Alcohol plays a role in the lives of many people. For most of us alcohol is no big deal. We love a margarita with dinner or occasional drinks with friends, but we can't really say it affects our life much on a regular basis. But that's not true for everyone.

Ashley & Brian's Story

Ashley and Brian started dating during what both considered a very fun stage of life. They both enjoyed partying, alcohol, and even recreational drug use. It was all just for fun, just two people old enough to make their own decisions but young enough to not have too many responsibilities getting in the way. Then everything changed.

A Test They Weren't Prepared For

From the time Ashley took a pregnancy test when she was 24 years old, everything in her life changed. It wasn't an immediate or easy change, Ashley acknowledges that she wasn't ready for a baby and had lots of doubts about whether she could handle being a mom at that point in her life. After a lot of soul searching and praying for guidance, she chose her child. Ashley stopped using alcohol and drugs and tried her best to get ready for the next stage in her life. Ashley gives credit to her first pregnancy for getting her sober and keeping her on a better path. Despite the rough start to the pregnancy, the baby was born happy and healthy 16 years ago.

Stopping wasn't as easy for him

Ashley says she wasn't an addict. She admits to using drugs and alcohol recreationally, but she doesn't feel like they held her life hostage. She never stole to get drugs. She could party with friends for a few days over the weekend then return to a more responsible life. Brian has a much different story. We'll share his story of addiction and struggle in next week's post.

Why we care

Through our work with ignition interlock devices, we come into contact with a lot of people whose lives have been affected by alcohol. We see negative impacts caused by alcohol all the time, and we try our best to help even if it's just in a small way. Whether you're an addict trying to stop or reduce your amount of drinking or just someone who struggles making good choices when you've occasionally had a few too many drinks, we offer products such as ignition interlock devices to help people take back control over their alcohol use. We want to help you and we want to keep the roads safe. Visit our website to see some of the products we offer at Smart Start of Louisiana. Call us or complete our contact form if you're ready to see how we can help.