Today we’d like to introduce you to Jacob Bass.
Hi Jacob, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My story started when I was 10 or 11 years old. I was always a good kid and always raised to say no to drugs and alcohol, knowing the dangers that they held due to the warnings of my father. When I was about 10, I went to my mom’s side of the family more often. That’s when I would be subject to all the dangers of drugs and alcohol. My mom’s husband was a prominent drug dealer and had been in and out of prison throughout my childhood. He had control over my mom and often fed her many of his products, such as various pills, alcohol, and coke. My brothers would also indulge in these substances as they were older than me at the time, going into their late teens. When I would go over there, I was then becoming more susceptible to these substances as well. They would give me beers and often time smoke a lot of weed around me, which I hadn’t experimented with yet. I kept this from my dad because I didn’t want him to stress out, and I was scared that my mom’s husband might get mad and try to hurt my dad’s side of the family, given his drug dealer status. Well, with time, the number of times I was around drugs and alcohol got worse and worse until the point where I was forced to tell my dad that I didn’t want to go to my mom’s every other weekend. He and my mom battled for a bit, but she knew she had no legal power, given that she was trying to keep the law as far away from her situation as possible due to her husband. So, I stayed away from my mom for several years until I was about 16 or 17.
I was a senior in high school, and drinking was starting to become a regular activity around all of my friends. I was a regular churchgoer, and my relationship with God was established and strong. It wasn’t until the final week of my senior year when the seniors were released one week earlier than the rest of the school, that my career with alcoholism and drug use began. I began with a few drinks here and there, and by the end of the week, I was drinking every day, and the amount I was consuming had increased 10x. This, in turn, spilled over to pill usage. I began pulling away from my father and spending more time with my mother because she didn’t regulate my actions and almost supported them regularly. She thought she was being the “cool mom” and getting a chance to reestablish her once-strong relationship with her son.
The catalyst of this newfound relationship between me and my mom was drugs and alcohol. She would often provide me with drugs or support my drug use by allowing me to stay at her house and indulge in whatever substances I chose to use. I would steal pills and alcohol from the corner store and begin to exhibit habits that would drive me to be on a path of becoming a person I had been warned not to become by my father. The usage of drugs and alcohol began to destroy my relationship with my dad, and he could tell I was becoming different in every aspect. I would lash out, punch holes in the wall, and break things regularly at his house until it came to the point where he could no longer control me or help me. I was going to use this as an excuse to move into my mom’s house so I could further promote substance abuse with no limits because my mom would never hold me accountable. For some reason, I contacted an old basketball coach, who convinced me not to waste my God-given talent and walk on to the local Christian university basketball team. This kept me out of trouble from age 18-19 as I constantly practiced and began to renew my faith in the lord. However, it would only take me coming in contact with one childhood friend who had just moved back to the area to relapse and begin down a very dark path once again. I failed a drug test at the university, so basketball had become out of the question for me. Embarrassed, defeated, and on the verge of suicide, I was out of answers. I didn’t know what to do.
Finally, I came up with a solution. I would move to Orlando and attend UCF to pursue my passion for helping others, as I had been doing most of my childhood at the local YMCA. This was unknowingly going to be the biggest mistake of my life. This set me on the darkest path I had ever been on, and it would last for years to come. I began hanging out around bad people, selling drugs, and carrying illegal firearms everywhere I went. I certainly wasn’t living a life of Christ anymore, and I had turned into an entire blow piece of shit day by day. I wound up in the hospital several times due to a close overdose and lack of care for my well-being. I was going in and out of sobriety for a while, and I couldn’t seem to stay sober to save my life. It cost me a 10-year relationship, and my addiction destroyed many other friendships along the way.
Finally, something snapped inside of me, and I went to an outpatient program to try to get clean from my dependence on substances. I got out of the program in 9 days and promised myself that I would never get back to that point a day in my life again. I lasted a mere 9 months before I would eventually relapse and pick up the pills and alcohol once again. It was worse than ever, and I didn’t know where or who to turn to. Stricken down and feeling powerless, I had several failed suicide attempts, and it made me feel terrible inside. I couldn’t escape my conviction, and I couldn’t even kill myself to take the easy way out. I got sober once again and thought I could maintain it, but I realized I was not strong enough to do so. I experienced relapse after relapse, going in and out of sobriety while also destroying many relationships in the process. It wasn’t until I worked up the courage to go to AA that I found myself filled with hope for the first time since I had started drinking.
You see, I’ve always wanted more in my life. I’ve always thought I was driven and would make something of myself. I didn’t know what or how I would accomplish anything. The results seemed impossible. And that’s when I realized it’s not the results that matter. It’s about the process that gets you the results that matters, AKA your daily habits. So, with this new realization, I began to upgrade my daily habits immediately. I started reading, I started working out, and I began to learn everything that I could. And in the process of all this, I even lost 100 lbs of body weight! So, not only was I a new person mentally, but I was also physically unrecognizable. So, what I did next was I started my own copywriting business, helping personal trainers and fitness coaches gain more clients and close more deals. I’m still in the beginning stages and learning as I go, but that’s what this life is all about, right? Hahaha. This is what’s going to get me out of the “rat race” and keep me sober! Finally, I need a way to obtain that more I’ve always desired and a way to help others along the way. So where am I now, you ask? I’m grinding every day to ensure that I never become that old version of myself again and that I set myself up for success in the future! Catch me at the Crunch Fitness on East Colonial if you want to chat about my story or have questions! I am going to continue to go to AA and continue to work on my mental battles with alcohol and drugs daily because I know I’m strong enough to beat this and become something more than that old deadbeat people portrayed me to be.
Let’s dig deeper into the story – has it been an easy path, and if not, what challenges have you overcome?
It has been nothing but obstacles for me along the way. I have battled with substance abuse, jail time, financial loss, getting beat as a child, and even miscarriage. I used to wish to go back and change these things about myself. But I’ve realized something throughout the last few years of my self-improvement. Remember that this comes from someone who used to play the victim in everything. I used to say, “God hates me,” the world has it out for me, and I’ll never be someone you matter to. I used to bathe in self-pity and depression, literally. But what I’ve realized over the years is this. I would not have been such a strong individual if I hadn’t gone through those things. Those things didn’t happen to me; they occurred to me. They happened so that I could be the man I am today and come against any challenge in my life and face it head-on. I’ve gotten through my worst battles alive on the other end. So, what’s stopping me from getting through any other challenges I may face? Not a damn thing. I am so grateful that these things happened to me because they gave me such a strong foundation at such a young age and shaped me into a hardworking man today and for the rest of my life.
Thanks for sharing that. Please tell us more about your work.
I’m what’s called a freelance copywriter. I help others grow their business and close more leads through landing pages, sales pages, and email marketing! I’ve recently developed a huge passion for fitness but couldn’t see myself becoming a personal trainer. So, going down this path allows me to work directly with personal trainers and coaches! I get to watch them grow their clientele base and also succeed myself along the way! I’m still learning a lot about my business and myself, but I’m working with some great coaches to perfect my practice and plan to become the best copywriter Orlando offers! I’ve had many obstacles while starting my business, but thanks to my challenges, these seem like child’s play. What sets me apart from others is my willingness to learn and work with others from different backgrounds! I pick up knowledge quickly and apply it to practice, making overcoming obstacles easy. My knowledge of fitness is vast, and since I went through extreme weight loss and adversity with fitness, I can relate to many people who want to start their fitness journeys. This makes my products and emails very relatable and digestible to potential leads on the fence about hiring a trainer!
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
The most important lesson I’ve learned along this long journey is this. It’s not the result that matters; It’s the falling in love with the process of what obtains the results that matters. Some results will be good; some will be bad. But it’s up to you to remain calm and keep moving forward no matter the result of your work! Remember, it’s not happening to you; it’s happening for you. There is a lesson in every result, no matter whether it is good or bad.
Pricing:
- All pricing is subject to services needed.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://jacobybass.carrd.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereal_jacoby3/
