Remembering who I was
A story of Local Response by Rachel from Chrysalide
“Once you start down the pathway of drug use… well… let’s just say some days it’s hard to remember who you are, let alone who you used to be before you started using drugs.
A real trigger for me to realize that it was possible and necessary for me to choose a different path is the day I took stock of the breadth of my mother’s suffering… and of how badly the whole family suffered because of me. That day, my mom begged with me to remember the girl I used to be, she said she believed it in her heart that I could go back to being that girl. That was a first turning point for me, and I went into therapy.
Now being here (Chrysalide) was another turning point. Here, people constantly reminded me of my potential, of the goals I had set for myself, and the staff and sisters here [the other residents] also pointed out the different capacities I had. And so I began to remember the girl I used to be, which was really one of my dreams, rediscovering the girl I was before all of this happened.
And now, because I feel valued and have started to regain my self-confidence, I know I am already on the path to becoming who I choose to be.
“When I felt valued exactly as I am, then I could reconnect with who I used to be and decide who I wished to be today.”
Contact details:
Rachel (Chrysalide)
Facebook: Rachel Fred
(+230) 54760611 (her mother’s number)
