this one demanding element of my life that I was trying so desperately
to hide. My moods were up and down, and I threw myself into my
cases not just to get what I needed, but to avoid being noticed, too.
Keep an eye on any staff members who seem to be going through
rapid mood swings.
6. Isolationism. As I went through my addiction, the focus of my
work and entire life started to become the one thing I was trying to
conceal. As a result, I became less social with my coworkers than I
normally was, and where I was typically gregarious and outgoing, I'd
become withdrawn and isolated from my peers. This side of my Type
A personality is one that my addiction curbed. The lie I was leading
separated me from everyone else, including Claudia, who, about a
month before I was finally caught, said to me, "Something's not right
with you. You're not right." That phrase stuck with me and bothered
me because I knew my sneaky behavior bothered her. If you notice
someone withdrawing from everyone else, chances are, you're not
alone in what you see, and you're probably not far from the truth.
Speak up.
7. Tampered drug tests. I make this note the last one because I
personally never had to tamper with my drug screening. I knew fen-
tanyl was not on the lab's radar, so I happily handed over my urine
sample the first time I was asked to take a test. It is a known practice,
however, among addicts to buy time with a compromised urine sam-
ple. Opioids take just a few days to leave the system. Addicts facing a
drug test can get to that 2- or 3-day threshold by diluting their urine
sample with added substances, like salt or bleach, anything that will
nullify the lab's findings. If someone's screening is returned as incon-
clusive, read the result as a red flag. One way to follow up is to ask for
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