My name is Ash, and I created Memento Mori to share my life story and personal journey of addiction recovery, intertwining it with my unique blend of goth lifestyle, art, and music. As a counselor/therapist and nurse, I aim to provide a supportive space for individuals navigating their own recovery paths, offering insights, strategies, and a sense of community. By sharing my experiences openly, I hope to break down stigma surrounding addiction, mental health, and alternative lifestyles. Through the fusion of my diverse roles as a healthcare professional, artist, and goth enthusiast, I hope to inspire others to embrace their authentic selves and find solace in the transformative power of creativity, self-expression, and resilience.
Today feels like an eternal battle between the hell within and the diminishing light of hope. Rehab, yet again, echoes with the same sterile familiarity, a haunting reminder of my persistent struggle with heroin. I’m a 27-year-old nurse, a mom with responsibilities waiting at home, and I find myself caught in a cycle of relapses that threaten to unravel the life I’ve worked so hard to build. The weights of both my nursing license and career dangle precariously, while my son’s laughter echoes; haunting me from the memories of home, now cared for by my grandparents in my increasing and lengthy absences.
The stark contrast between the sterile white walls and my darkened soul intensifies the internal turmoil. The ink on my skin tells tales of rebellion, but the scars beneath reveal the silent war I wage. Amidst group therapy sessions and well-meaning, albeit under-educated counselors, I grapple with the demons that dance within, threatening to plunge me into the pit once more. As ink meets paper, this journal becomes my lifeline, a testament of my resolve to claw my way up from this abyss and take back the life that this addiction has stolen, time and time again.”-Excerpt from my journal, 2016
If Your Path Demands You Walk Through Hell, Walk As If You Own The Place
This website was built and is maintained by me, the author, Ash. I am a recovering heroin addict, licensed counselor, nurse, goth, artist, and all-around weirdo.
This blog (& eventual podcast) is a testament to the power of the human mind, of sheer unadulterated willpower, and the unfathomable depths of the human soul.
In the garden of despair, let hope bloom, amidst vapid poisons where will is entombed
Vans of courage let dreams take flight, illuminate even the darkest of night
In the tapestry of shadows, a gleaming thread, embroidering futures where compulsion is dead
