Brooke’s Journey is a Familiar Journey
As the 21st young woman to complete the Megan’s House program shared her journey on her graduation day, it sounded strikingly similar to the road traveled by the first 20 young women to complete the program.
Experimentation with substances that turns into addiction; a rapidly accelerating downward spiral; the desperation that leads to stealing from loved ones to feed the habit; facing the choice of going to jail or seeking treatment; the difficult adjustment period to life at Megan’s House; accepting a new way of living; and the realization that, yes, you can have fun and enjoy life sober.
In recounting that journey, Brooke also shed light on what makes Megan’s House the special place it is and the program the success it is; a sense of belonging and the realization you’re not alone.
“The big difference between when I first came here and now is when I’m upset, I have people I can reach out to,” the most recent graduate told her new friends and family. “I have a network now.”
That network proved invaluable as Brooke faced a few missteps, even while at Megan’s House. Eventually, those challenges were overcome and recovery flourished.
“Since I’ve been here, I’ve managed to pay off all my debt,” she continued. “I went back to work at the job I almost lost and regained the trust of my family.”
As her address to the staff and residents of Megan’s House wound to a close, Brooke looked back at celebrating this past Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, birthday and St. Patrick’s Day sober.
“I still had fun and I remember all of it,” she recalled proudly. “If you keep doing the right thing, good things will keep happening.”
Good things, where once only bad things existed. Hope, where once none existed. Quite a journey, wouldn’t you say?