I have plenty of experience when it comes to substance abuse. My father was in prison from the time I was in diapers until I was 18 due to consequences of his addiction. My mother did her best, but was lonely and remarried when I was 10 to another addict. At first he just drank a little, then a lot, then went to drugs. He was abusive and nearly killed her before she finally left him.A few years later she told me he was sober & in recovery. I wouldnt believe it until I saw it and saw it for awhile, I wouldnt even go around him for about a year. It was true though, he even ran a half way house, we developed a relationship & to this day I consider him my father. He still runs a halfway house & I volunteer there. Each day I see these addicts. A lot of them don't stay faithful to their recovery. I had grown attached to a few throughout the years I have volunteered, & many of those have relapsed & even died due to their addiction. One had alcohal poisoning & wasnt recovered in his apartment until 4 days after his death. Another got drunk & got hit by a train.
I see it time & again, women who have lost their children due to their habit trying to gain back custody. & time & again they relapse & never get their children back. The result: their children grow up with total strangers or in foster care where they themselves are abused until they are kicked out on the streets at age 18. I know their feeling, the feeling of abandonment, the feeling that an ounce of heroin or a bottle of liquor is more important than they are, because that is what it comes down to. I am tired of hearing these women say they love their children ect. when the truth is that if they really had loved their children they wouldnt have taken them to crack houses, or left them in a house full of drugs, or even forgot them somewhere due to their own state of mind.
Now dont misunderstand I pray that these people get their lives together & do get back their children. But I have found that the statistics of that happening are slim. I do believe that these people want to recover but the addiction is strong & lurking, waiting for a problem at work, with family, or with finances so that the addict will run back to it.
Interventions:we've all seen the show Intervention, the desperate plees for family members to seek help. Many of the time, an intervention is unsuccessful. Tonight I watched a show where a 16 yr old girl begged her mother to go to rehab. She would see her mother get drunk each night, stumble around, fall over, throw up, and get in wrecks. She cried that she was scared that 1 day she would get a phone call saying her mother had been in a wreck and either died or killed someone. She had to raise her 3 younger siblings because her mother was unable to do so properly. It is sad that a 16 yr old girl dealing with her own problems cannot even be a teenager. She has to grow up & be a mother to her sisters, & a nurse to her addict mother. Her mother refused to get help.
This is a sad reality, addiction is a powerful thing. Some people will die before they ever get help. Some will have to lose everything before they do; their homes, kids, dignity, and jobs. I am surprised each day while volunteering to learn of the things people have done under the influence. One women resorted to prostitution to pay for her addiction. Another got pregnant & didnt even know it until 6 mos. after.Some go to prison, some are raped, some are beaten, some abuse their children. The list goes on, to write of all the stories Ive heard would take hours.
I am so thankful for all of those who seek help, if any of this sounds similar to situations you have experienced or someone you love has, consider getting help. As an addict you do not only effect yourself but everyone who loves you. You will do things you never would clean. You will lose grasp of every dream & aspiration you have ever had. Your addiction WILL overshadow them, it will overshadow your family, and your self respect.You may use to forget your problems, to feel better, to escape,but the truth is not only that your problems will be there when youre sober, but your problems will grow.
At least when youre sober you can have a good time and actually remember it.
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
