Our Stories
Share the power of long-term recovery. If you are in recovery, a family member, friend or ally of someone in recovery, we want to hear your recovery story!
Learn more...
Faces & Voices of Recovery's book page
has information on many of the growing number of recovery-related publications. It’s a work in progress, so please let us know of other books that you think we should include. Check it out!
|
Our Stories
Linda W.
Hilton Head Island, SC
I am the granddaughter, daughter, sister and mother of alcoholics. I never knew my grandfather because he died before I was born. My father is 84 years old and stopped drinking and smoking for good on the same day after several relapses 40 years ago. I can remember sitting on the couch and holding his hand as he went through withdrawal.
My brother drank for at least the past 40 years and became sober last year after nearly losing his wife who is also an alcoholic and losing his children for three months. It was like watching a car wreck in slow motion. His pastor and friends and I got him into rehab but he ultimately got sober going to AA in his home town by getting to meetings on his bike. He has been sober over a year.
My eldest daughter became addicted in her early twenties. She spent over a year in rehab. She relapsed twice and is now sober for over a month. I pray that she really wants sobriety this time.
I was inspired to write this after reading William Cope Moyers book “Broken.” This disease has torn through our family like a hurricane. Without Al-Anon I would not be here. I have learned volumes about myself and how damaging my unrelenting need to try and make my adult life perfect has been. I have to work at letting go everyday. There has been a lot of hurt but I have learned to “hate the disease love the addict.” Unconditional love is easy to say and hard to do.
It is true that our culture assigns such shame to the disease of addiction. I think the public press is so sympathetic to movies stars and public figures that battle addiction but when it hits home to our communities it addiction is still stigmatized by shame.
Click here to sign up for the Faces & Voices online newsletter. Meet other powerful faces and voices; get regular updates of the recovery community’s advocacy across the country!