A little over a year ago, My life was in complete chaos. On the outside, it may have looked like I was doing ok. I had a job, a roof over my head and was married. However, the reality was that I worked to use, and I used to work. I had a roof over my head, but I lived with my father in law and didn’t pay bills. I was quickly destroying that relationship. I am still married, but our relationship was in turmoil and unhealthy. My addiction controlled everything in my life, and I was damaging every aspect. I was headed towards death. God had another plan for me. I ended up being arrested on drug charges and spent some much deserved time incarcerated. Finally, it was the wake up call I needed.
I needed to change. I was defeated and anxious, but I was also willing to do whatever I needed to do to get sober and stay sober. In jail, I had the opportunity to take a Substance Abuse Program. I learned about the nature regarding the disease of addiction and sought coping skills to combat it. I also took an In2work program to help me upon re-entry to get a job. Each of the programs offered in jail provided me with the resources to set me up for success upon release. One of those resources was sober living. My husband and I both wanted to get sober, but we also knew we had to do that on our own. Meaning, we would need to work our own program, and place our priorities in the appropriate order. God, our program, and then everything else. We knew we could never be good for each other if we didn’t work on ourselves separately. My SAP case manager gave me Better Beginnings phone number, ironically the same day my husband, whom was already at his sober living community, had given me the same phone number for Better Beginnings. It was definitely a God moment for me. When I called Tamara from jail, I knew I had found a place that wanted to help me succeed. She spoke with me about her houses, along with the resources that she was partnered with that could also help me. I heard a sincere desire to give people hope for recovery. Since being released I have been living here at Better Beginnings, I have completed and received help from Operation New Hope ( a wonderfully caring and helpful re-entry organization partnered with Better Beginnings), and I have gained employment utilizing the In2work program offered to me while incarcerated. Living at Better Beginnings, I was strongly encouraged to have a 12 step sponsor and attend meetings. This house of recovery has also provided the atmosphere I needed to work a solid program of recovery, create a support network, ability to start to mend relationships, and improve my marriage. During this process, I have celebrated 1 year of sobriety, have had the opportunity to really work on myself, and by doing so, my life has been changed completely, well beyond my wildest dreams. Better Beginnings has given me a safe and encouraging place to live this wonderful life of recovery, and I am forever grateful there is a place like this to give people like me hope. Hope for sobriety, hope for a happy life, and hope for an actual future. I haven't had hope in a long time, and with all the blessings in my life, I can honestly state I am grateful to be apart of the Better Beginning family.