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# From addict to future college graduate
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/from-addict-to-future-college-graduate/
- Published: 2008-06-10T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T19:53:05.000Z
- Author: Melody Hanatani
- Tags: Education, Santa Monica, #archive-import

James Garside felt he was half dead. “I had overdosed on heroin and meth and alcohol,” Garside said. “I was in a diabetic coma for four days and when I woke up, I was tied down in ICU.”

Post-hospital stay, the first thing Garside reached for was drugs and alcohol.

It was in that moment he realized he had a problem. Garside grew up in the San Gabriel Valley, self-described as “feminine,” and often subjected to bullying. The South El Monte High School graduate became detached as a result, turning to alcohol and drugs for comfort. After realizing his problem, Garside began a life of sobriety, which continues more than three years later. He enrolled at SMC in 2005, taking courses in philosophy, hoping to do his parents proud.

With a degree in philosophy, Garside plans to transfer to University of California at Berkeley in the fall, aspiring to teach the subject at the university level some day.

“It means a lot to me because I’m finally able to show something to my parents, that I’ve accomplished something in my 30 years of existence,” Garside said. “Before it was a lot of heartache for them.”

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 10, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/061008.pdf?ref=smdp.com)