My Son is a Junky
by Darla
(Selkirk, NY, USA)
3 years ago I found out that my son was using heroin and that he had been arrested for home robberies to support his habit. It was the biggest shock of my life, and he is my only child, so needless to say it caused major trauma for me. It’s impossible to really explain the impact of this to anyone who has not lived it. All the hopes and dreams you have for your child evaporate and all you can think of is that you must save him from dying of an overdose, or being killed by a drug dealer.
After jail visits, and rehab visits, and very limited clean time in the past 3 years, I was finally getting worn down. This happens to those of us who have loved ones who are addicts–watching them suffer multiple relapses, trying everything you can think of to “help” the addict, and unwittingly becoming an Enabler, life becomes unmanageable, and unbearably stressful.
That’s when I turned to Nar Anon–the local group here in the Albany NY area is located at 31 Vly Rd. in Colonie. If anyone out there needs a support group this one is great. We meet every Tuesday at 7pm at the Colonie Christian Life Center.
Everyone in the group shares the similar experience of having a loved one—spouse, child, sibling or friend who is an addict. The focus is on ourselves–how we can stop enabling, gain some control of our own lives, and set boundaries so that the addict does not absorb every waking moment of our minds and emotions.
|
There’s hope…
Your son will escape this I’m sure but when he’s not just physically ready but emotionally ready as well it will only happen when he wants to change things no matter how much you want him 2 stop there’s only him that can stop it that’s what my mum learned, she couldn’t stop me I had 2 make the 1st move Good luck Deanha |
|
The key is love and kindness…
After doing a lot of research and asking around I finally settled on a place in Herrontown called Princeton House Behavioral Health. http://www.princetonhcs.org/default.aspx?p=4703 They could not have been kinder with me and my son. The approach they used was a full-spectrum system, with group, individual and behavioral care blended together. I thank god that my son has been sober for 8 months now. Yes, every day is a new struggle for him, but the loving kindness that Princeton House was able to show both him and me has helped us know that we have the strength to do this. |