Sheltered by Grace transform’s the lives of the homeless and those at risk of domestic violence, mental health and drug and alcohol addiction through the provision of supported accommodation and dedicated case management.
Coming from a domestic violence situation, Paige found herself addicted to meth amphetamine to cope with her trauma. She checked herself into another rehab but was asked to leave following her choice to start cigarette smoking again.
Narcotics and Triggers
Paige came to Sheltered by Grace in December 2020 where she has been undertaking the rehab recovery program. As part of her program, she has undertaken the Narcotics Anonymous 12 step program that has been delivered on site and learnt a lot of things about herself and her triggers.
She says that she had not taken responsibility for her own actions and when she started the rehab recovery program with Sheltered by Grace, she initially fought against the process for some time as she was trying to rush her recovery process and was already in the middle of looking for a house for herself and her children.
Battling Authority Figures
It wasn’t until step 2 of her recovery process that she realised that she needed more help than she had previously received at the last rehab. She had battled with authority figures for some time and once she started to find her triggers and character defects, things started to get better, and she looked at things in a different light. She realised that recovery is not a quick fix and you’re better, rather it’s an everyday battle that she still struggles with. Now she knows how to make better choices for herself.
Taking Control of Her Own Actions and Choices
By undertaking steps eight and nine of the recovery program, she has reconnected with family and made amends. She says that through this stage she bawled her eyes out because she knew that everything she was blaming her family for was a result of her own actions and choices. She then found she was able to talk about these things, make amends, discuss what she was sorry for and back that up with actions. Being able to reconnect with her parents was a big thing as she wasn’t sure they would be able to rekindle after the poor choices she had made over the last few years. She acknowledges that it’s an ongoing process but is willing to make that work and show she has changed.
No Judgement
She enjoyed the Sheltered by Grace program as there was no judgement when it came to her addiction, her disease and to have other addicts like herself doing the same program and having conversations about their past and there being no judgement. The support from staff was good as well, especially Naje our Social Worker who is an amazing support with a great heart. She goes above and beyond.
Paige's Recovery Journey
We are really proud of Paige for finishing her rehab and getting her life back on track. It’s great that she has seen the choices she made and the impact on herself and her family. She is going to start volunteering with Sheltered by Grace or another organisation to really cement her learnings and has secured a rental property for herself and her children where she can still link in to support services and be supported in her ongoing recovery journey.
Paige said “It’s been a journey. Addiction is not a living heaven, it’s being let out of the gates of hell” and “It’s been very good to be able to finish something for once in my life”.
Unfortunately, Paige's story is not unique. Women who have children, but their children don’t live with them make up approximately 20% of our clients and often present with drug and alcohol dependencies, domestic and family violence issues, poor mental health and underlying trauma. Our programs help people like Paige to get their mental health back on track, assist with court issues, deal with dependencies and assist in reconnecting with family. With your support, we can help more people like Paige to transform their lives and change the lives of their families.
Please donate now to help others like Paige to get their lives back on track. All amounts help.
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