Marcel Gemme

Marcel got sober in 1987 after using drugs every day for seven years. For most of that time, he told himself he could stop whenever he wanted. He was lying to himself. His life had become chaotic. He would come home from work, eat, and smoke weed or hash until he almost passed out. He was in financial trouble supporting the habit, and had started being dishonest with people at work and at home. The turning point came when someone he had been honest with about his drug use asked him directly if he wanted to change. He was ready.

What he learned from going back into his old environment afterward continues to shape the advice he gives people leaving treatment today. He was hesitant about reconnecting and decided to pick carefully who to see first. The first friend he visited asked him where he had been. Marcel told him he had gotten clean. The friend was happy for him, even emotional about it. That was the exception. When Marcel told the rest of his old crowd, most laughed, didn’t believe him, or asked him why he was doing it. One night he sat down to play cards with three friends. Two had used with him for years. He told them he was clean. One acknowledged it. The other rolled a joint and offered it to him.

Out of about ten people from that period, one friend stayed. That experience is the foundation for one of his standing pieces of advice: people leaving treatment should not go back to friendships whose common ground was using.

After more than two decades of placement work, Marcel has developed clear positions on what makes treatment effective, grounded in cases he has worked through directly.

Why people use

Marcel sees addiction less as a choice and more as a substitution. With the exception of people who develop dependence after legitimate medical prescription of opioids, the individuals he has placed over the years share a common pattern: a missing skill or capacity, often around communication, handling pressure, or managing emotions, that drugs or alcohol filled in for. Treatment that does not address the underlying gap, in his experience, leaves people vulnerable when they return to the conditions that originally pushed them toward the substance.

Working with families

In Marcel’s experience, the most common mistake families make is enabling. Providing money, shelter, or support out of love or guilt can remove the natural consequences that often push a person toward treatment. He approaches families as active participants in the process and has guided parents and spouses through months of preparation before a placement becomes possible. His position is that families often need as much support and education as the person they are trying to help.

Cross-border placement

Marcel has unusual specialization in cross-border placement between the United States and Canada. In the early 2000s, he established agreements with Canada Immigration that allowed US clients to enter Canada for treatment under temporary permits, including for clients with non-violent criminal records related to substance use, where convictions would normally prevent entry. He has personally escorted clients across the border, handled customs, and managed the legal and logistical challenges of moving individuals in active addiction between two countries’ treatment systems.

We asked Marcel about his motivations for dedicating his life to helping individuals and their families with substance use issues.