Halfway house opens door to new lives
February 23rd 2008 17:04
J. Brian Ewing
Staff Writer
Friday, February 22, 2008
Reidsville Review,NC
Armelia Grier lost her family, her marriage and almost her life because of her alcoholism.
With 33 years separating Armelia Grier and Jennifer Siler, you wouldn’t think the pair would have much in common. Grier is a wife and mother of three; Siler is not yet in her 20s and has a love for art. But they do share something, something they share with millions of Americans – addiction and recovery.
Grier and Siler met last year while going through rehab at REMMSCO, a halfway house in Reidsville. Grier was recovering from nearly a decade of alcoholism. An addiction to methadone led Siler to rehab.
Grier lost her family, her marriage and almost her life because of her alcoholism. Through rehab, Grier learned that her father’s alcoholism and the death of her daughter brought on the drinking. She says she also learned to love herself and to manage her life.
“I’m happy. My life has just changed so much,” Grier said. “I know what life is now.”
Having spent eight months in the REMMSCO program, Grier decided to strike out on her own. She rents a small house in Eden, gets to see her kids at least once a week, and she is working.
Grier took a position with REMMSCO two months ago. She said she wants to give back and help women make it through the program, like others did for her.
“It helps me more, really, than it helps them,” she said.
Grier celebrated 16 months of sobriety in January. She looks forward to seeing her oldest graduate from college, her daughter graduate from high school and her youngest son grow into manhood.
Siler’s journey continues. She left REMMSCO two months after starting the program -- a month early. She regrets the decision.
She said she has been sober since leaving, but it has been hard, having to distance herself from people still trapped in addiction. She still goes to Narcotic Anonymous meetings and studies some of her NA books.
She has a small apartment in Reidsville, where she works on her art; she’s building a collage in her bedroom from magazine clippings.
“I like pretty people,” she said, laughing.
She wants to follow in her father’s footsteps, helping veterans find jobs. Siler’s addiction came about shortly after her father died. She wants to honor his memory and join the Marine Corps. She suffers migraines, however, and must get medical approval before enlisting.
If the migraines prevent her from enlisting, Siler said, she would work in general vocational rehabilitation. For now, she remains optimistic and happy, which, she says, is a nice change.
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Hello: Halfway Houses are great.I wonder why there isn't one for people like Siler.You have half way houses,rehabs,detox for drug addicts and alcoholics.Watch A&E and they have wonderful interventions where familie's cry & tell the addict how much they're loved and then this counselor flies them off to a wonderful "resort" type rehab to get well.Some are finally doing it for the family members that have bee effected so badly by these diseases.
What do migraineurs get....let's see,we get ridiculed,insulted,called fakes.
Now,look,my mother was an alcoholic and popped pills handed out like candy to her by doctor's.That was "back in the day" as they say when people didn't know better.They gave her shock treatments,put on mental wards,all just making her worse.
But,alcoholics,young and young drug addicts I find it hard to have sympathy for since there is so much info out there.And it's become so "in" to go to rehab.
All I want is OUR Fair Share.We didn't go out and choose to start having migraines.We don't choose to contiue a "lifestyle" that's destroying us and those around us.We don't want Sympathy,we want and need help desperately.
Where is the love and compassion for us....Why are we treated with disgust and disbelief?Why would some choose to stay at home and take the pain and the chance of what may happen if they don't get help?
Who wants to go to an er and be put at the end of the line,and I mean the end.No matter how long that line gets,you never move up.People are placed before you again and again.Chronic pain sufferers don't belong in er's.If you don't believe so many feel that way,read some of the blogs,you'll be amazed.
Yes,there are exceptions to every rule.But most er's think if you have chronic pain,live with it and wait to see your doctor.Too bad for migraineurs,we can't schedule our migraines. that get so bad we need help,only during office hours.
So,pain,guilt,losing out on life and then go to the er for smear tactics.
I guess if you can't get a decent attitude from medical "professionals" at your worst hour,why would I think a place for migraineurs would exist?To help us cope,to bring in family members,friends,even people in the medical field to learn.To see us as real people with a real illness.And to just possibly help migraine be understood.
To give us some dignity.And maybe some relief.
Staff Writer
Friday, February 22, 2008
Reidsville Review,NC
Armelia Grier lost her family, her marriage and almost her life because of her alcoholism.
With 33 years separating Armelia Grier and Jennifer Siler, you wouldn’t think the pair would have much in common. Grier is a wife and mother of three; Siler is not yet in her 20s and has a love for art. But they do share something, something they share with millions of Americans – addiction and recovery.
Grier and Siler met last year while going through rehab at REMMSCO, a halfway house in Reidsville. Grier was recovering from nearly a decade of alcoholism. An addiction to methadone led Siler to rehab.
Grier lost her family, her marriage and almost her life because of her alcoholism. Through rehab, Grier learned that her father’s alcoholism and the death of her daughter brought on the drinking. She says she also learned to love herself and to manage her life.
“I’m happy. My life has just changed so much,” Grier said. “I know what life is now.”
Having spent eight months in the REMMSCO program, Grier decided to strike out on her own. She rents a small house in Eden, gets to see her kids at least once a week, and she is working.
Grier took a position with REMMSCO two months ago. She said she wants to give back and help women make it through the program, like others did for her.
“It helps me more, really, than it helps them,” she said.
Grier celebrated 16 months of sobriety in January. She looks forward to seeing her oldest graduate from college, her daughter graduate from high school and her youngest son grow into manhood.
Siler’s journey continues. She left REMMSCO two months after starting the program -- a month early. She regrets the decision.
She said she has been sober since leaving, but it has been hard, having to distance herself from people still trapped in addiction. She still goes to Narcotic Anonymous meetings and studies some of her NA books.
She has a small apartment in Reidsville, where she works on her art; she’s building a collage in her bedroom from magazine clippings.
“I like pretty people,” she said, laughing.
She wants to follow in her father’s footsteps, helping veterans find jobs. Siler’s addiction came about shortly after her father died. She wants to honor his memory and join the Marine Corps. She suffers migraines, however, and must get medical approval before enlisting.
If the migraines prevent her from enlisting, Siler said, she would work in general vocational rehabilitation. For now, she remains optimistic and happy, which, she says, is a nice change.
----------------------------- ----------------------------- ----------------------------- ----------------------
Hello: Halfway Houses are great.I wonder why there isn't one for people like Siler.You have half way houses,rehabs,detox for drug addicts and alcoholics.Watch A&E and they have wonderful interventions where familie's cry & tell the addict how much they're loved and then this counselor flies them off to a wonderful "resort" type rehab to get well.Some are finally doing it for the family members that have bee effected so badly by these diseases.
What do migraineurs get....let's see,we get ridiculed,insulted,called fakes.
Now,look,my mother was an alcoholic and popped pills handed out like candy to her by doctor's.That was "back in the day" as they say when people didn't know better.They gave her shock treatments,put on mental wards,all just making her worse.
But,alcoholics,young and young drug addicts I find it hard to have sympathy for since there is so much info out there.And it's become so "in" to go to rehab.
All I want is OUR Fair Share.We didn't go out and choose to start having migraines.We don't choose to contiue a "lifestyle" that's destroying us and those around us.We don't want Sympathy,we want and need help desperately.
Where is the love and compassion for us....Why are we treated with disgust and disbelief?Why would some choose to stay at home and take the pain and the chance of what may happen if they don't get help?
Who wants to go to an er and be put at the end of the line,and I mean the end.No matter how long that line gets,you never move up.People are placed before you again and again.Chronic pain sufferers don't belong in er's.If you don't believe so many feel that way,read some of the blogs,you'll be amazed.
Yes,there are exceptions to every rule.But most er's think if you have chronic pain,live with it and wait to see your doctor.Too bad for migraineurs,we can't schedule our migraines. that get so bad we need help,only during office hours.
So,pain,guilt,losing out on life and then go to the er for smear tactics.
I guess if you can't get a decent attitude from medical "professionals" at your worst hour,why would I think a place for migraineurs would exist?To help us cope,to bring in family members,friends,even people in the medical field to learn.To see us as real people with a real illness.And to just possibly help migraine be understood.
To give us some dignity.And maybe some relief.
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