My name is Marcelo Antunes. I was one of the millions of people drawn down the hard and painful path of DRUGS, where I remained for about 27 years of my life.

Today I am 47, I was born in Sao Paulo – capital, and, as bishop Formigoni cites in his book “The Last Rock”, I also didn’t have any major problems as a child, my family was welcoming, my parents were loving Christians, and I had the privilege of being the son of the state representative, later federal judge, Sinval Antunes de Souza (“in memoriam”). I had the opportunity to enjoy cutting-edge education. I attended one of the best primary schools in Sao Paulo (Pueri Domus); then, I studied law at FMU (United Metropolitan Colleges) and went back to a community college at the age of 20. I had the honor of being an attorney for the past 10 years, before leaving for treatment, about 5 years ago, because of a deep depression brought on by a parallel life that included countless parties surrounded by all types of drugs.

During my decadent story brought on by DRUGS, gradually during all these years, I was not too different from most people who come to know the darkness of this journey. It started as a curious and reckless teenager poking around, not knowing the size of the whole that I was beginning to dig toward one of the greatest pains a person can endure.

My first experience was at the age of 17, where I drank an alcoholic beverage mixed with beer or rum. Little did I know that night would be the beginning of all my suffering, quickly moving on to any other drugs that caused an illusory effect and euphoria. Among these drugs were marijuana, cocaine, LSD, mushroom tea, various types of amphetamine mixed with alcohol, inhalants and ecstasy.

Despite constant and abusive use of all the above-mentioned drugs, I was still able to, somehow, maintain my professional duties the best possible way.

antesBut I had no idea that the worst was yet to come, an unimaginable encounter with the “ROCK OF DEATH “, better known as “CRACK”. For the past 4 years, I have been dedicated to thoroughly describe what would be the utter downfall and neglect that made me, literally, imagine how hell would be, which I had heard people talk so much about throughout my life. This brought me to the ground, knocked out like a fighter without the strength to react, throwing in the towel of life.

Without even wanting to, I was invited to try taking a hit of crack.

Two puffs were enough to completely enslave me for the following 4 years. The amount of consumption rapidly increased and I couldn’t go one day without using. When I realized it, I was one of the most known people in Cracolandia in Sao Paulo, always looking to use, spending about R$ 14,000 per month.

If that weren’t enough, I began suffering all the consequences caused by the uncontrollable use. I stopped shaving, didn’t take a shower, no longer cut my nails, which were now black with filth from handling the piece of soda can used to smoke the drug; in other words, I completely neglected all personal hygiene. I began to lock myself in a room at home, only leaving during extreme situations and to receive medical treatment, which was based on strong medication to control the depression and anxiety.

Out of these 4 years, living like an animal without leaving my room, I spent the last 2 years in Bauru, at my mother’s house.

No longer believing there was a possible cure for my crack addiction, one day, my cousin’s husband, a member of the Universal Church, invited me to attend a meeting, which had a groundbreaking treatment and claimed that “ADDICTIONS HAVE A CURE”. He gave me a book called “The Last Rock,” which accounts the journey of addictions lived by the bishop Formigoni. He would be the guest speaker at this treatment. My cousin’s husband also said he’d introduce me to a very nice person that went through the same problem and managed to be delivered, and he would know the way for me to receive healing. It was Luciano Marques.

antes2Still enslaved to crack, I hopelessly accepted, because until then, inside myself, I didn’t believe in a cure, since I had underwent all kinds of treatments, medications and hospitalizations, but I hadn’t experienced any positive results.

At the end of the treatment, I was introduced to Luciano Marques, aka Lu F, who was mentioned in the book as Bishop Formigoni’s drug partner. After a brief explanation of his career in the world of addictions, he invited me to find out more about the Treatment for Healing of Addictions in Sao Paulo. I accepted the invitation and Luciano took me to Sao Paulo to participate in the treatment.

On the first day, still under the effect of drugs, I had the privilege of being counseled by Bishop Formigoni, who, with his charisma, spoke to me very properly, explaining that all I had to do was be obedient to the treatment and that it had worked for him, so it would work for me too. He invited me to attend the treatment for 4 consecutive Sundays.

Though I listened to his request, I was not delivered until the third Sunday.

That day, as we returned to Bauru, we stopped for dinner, and when Luciano mentioned rum and crack, I felt so sick and became so nauseas, that I had to run to the bathroom, feeling like I was going to throw up.

At that moment, I felt like something came out of me, and when I went back to the table, I felt so well that it was as if I had never used the “ROCK OF DEATH”. Startled, I turned to a friend to explain what had happened and that for the first time, I didn’t feel like using crack or much less even think of the smell of rum.

We were overcome with such an inexplicable joy that we came back to Bauru singing and smiling, listening to songs of praise.

That week, I stayed completely away from crack and alcoholic beverages, finally understanding what Bishop Formigoni said on the first day of treatment: drug addiction is a spirit.

In just one week, I became a totally different person. Everything started to change in my life, and I felt light, in my soul, which I had never felt before.

This would be the last Sunday of treatment, which I had determined to receive healing. When I realized that God had touched me, I had already become a different person, and didn’t even know how to explain this miracle in my life. I couldn’t even hear the word “rock” or rum, because I would immediately feel sick and nauseas.

Today, I continue faithful to the treatment. I take this opportunity to thank God for using Bishop Formigoni to teach me that through believing and being faithful to the treatment, I would be free from that spirit. I am 100% healed, and I want to state that this treatment really works, and if it worked for me it will work for you.

It is with much love affection that I take this opportunity to thank you for this breakthrough treatment, in which I have seen countless cures never seen in any treatment so far.

To Bishop Formigoni, I appreciate you for taking someone that hit rock bottom and bringing him to the glory of God. Amen.

Dr. Marcelo Antunes, Attorney of the State of Sao Paulo.