Professional Drug Addict

What happens when a tech executive trades corporate meetings for meth-fueled street survival? You'd think Arnel Castro Leyva had done well for himself, having built a far-flung career in the technology industry. But his life was always on the verge of ruin because his real job was a professional drug addict. Arnel loses everything and his double life collapses into a mid-life crisis of pandemic proportions. In the shadows of the Pacific Northwest, he descends into The Life: drug dealing, financial scams, grand theft auto, living with prostitutes, and organized retail theft. Along the way, he meets a cast of kindred spirits-narcissistic, codependent people-pleasers hell bent on exploiting the system, each other, and themselves. With prison looming, Arnel is given a chance at redemption through a strict yet therapeutic criminal justice program. He finds the startup idea of his life-helping other formerly incarcerated people with substance use disorders to create a life worth living-and realizes he was on the path to enlightenment all along. A brutally honest memoir-equal parts Leaving Las Vegas, Trainspotting, Breakfast at Sally's, and Breaking Bad-ultimately redeemed by a Brené Brown / Gabor Maté / 12-Step moral to the story.