Alex Yawitz: Biography
On June 3rd, 2016, Alex Yawitz was released from Juvenile and Adult probation after graduating high school and completing his treatment for several charges ranging from drug-related offenses and two DUI's resulting in numerous probation violations. It wasn't until 3 years later when Alex gave his first public speech and went on to further his experience by becoming a Senior Youth Counselor.
It was during Alex's Sophomore year of high school when numerous concussions quickly crushed his destiny for success through playing the sport he loved, football. That success quickly turned into court hearings when Alex's mental health began declining while experiencing depression and suicidal ideation. It was during Alex's Junior year of high school when Alex was introduced to cocaine and crack cocaine, leading him into a life of addiction, homelessness and incarceration.
Since becoming a counselor, Alex has set out to achieve the goals and dreams he has set for himself. Today Alex works alongside jueveile boys ages 12-18 behavioral health treatment center while beginning his journey towards pursuing his national speaking career.
"If I can touch just one person out of the entire audience I made a difference" - Alex Yawitz
While working tirelessly to achieve his goals Alex always knew that his work was not done. After giving his first public speech at his High school graduation in 2016 Alex realisized speaking was something he enjoyed. Today, Alex chases his dreams of continuing his national speaking career sharing his knowledge and extensive experience on his ability to connect with diverse audiences ranging from high level health care professionals to individuals in recovery and at risk youth. Alex's message on mental health and substance use resonates deeply in high schools, colleges, faith based organizations and treatment centers across the Country!
Book Alex today and Start Your Journey!
Alex Yawitz - Motivational Speaker
Gateway Drugs are Real:
Addiction in different forms:
The importance of structure:
During Middle School, I remember being introduced to what would be considered and become my gateway drugs of choice. Marijuana, alcohol and tobacco. Tobacco products were the beginning and a hard one to avoid because they were everywhere. Parents smoking cigarettes, older siblings with their vapes, it was everywhere and hard to avoid. "Here, man just hit and hold it in," and wanting to experience what my parents were doing.
Alcohol, what we don't understand is that alcohol boosts our confidence a lot of times for the bad and not good. I remember during the early stages of my addiction I would begin drinking, which was then followed by boosted confidence to try other drugs, poor decision making, such as vandalism, peer pressure, and fueling my depression. Alcohol is an antidepressant. During the early stages of my addiction, I began leaning towards alcohol to cope with my emotions from life at home, not knowing that the alcohol was only making matters worse, fueling my depression.
Other drugs follows behind the use of alcohol kind of like a domino affect. We gain confidence under the influence of alcohol and become more accepting of exploring more outside of our comfort zones and trying new things under the negative affects of peer pressure. When I started down this negative path, marijuana quickly turned into the want to explore other drugs. I started smoking marijuana daily and hanging out with more negative unhealthy peers that had easy access to the things I wanted. It wasn't long until days hanging around those peers weren't just smoking marijuana. Pills, cocaine, and harder drugs began to enter the picture. By 17 I was addicted to smoking crack cocaine.
Addiction is broken down into two forms, substance and behavioral. During my addiction, I wasn't just addicted to drug and alcohol use; it was more than that. I was becoming addicted to a lifestyle without even realizing. What many people don't understand is that people are searching for a social connection more than you think, just someone to talk to. My mental health was suffering, and I was covering it up with alcohol and substance abuse but wasn't talking to anyone. That was when I realized my addiction wasn't just the substances it was more than that. Being a drug dealer, you consistently are meeting, talking, and interacting with others without even realizing it. I became addicted to earning money at a faster pace, but I mainly became addicted to having someone to talk to, whether it was just cause they needed their fix; I viewed it as a chance to socialize. I became addicted to the phone calls and texts, making me realize the importance of having someone to talk to.
Without structure, a plan, things start to become unorganized. When I was in school before my addiction to substance abuse began, I implemented a strong schedule of structure through staying active in sports and my love for playing football and maintaining my body through working out. Structure wasn't visible to me until it was too late. Football was a link in my chain that I realized I could not remove. During my high school year, I made the hardest decision of my life up to that point, and that was my decision to step away from the game I loved playing, football. I didn't realize walking away from the sport I loved was opening my life up for more negativity. I didn't realize that if you don't replace that removed structure it allows negative activities to fill those empty time slots. I went from just saying I can workout all week and just partying on the weekends. It wasn't long before just those weekends started to turn into weekdays quickly taking over my life.
What I also didn't understand was that football was my way of healthily releasing the built-up anger and emotions I had inside, keeping me levelheaded in day-to-day life. When football ended, that anger and those emotions began to rise and boil over the top through violence, fighting, destruction of property, and hurting people that didn't sign up to get hurt like football. The importance of having a sport, hobby, or activity of interest plays a key role in young adolescent life and development, not only for our youth but for adults as well, because without that outlet being a sport, weight-lifting, or a job, because negativity will only take over.
"Believe you can and you're halfway there"
-Theodore Roosevelt
Coping with Loss & how to deal with it:
Coping with loss has been something weighing heavily on me as of late, and I thought that it would be beneficial to share how I have been managing to cope with the hurt, emotion, and stress that comes with that loss on a day-to-day basis. We are reminded by these things at an unavoidable rate, hearing a song, seeing a picture, smelling a certain scent.
I get asked a lot how I cope and continue to find the energy and motivation to push forward and do the right thing even on the days that i might not want to. The days that I wake up feeling down and depressed are the days that are the most important that I get up and tackle my day head on and make the people up above looking down on you proud through your actions as if they were still here watching your every move.
Last April, I lost my hero, the person I called when I needed a hand or advice. I didn't just lose my Dad, but I lost my best friend. It is an empty void that seemingly never gets filled.
A couple of months ago I faced a hardship I didn't think I could handle. Fast forward, it's the morning of my first high school speaking presentation, arguably the biggest moment in my speaking career. I woke up that morning sick to my stomach, depressed, upset, and feeling that emptiness of not having my dad, extra heavy. I had two options: call and cancel and let down a bunch of youth that had been expecting me, or to get up out of bed and to crush that speech for the person that mattered most, being my Dad.
From that moment on, I jumped up out of my bed and went on to deliver one of the most powerful, well-presented speeches of my career.
So I share this story of advice with you all today for when you are feeling down or depressed and not feeling that you can handle the day, think to the person you would really be letting down and think about the people consistently watching you even when you don't think they are and why you need to make them proud.
Written by: Alex Yawitz, May 04, 2026
Change: People, places, things
Nobody likes change; its a natural instinct for human beings to not want to change something that they have become use to because of the comfort that comes with doing something we have already done for so long.
During addiction, one of the most important things a struggling person can do is change the people, places, and things in their life. How do you expect me to make new friends? How would you feel going to a new school in high school not knowing anyone or having any friends to talk to or sit with at lunch?
Change is hard, especially for younger people, but when you begin to surround yourself with successful people with good jobs, nice cars, and nice houses, you will begin to notice that those things will begin to rub off onto you.
This leads me to my point: You are only as successful as the people and things you surround yourself with.
Written by: Alex Yawitz, April 26th, 2026.
Thrill Seekers: Healthy Thrill vs unhealthy thrill & how to fill it.
Another thing I realized during my addiction was my want, need, and like for thrill. Thrills activate an ancient neural circuit linking the brain's pleasure and emotional sensors, flooding them with dopamine. Not only is dopamine released during, but often in anticipation during the buildup leading to that event. Growing up, being a thrill seeker was only amplified during my addiction. Something about breaking the law, running from the police on dirt bikes, on foot, or in a car was exciting to me. Retail theft became a big part of my lifestyle during this time in my addiction, not just because of the items but because of the rush and thrill that came with it. Planning everything out, picking out which stores, which malls, and what items, not even realizing that I was falling in love with the rush of dopamine. Breaking into people's houses exploited a rush of dopamine like not too many other things in this world can provide, or ripping someone off and driving away. I didn't realize that the thrill and rush of my actions was becoming my addiction because of the pleasure it brought me. When I got sober, one of the hardest things in the world was finding a way to replace that loss of dopamine on such a regular, consistent occurrence. I tried a lot of things, and nothing seemed to be able to give me the "fix" I was looking for like I got doing the terrible illegal things I fell in love with doing. I realized if I didn't find something to accomplish this urge I was beginning to crave so badly that it was only a matter of time until I went back to my old ways. That is when I found my love for riding a motorcycle. There is something about cruising down the road, with the wind in your hair and the sound of a Harley-Davidson engine roaring through the Pennsylvania hills, freeing the mind and soul of any outside stress and emotions. It was that day I realized I had found something that could help in a healthy yet successful way.
Written by: Alex Yawitz, April 26th, 2026.
