PRINTFacing the Facts: David Helling
Rehabilitation center clinician
PHOTO BY ANDREW WILLIAMS
October 21, 2010 | 12:00 a.m. CST
David Helling doesn’t take anything for granted, especially socks. In January 1998, Helling finished his five-year prison sentence for DWI charges and was left with a shirt, a pair of underwear and one pair of socks. Within 12 years, he received a master’s degree in social work, became a director of a therapeutic community and an adjunct instructor at Columbia College and has two full, color-coded drawers of socks.
He gives hope to many in his community by working with Phoenix Programs Inc., a local recovery clinic that serves 1,500 to 2,000 clients annually. Helling is a board member for the Missouri Recovery Network and is also on the transformation committee for the Missouri Department of Mental Health in Jefferson City. He directs several housing programs and helps residents improve their mental health, get jobs and become reunited with their families. At Columbia College, Helling teaches about topics such as social services, substance abuse, case management and how to work with families.
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- Karaoke heaven at Eastside Tavern
- Rapping it up at a house party
- Snorty Horse Saloon goes country
- Bargain booze at Campus Bar & Grill
- Crashing at Pickleman’s
- Taxiing around with Rick's Taxi
- Tap into 1839 Taphouse
- Party in the parking lot
- Stop in for a manicure at Room 38
- Dance night at The King's Pickle
- On the town at Elks Lodge
- Filled to the brim at Trops
- A bash at Broadway Diner
- Drunks a la carte at El Rancho
- Drinking in Columbia
- SLIDE SHOW: A night out
Growing up in Franklin County, Helling recalls drinking throughout childhood, stealing his mother’s diabetic needles for drugs and watching his parents suffer and die from alcoholism. “I was just a tornado going through people’s lives, just taking and taking and taking,” he says. “It was like I was talking about someone else’s life. I could separate Dave Helling, the drug addict alcoholic, and Dave Helling, the one in recovery.”
After serving time in prison, Helling came to Columbia and became interested in social work. He discovered that Columbia is a good recovery town with numerous 12-step programs, faith-based organizations and Oxford Houses, which are drug-free group homes. But to be a good recovery town often means there has to be a lot of drugs and alcohol to begin with.
One of the largest obstacles to treatment is its social stigma. Helling is trying to eliminate this by focusing on the positive aspects of recovery to promote the importance of treatment. “(Recovery) is so shame-based,” Helling says. “It’s about getting rid of that shame and accepting the old person and the new.”
Helling’s greatest strength is his empathy. By overcoming his addiction, he is able to help others through training, experience and example. “I have a job that I love,” Helling says. “I help homeless people. I help those who have co-occuring mental disorders. I help people with drug and alcohol issues. It’s what I consider my passion in life.”
