Francie was in her mid twenties when her uncle, with whom she was very close, was murdered. It was Francie who found him. “After that, all I wanted was to not think and for the pain to go away. That’s when I turned to crack cocaine.”
Eventually, Francie ended up in prison. She used that time to get her GED but, when she got out, she turned to cocaine again. “I would lie, I would cheat on my urine tests. But, of course, I did get caught, which was a violation of my parole. I went to a program before I was referred to Horizon Village by the NY State Parole Department, and it’s there that my life turned around.”
At Horizon Village, Francie said she was “able to leave all my baggage behind.” She says her counselor at the Village, Kristen, and her counselor in the outpatient program, Tina, “are the two best women who came into my life. They never judged me, they were always just there to help.”
Tina McCarty-Neveu, a counselor at Horizon’s Main-Amherst Counseling Center, says Francie is extremely upbeat and very determined. “She’s very goal-oriented, and she’s worked hard to stay focused and future oriented. She has overcome many of her hurdles and worked through a lot of emotion.”
Today, Francie is employed as a home health care aide, and has been clean for 16 months. She says she has the “love of a good man who supports her in every way” and she’s looking forward to December, when her kids will be back with her full time.
“I was so tired of being high; I hated being high,” says Francie. “Tina taught me to just take it one day at a time, and now that’s what I’m doing. My kids respect me again and I have the full support and trust of my family. I’m much happier off drugs!”
Path To Recovery
The Path To Recovery includes true stories of consumers who overcame many obstacles with the help of Horizon Health Services to turn their lives around. Last names have been omitted for privacy.