Hi, my name is Linda Pfromm, I am 17 years old, and this is my story:
Life growing up was extremely hectic, due to my mom’s drug addiction and my dad being almost nonexistent. I am not an addict myself, watching my mother get high and overdose multiple times scared me away from trying them. Although I wasn’t an addict like my mom, I often felt like I was because of the crowd always around my mother and myself. There were ALWAYS addicts and drugs around me my whole life, which took away from my childhood.
Though I had never touched drugs, I felt like I was suffering even more than my mom. I watched my mom overdose and DIE multiple times. You would think that one time was enough, but nope. It continued to happen, hurting more and more each time she chose her drugs over me. Eventually, she moved to Texas, leaving me behind to fend for myself. I was only 15 at the time…
My mom FINALLY decided to seek help when she had nowhere else to go, no money left, and no more energy to continue her life this way. I was pregnant and I needed my mom more than ever, thankfully she finally WOKE UP to the idea of getting the help she needed, and the help that I needed as well.
When my mom started her recovery, I was nervous it wouldn’t work for her, since it never has before. She seemed like she was actually trying this time, which made me happy. Not being able to see her for a little bit at the beginning was difficult, but I knew the time away was worth it. My mom finally decided she wanted her family back, and I wanted the MOM she had been many years ago. This was her last try to have a family and a life again because her addiction would surely kill her eventually.
My whole family is becoming closer and closer since she came to Grace Centers of Hope, where I eventually joined her with my newborn child. Seeing my mom make friends who now understand her struggle made me feel relieved. She often escaped from her loneliness into her addiction, so seeing her have a support system is a game changer for her!
At one point in my life, I thought that I would ABSOLUTELY lose my mom, and I was mentally preparing myself to do so. Since coming to Grace Centers of Hope, I actually have hope for the future. A future as a family and a future being finally happy! My mom has shown me that even though it may seem impossible to overcome certain struggles, with the power of prayer anything is truly possible! It is incredibly easy to simply give up on yourself, but to overcome adversity takes God’s help, and incredible strength.
OUR lives are better now than I could have imagined a few years ago, and I am truly thankful for that. We are both going into aftercare soon so we can have our own place together, my mom has a job, our relationship is getting better, and she now shows constant love to her kids and grandkids. I HAVE MY MOM BACK, which I thought would never happen. I am very thankful to GCH and the support that we receive here. You CAN stop using, you CAN change your life, and you ARE worth the love!