Addiction is a major factor in children being placed in foster care. Many parents struggling with addiction fear that reaching out for treatment will lead to a child welfare investigation, yet living with addiction also puts kids at risk. Stories in this section offer guidance and information on getting clean, repairing relationships with children affected by addiction, and knowing your legal rights in seeking treatment.
One day last fall I went to an anger management class. It was in a neighborhood where I used to get high. It didn’t even go through my mind that this could be a trigger for me. I believed I was strong but I was not.
At the time, I was consumed by feeling powerless and alone. My son, Brandan, had been in foster care for about a year. ACS took him when I was jailed … Read More
I had always thought I was a good mother even though I used drugs. I gave my daughter, Barbie, food, clothes and a home. I gave her love, too, by holding her and kissing her and playing with her. I would look in amazement at how beautiful she was growing.
But even though all this was true, part of me was kidding myself. When I used drugs, the chemicals altered my mood. I wouldn’t … Read More
One night I met a man who treated me so nice. He was light skinned, with beautiful brown eyes, and he always called me beautiful. All my life I’d felt ugly because I have dark skin and got teased for it. Then I got hit by a car. The accident left me with a serious limp. When my hip hurt, he liked to pick me up and carry me. I felt like a queen.
But after … Read More
