Dec 30, 2015 | By Tim Stoddart

Recovering Meth Addict Shares His Story and It Goes Viral

Addiction & Recovery News

It’s amazing what recovery can do.

Recently, a young man from St. Paul posted a before and after pic on Reddit. The pic went viral and he young man as interviewed by Fox 9.

Ryan Harder says he has struggled with addiction since the age of 14. He started with marijuana and alcohol, but eventually the grips of addiction took control. Ryan had attempted to get clean and sober on his own many times, but was always unsuccessful.

He had been to at least 10 treatment centers and his drug addiction led to many arrests. He was convicted to seven petty misdemeanors, a DWI and a felony. Ryan says that his most recent addiction to meth is what brought him to the darkest moments in his life.

“I was going to jump off the bridge because I’d had enough of the lifestyle of being high, being homeless, having nowhere to go and being completely unhappy.” 

– Ryan Harder

Now 23 and nine months into complete sobriety, Harder knew it was time to share his story. He posted a two contrasting photos on Reddit, revealing how far he’s come less than a year later. His post has gone viral, racking up more than two million views and thousands of comments.

Currently, Harder is living in a sober community. He is doing the deal. He works full time and he claims to be working hard to rebuild relationships.

“I have friends,” Harder says. “I have real friends. I talk to my family a lot. I’m gaining relationships back. I can show up. I can show up in life. I can be a friend; I can be a brother, a son. I can be an uncle and those are all things that I value and all things I couldn’t do before.”

Ryan’s recovery story not only restored his motivation, also encourages others to take action.

It’s never really too late to turn things around, even with my criminal history, even with being homeless, even with having nothing to where I’m at now I wouldn’t trade anything for it,” Harder says.

Representatives at Minnesota Adult and Teen Challenge said no one truly wants to be an addict.

This is just one more example of a young man (or woman) working towards recovery and quickly gaining their life back. Sobriety has clearly changed Harders life for the better, just as it has changed the lives of countless other people.