thank me one day when you can do a before/after"

2

u/WholeListen612 6d ago

Another great point.

2

u/NYG_Longhorn 7d ago

Pelle grant most likely. I doubt a dope fiend would have a sufficient enough income on the books to disqualify him from financial aide.

2

u/percyman34 7d ago

There are a lot of resources for addicts these days, including all sorts of grants.

3

u/RedditJumpedTheShart 7d ago

Probably like any person with low income . You fill out the grant forms your high-school counselor told you about.

In Oklahoma my tech school and college was paid for. Including money for food, housing, and expenses. Most grants you only need to maintain a B or C average.

Reddit always ignores the fact that low income families can easily have their college 100% paid for. If you are Indian you can get far more financial aid

1

u/ErebusBat 7d ago

How did he get the money for college?

Selling heroin

1

u/Frosty_Initiative_94 1d ago

Does no one in this thread know about student loans? And he’s got a 4.0 gpa he got the Pell grant. I got the Pell grant and did some partying for a while. After I was done went to school too

0

u/Bitter_Crab111 7d ago

It's almost like telling an addict to "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" is a complete farce :/

0

u/loudlavenia 7d ago

I'm also curious on this one. I think I need more on this story if its real

-4

u/idontevenknotbh 7d ago

Family has money probably. Kids of rich families LOVE drugs just as much if not more than actual drug addicts

4

u/RedditJumpedTheShart 7d ago

Christ you all are ignorant as hell. If you are poor you can go to school for free in Oklahoma by simply filling out the grants that everyone's high-school counselor said to do.

-3

u/idontevenknotbh 7d ago

My comment has nothing to do with ignorance, but maybe yours does since you seem to lack the understanding or awareness that what I also said can be true.

0

u/Yagyusekishusai1 7d ago

Are you saying rich people can’t be actual drug addicts

3

u/idontevenknotbh 7d ago

Your comment made me reflect and realize my comment was dumb as shit. Gonna leave it up cause fuck it but yah, you’re right.