“If you really want recovery, Hedgerow House has a lot to offer to help you achieve it”
RISE Housing and Support Services continues to observe National Recovery Month by celebrating Christina, a Hedgerow House graduate, for successfully maintaining her sobriety since completing the program last November.
Christina is very proud of her accomplishment and credits much of her success to the help she received from staff, “Hedgerow House has a lot to offer and, if you really want recovery, the staff is very supportive in helping you achieve it. They were instrumental in my successful transition back into the real world.”
Christina also credits the support of her family and her fiancé. One of Christina’s proudest moments was back in February when her fiancé and daughter came to her one-year celebration meeting and her daughter presented her with her one-year coin.
“I’m so grateful for my fiancé. He saw me at rock bottom, but he has stayed with me through it all.” And she talks about one of her greatest joys, being able to spend time with her three-year old grandson.
“Spending time with my grandson is the greatest gift of recovery.”
Rebuilding trust has helped her continue to do the work to stay sober, especially through her battle with cancer earlier this. “It hasn’t been easy staying sober,” Christina says, “especially because I was sick with liver cancer. But I made it through it and stayed clean, all without using narcotics.”
Working a solid recovery program has also played a big part in maintaining her sobriety. Christina says that attending Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) meetings and working the 12 Steps with her best friend and sponsor keeps her focused. Going to her relapse prevention classes at New Choices also helps her continue to make positive choices and even through the shutdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic she kept attending meetings and classes virtually. Giving back helps her grow in her recovery, “I am a senior member now and I’ve been told that my participation in the virtual classes is greatly appreciated. It is hard for some people to talk in a virtual class and when I share, it helps others to participate.”
Christina freely shares her recovery story in hopes that the hardships she has overcome inspires others in their recovery. She acknowledges, “I had been an addict for 30 years, and in the past, I have not been able to stay sober longer than six months. I began drinking alcohol and smoking weed when I was 12 years old. Later, as an adult, when I first had health issues, I was prescribed narcotics and other pain medications which eventually lead to my heroin addiction.”
“The support of the Hedgerow House staff gave me confidence”
In February 2019 while struggling with legal, mental health, and addiction issues, including time in jail and a near-fatal overdose, Christina decided she really wanted recovery. It was then she began her journey towards living a sober life. “My chance to turn my life around came in April,” she explains, “I was offered a reduction in the legal charges I was facing if I were to go into a rehab, so I did. While there, I heard about the program at Hedgerow House and started the admission process.”
In May 2019, Christina entered and fully embraced the Hedgerow House program. “I did what I was told,” she says, “I started attending AA meetings, got a sponsor, and I worked the 12 steps. I went to my groups at St. Peter’s Addiction Recovery Center (SPARC) and started volunteering at Noah’s Attic Thrift Store.” Christina says that it was with the support and guidance of the Hedgerow House staff that she was able to work on herself and the heal the trauma she had experienced throughout her life. “This gave me confidence,” she explains, “I was able to make friends and establish strong female sober supports. I got a commitment at one of my AA meetings, and eventually I even felt confident enough to run meetings.”
Since her graduation from Hedgerow House in November 2019, Christina has been living in a Supported Housing apartment through New Choices. She continues to attend relapse prevention groups and AA meetings, and is enjoying spending time with her family. Christina says, “I volunteer at the Community Action Thrift Store and I am working on a project to send customized gift baskets to the residents of a nursing home in Florida where one of my friend’s grandmother lives.”
RISE congratulates Christina on her amazing recovery story, is proud to a part of it, and wishes her much success as she continues her recovery journey.