Live Happy: Families and Home

For the past few days of the  Live Happy Challenges have been about parents and children and home.

I know there are several young parents who are afraid bringing their children up in the community around the drugs and this heroin epidemic. I know, they talk to me all of the time.

I just want all parents to know that You can do everything right and still have a child fall into the heroin or addiction trap. You can do everything wrong and have the child never try drugs.

Drugs and drug abuse has nothing to do with home and family and as much as people for years have blamed parents and made this look like a moral failing.

This... is a society failure. When heroin was first getting started here in the late nineties early two thousand, what was done to stop it?

Now that it is out of control, taking over our communities like a cancer what measures are in place to stop it's spread?

First and foremost our community politicians in all of these years never once offered the solution of a treatment center. Once they did a fight started and here we are today and still no real solutions in place.

Oh we can continue sending those addicted to far away places like is happening. It reminds me of the olden days of shaming when the young girl was unwed and pregnant so they sent her away in shame.

Society has criminalized the addicted so that even if they do stop using, recover and stay clean they have a hard time finding a job, a home. There is no help. There is no program of a relearning of sorts to get their lives back in order. There is only the devastation and hopelessness felt by addicts. This then leads to  emotions of failure, depression, anger, disparity, confusion and this is how the cycle of addiction which can and does lead to relapse when they can't find a job, or they are homeless.

Our own son is five and a half hours away recovering. Although that day is far from today it is only six more months. Six months to worry about what will happen on that day. Honestly, I don't want him coming back here. For one the triggers live among us. AND Two we do not have the rest of the steps in place right here in our community.

I know I shouldn't worry. Six months is still a long time. June felt like it lasted five minutes so his time there will be up before we know it and I am scared.

I hope he finds a job where he is and I hope he choses to stay and live right where he is.
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