12 Years of Sobriety: “This Year Feels Different”

Adrienne says this year feels different. The Parisi House graduate just celebrated her 12th year sober this past May. Having recently gone through a divorce, she feels like she is reclaiming her power in some ways once again. Adrienne knows that life will always be full of ups and downs, but she uses healthier tools today to overcome the challenges. She credits her time at Parisi House for helping her build a solid foundation that allows her to meet those moments head-on.

Adrienne started experimenting with substances in high school. It began with drinking and marijuana and later led to the harder party drugs. Looking back, she believes she was looking to fill a void left by undiagnosed mental health issues. She began self-medicating, although she didn’t know it at the time. The party drugs led to methamphetamine use which turned into an addiction. She spent these challenging years just trying to survive. At 23, she had her son.

Adrienne says when she came to Parisi House, “the path was laid out for me; I just had to follow it.” During the first month, she could focus on bonding more with her 3-year-old son. She took a lot of comfort in the safety and routine she found in our program. She says that even the daily schedule and responsibilities she was given here taught her how to structure her life and daily routines once she graduated. These seemingly insignificant tasks of making her bed, helping with mealtime, and being held to a household schedule were critical components to her long-term success.

“I wasn’t in survival mode anymore,” Adrienne says. With her necessities met, she could tackle bigger goals that moved her life forward in a positive direction. She had been diagnosed with anxiety and depression before coming to Parisi House. Parisi House helped her get back on medication and make critical connections with mental health providers so that she was better equipped to manage her mental health. She also made plans to return to college and eventually earned her Masters’s Degree in Accounting.

Today she feels like she “is living all her prayers answered.” She dreamed of one day having a loving, happy, and secure home herself. She has a job she loves and is well suited for, and she has a fantastic relationship with her son. Some of her loved ones even eventually followed in her footsteps into sobriety themselves. She can now see the blessings in her life even amid challenging times. Although she recently went through a divorce, she also draws strength in the lessons from that experience. She can make hard decisions when she knows it is best for her. She is reclaiming her independence and taking the time to do some more healing. She looks back on her time at Parisi House with gratitude. Today, when she asks her son if he remembers what she was like before Parisi House, he replies, “no, I just remember that you were better after.”

Adrienne says this year feels different. The Parisi House graduate just celebrated her 12th year sober this past May. Having recently gone through a divorce, she feels like she is reclaiming her power in some ways once again. Adrienne knows that life will always be full of ups and downs, but she uses healthier tools today to overcome the challenges. She credits her time at Parisi House for helping her build a solid foundation that allows her to meet those moments head-on.

Adrienne started experimenting with substances in high school. It began with drinking and marijuana and later led to the harder party drugs. Looking back, she believes she was looking to fill a void left by undiagnosed mental health issues. She began self-medicating, although she didn’t know it at the time. The party drugs led to methamphetamine use which turned into an addiction. She spent these challenging years just trying to survive. At 23, she had her son.

Adrienne says when she came to Parisi House, “the path was laid out for me; I just had to follow it.” During the first month, she could focus on bonding more with her 3-year-old son. She took a lot of comfort in the safety and routine she found in our program. She says that even the daily schedule and responsibilities she was given here taught her how to structure her life and daily routines once she graduated. These seemingly insignificant tasks of making her bed, helping with mealtime, and being held to a household schedule were critical components to her long-term success.

“I wasn’t in survival mode anymore,” Adrienne says. With her necessities met, she could tackle bigger goals that moved her life forward in a positive direction. She had been diagnosed with anxiety and depression before coming to Parisi House. Parisi House helped her get back on medication and make critical connections with mental health providers so that she was better equipped to manage her mental health. She also made plans to return to college and eventually earned her Masters’s Degree in Accounting.

Today she feels like she “is living all her prayers answered.” She dreamed of one day having a loving, happy, and secure home herself. She has a job she loves and is well suited for, and she has a fantastic relationship with her son. Some of her loved ones even eventually followed in her footsteps into sobriety themselves. She can now see the blessings in her life even amid challenging times. Although she recently went through a divorce, she also draws strength in the lessons from that experience. She can make hard decisions when she knows it is best for her. She is reclaiming her independence and taking the time to do some more healing. She looks back on her time at Parisi House with gratitude. Today, when she asks her son if he remembers what she was like before Parisi House, he replies, “no, I just remember that you were better after.”

12 Years of Sobriety: “This Year Feels Different”

Adrienne says this year feels different. The Parisi House graduate just celebrated her 12th year sober this past May. Having recently gone through a divorce, she feels like she is reclaiming her power in some ways once again. Adrienne knows that life will always be full of ups and downs, but she uses healthier tools today to overcome the challenges. She credits her time at Parisi House for helping her build a solid foundation that allows her to meet those moments head-on.

Adrienne started experimenting with substances in high school. It began with drinking and marijuana and later led to the harder party drugs. Looking back, she believes she was looking to fill a void left by undiagnosed mental health issues. She began self-medicating, although she didn’t know it at the time. The party drugs led to methamphetamine use which turned into an addiction. She spent these challenging years just trying to survive. At 23, she had her son.

Adrienne says when she came to Parisi House, “the path was laid out for me; I just had to follow it.” During the first month, she could focus on bonding more with her 3-year-old son. She took a lot of comfort in the safety and routine she found in our program. She says that even the daily schedule and responsibilities she was given here taught her how to structure her life and daily routines once she graduated. These seemingly insignificant tasks of making her bed, helping with mealtime, and being held to a household schedule were critical components to her long-term success.

“I wasn’t in survival mode anymore,” Adrienne says. With her necessities met, she could tackle bigger goals that moved her life forward in a positive direction. She had been diagnosed with anxiety and depression before coming to Parisi House. Parisi House helped her get back on medication and make critical connections with mental health providers so that she was better equipped to manage her mental health. She also made plans to return to college and eventually earned her Masters’s Degree in Accounting.

Today she feels like she “is living all her prayers answered.” She dreamed of one day having a loving, happy, and secure home herself. She has a job she loves and is well suited for, and she has a fantastic relationship with her son. Some of her loved ones even eventually followed in her footsteps into sobriety themselves. She can now see the blessings in her life even amid challenging times. Although she recently went through a divorce, she also draws strength in the lessons from that experience. She can make hard decisions when she knows it is best for her. She is reclaiming her independence and taking the time to do some more healing. She looks back on her time at Parisi House with gratitude. Today, when she asks her son if he remembers what she was like before Parisi House, he replies, “no, I just remember that you were better after.”

Adrienne says this year feels different. The Parisi House graduate just celebrated her 12th year sober this past May. Having recently gone through a divorce, she feels like she is reclaiming her power in some ways once again. Adrienne knows that life will always be full of ups and downs, but she uses healthier tools today to overcome the challenges. She credits her time at Parisi House for helping her build a solid foundation that allows her to meet those moments head-on.

Adrienne started experimenting with substances in high school. It began with drinking and marijuana and later led to the harder party drugs. Looking back, she believes she was looking to fill a void left by undiagnosed mental health issues. She began self-medicating, although she didn’t know it at the time. The party drugs led to methamphetamine use which turned into an addiction. She spent these challenging years just trying to survive. At 23, she had her son.

Adrienne says when she came to Parisi House, “the path was laid out for me; I just had to follow it.” During the first month, she could focus on bonding more with her 3-year-old son. She took a lot of comfort in the safety and routine she found in our program. She says that even the daily schedule and responsibilities she was given here taught her how to structure her life and daily routines once she graduated. These seemingly insignificant tasks of making her bed, helping with mealtime, and being held to a household schedule were critical components to her long-term success.

“I wasn’t in survival mode anymore,” Adrienne says. With her necessities met, she could tackle bigger goals that moved her life forward in a positive direction. She had been diagnosed with anxiety and depression before coming to Parisi House. Parisi House helped her get back on medication and make critical connections with mental health providers so that she was better equipped to manage her mental health. She also made plans to return to college and eventually earned her Masters’s Degree in Accounting.

Today she feels like she “is living all her prayers answered.” She dreamed of one day having a loving, happy, and secure home herself. She has a job she loves and is well suited for, and she has a fantastic relationship with her son. Some of her loved ones even eventually followed in her footsteps into sobriety themselves. She can now see the blessings in her life even amid challenging times. Although she recently went through a divorce, she also draws strength in the lessons from that experience. She can make hard decisions when she knows it is best for her. She is reclaiming her independence and taking the time to do some more healing. She looks back on her time at Parisi House with gratitude. Today, when she asks her son if he remembers what she was like before Parisi House, he replies, “no, I just remember that you were better after.”