I Was Brought Back to Life: Sarah’s Story of Recovery and Purpose
Years before I was born, Serenity Renewal for Families supported my parents in their recovery and they were blessed to have had the work and wisdom of one of the co-founders, Sister Louise, touch their lives.
My parents had been supported by Sister Louise and Serenity Renewal for Families before I was born.
As I grew up, I began to experiment with drugs and alcohol to self-medicate my mental health struggles. Despite this I still managed to graduate from university and start a career as a Registered Nurse. I coped with the stress of my new career just as how I had coped with the struggles of my childhood – through substances.
In 2016, I was hit by a car as a pedestrian and was seriously injured, but lucky to be alive. The combination of the emotional, mental and physical pain plus the freedom of not working fueled what had now become full-blown substance use disorder. I felt a strong desire to numb myself and seek escape as I couldn’t stand reality and I was experiencing terrifying mental health symptoms like flashbacks, hypervigilance and insomnia. I realize now that I was hiding from the world and I had lost the will to fight and the spark of life.
Shortly after my 30th birthday, I found myself an in-patient in a psychiatric hospital unit. It was then that I first had a realization that I needed help with problematic substance use. As part of my recovery attempt, I reached out to Serenity Renewal for Families and took many adult educational workshops, which began to give me the tools to live life without my crutch of substances.
Relapse is a part of my story, and I found myself back in hospital, isolated from friends and family, housing insecure, without purpose and with bare kitchen cupboards unable to take care of myself physically, emotionally, or mentally. I had gone through outpatient treatment for harm reduction, but I personally was unable to manage life with this alone. This was days before my 34th birthday. I had hit my rock bottom.
In addition to joining an abstinence-based 12-step group and calling my parents to let them know I was surrendering, I began taking workshops again at Serenity Renewal for Families. I was welcomed back with open arms, and this time around I was able to attend in person as my first experience was during Covid. The staff and participants gave me a sense of empowerment and community. I was not only learning to connect on a deep level without substances, but I was also gaining insights and coping skills to be able to heal from the roots of my substance use disorder as well as the consequences. Even though I couldn’t afford to pay because of donors like you I could still access services that truly played a pivotal role in my recovery and the return of joy and purpose in my life.
In 2024, I went back to school and took Algonquin College’s Addiction and Mental Health graduate certificate as I found a passion for taking what I’d learned through hard-won lived experience and making a difference in the lives of still suffering individuals with addictions. I reached out to Serenity Renewal for Families for a placement and was delighted to have secured the student position. I threw myself back into the workplace during this opportunity, and I gained an appreciation for the impact that addiction not only has on the individual, but truly on the whole family. Towards the end of my placement, it was identified that my dream was to become a workshop facilitator and with considerable guidance I had the amazing opportunity to create a workshop. Miraculously, I was asked to facilitate this workshop as a full-fledged facilitator! After many hopeless years disconnected from loved ones and my skills and abilities being wasted, I was brought back to life in not only a personal way, but also a professional one.
Since then, I have had the absolute pleasure and honour of facilitating workshops for Serenity Renewal for Families, and I have found my purpose to make a difference in the lives of those struggling with addiction both directly and indirectly. In my free-time, I love nothing more than researching for these workshops as a new fire has been lit within my heart and soul. I also was able to leverage my experience with Serenity Renewal for Families into another position at a nonprofit working with criminalized women and gender-diverse individuals.
Me feeling in control with 29 months of abstinence
In the future, the staff at Serenity Renewal for Families has encouraged me to dream even bigger and pursue a Master of Counselling to become a Registered Psychotherapist with a specialization in addictions or perhaps work on the frontline as a Registered Social Worker. I have come back to life and have truly never been happier, which would not be possible without Serenity Renewal for Families.
Before I was born, the work of Serenity Renewal for Families tried to break the generational curses in my family and has given me a life that I am blessed and proud to lead. While once I hid from the world numbing myself with substances, now I am part of a community where I can achieve my dreams and inspire others affected by addiction to go from the darkness into the light.
No one is turned away from Serenity Renewal for Families for financial reasons and the vast majority do not pay for services. Their journeys of healing and recovery are made possible by the generosity of donors. This holiday season please consider gifting hope to vulnerable families who are suffering from the ravages of addiction.
I am honoured for you taking the time to bear witness to my story and endlessly grateful for your significant contributions to my recovery through your generous donations.
Warmly,
Sarah Eastman
P.S. Please make your donation today. Thanks to three generous donors, the first gifts received via this campaign up to $26,000 is being matched. Thank you for impacting the lives of families supported by Serenity Renewal for Families.
