December is a special month for a lot of people.
There are decorations all over, but for Dejah Hall December marks a very dark time in her life.
"I was a monster. I was a monster in every sense of the word,” she said.
Hall was addicted to meth, cocaine and heroin--and has pictures to show the physical toll the drugs took. Her life was out of control, and she was on the run from the law.
That was until December 2012 when she visited her grandfather Rich, on his birthday.
“My grandfather was sitting in his wheelchair and he looked at me he said, 'You're hurting me Dejah,'” she remembered.
Hall said it was in that moment she realized she needed to change.
"I went to the bathroom, and I looked at myself and I really looked at who I had become. This disgusting person who needed to continue to stick these drugs in their veins because I couldn't function," she described.
Hall promised her Grandpa she would get clean. Hours later, federal agents arrested Dejah on her felony warrants.
She went to prison and began her sobriety.
"More than anything, I wish I could tell him that I made it. That I'm doing it,” Hall said, holding a picture of her grandfather.
Two weeks after her arrest, her grandfather passed away. Hall says it’s her promise to him to remain sober that keeps her going.
Four years later, she’s clean and inspiring others.
She posted her amazing transformation on Facebook and it’s going viral.
"People from all over the country, I have people from England, and the Netherlands, the Philippines, everybody contacting me about my story,” said Hall.
She is halfway through earning her college degree and wants to work in prisons to help others struggling with addiction.
She says no matter what, there is always hope.
She says this December, she is thankful for a second chance.
Hall will begin a new job as a drug and alcohol counselor at Community Bridges in January.
