My name is Stacy. In 2004 I was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison on a drug charge. I had been unsuccessfully battling addiction since my early teens, in spite of having a loving family and two beautiful sons.
After my release from prison I was required to receive a mental health evaluation and I felt I would be able to skate through. I didn't want to share my fears, and feelings with a stranger. However, sitting there with her, that first day, I began to think about the struggles I was having since coming home; I was not only unable to go ANYWHERE alone, if I lost sight of my mother or if a stranger spoke to me I would have a panic attack, and at the age of 50 I was sleeping with my mother because of my fear. I made the decision that day that I wanted a better life and I believed Celina could help me have it.
Celina never told me what to do to fix me, rather she asked questions and sometimes made suggestions that made me think. Really think! She helped me find goals, and taught me to believe in myself. My evaluation with Celina turned into about two and half years of working on myself with Celina's help. She helped me change the course of my life. I’m no longer scared. I live in my own space. I enrolled in college and have 3.8 gpa. Last summer I was awarded a scholarship to The Georgia School of Addiction conference in Savannah and as I drove down the highway in my truck; alone, I thought about Celina and the gifts she gave me. She gave me the tools to change my life.
Stacy