You Don't Have to Weather the Storm Alone

For a long time I believed that recovery was an Impossible Dream. My battle with substance abuse began much later in life. The cycle started back in 2010 after I had my first three daughters. Facing the overwhelming weight of raising a large family completely on my own without the support of their fathers, the pressure was immense. The crushing weight of that responsibility quickly turned into severe loneliness, depression, and isolation.

Amidst all of this pressure, a sudden accident shifted the course of my life — the floor in my bathroom gave way, causing me to fall through and tear my meniscus. The resulting medical treatment required me to be placed on prescription pain medication for an extended period of time. This physical dependency opened the door wider to active addiction, and my life rapidly spiraled out of control.

My addiction led me down a dark path resulting in an extensive criminal history and periods of incarceration. Every legal trouble and prison sentence I faced was a direct consequence of my disease. Following my time in the justice system, the cycle of addiction stripped away everything, leaving me completely homeless. Throughout this turbulent time, my daughters faced the very real threat of being permanently lost to the foster care system. If it had not been for the profound grace, love, and support of my parents and family stepping in, my girls would have been taken by the state. Their intervention kept my family intact when I was unable to do so myself.

Determined to change my life, I fought hard and went through the grueling process of trying to get clean three separate times. I finally achieved my sobriety before giving birth to my youngest child — my only son. I was living stably back home with my parents and my daughters, my baby boy was perfectly healthy, and I was doing everything right. Yet on Easter Day 2018, when my son was only two and a half months old, his father took him from me and involved Children and Youth Services. Despite my hard-earned sobriety, he was stolen from my arms.

To this day, I am still fighting what feels like a losing battle trying to regain custody of him. He is now 8 years old and does not know me as his mother. It is a terrible, heart-wrenching feeling to have my only son taken away, and I deal with the heavy ache of missing him daily. For years, I have felt like a grieving mother — grieving a child who has not even passed on.

But transformation is possible. On September 11th, 2026, I proudly celebrated 6 years of continuous sobriety! Today my life looks entirely different. I have finally become the present, loving mother my daughters always deserved, and I hold on to the unwavering hope for my son. I am also a grandmother to a 2-year-old grandson, and a soon-to-be granddaughter. I am also a wife to an incredible husband who is walking his own path of recovery. We complement each other completely, and he loves and embraces all of my children as if they were his own. Together we are unified, grounded, and actively building our dream home.

On top of rebuilding my family dynamic, I went back to school and am currently completing my degree to secure our future — because being a felon doesn't go well when looking for employment. The journey to this point required immense sacrifice, resilience, and hard work. While the early days felt insurmountable, I have learned that with each passing year the burden gets lighter, and recovery truly does get easier.

I built this website because my ultimate passion in life is to give back. Having lived through grief, isolation, trauma, an injury, the justice system, and homelessness, I want to use my lived experience to support, guide, mentor, and help individuals navigating their own dark chapters. If I can bring hope to just one person, or bring a smile to someone who feels as lost as I once did, then my entire journey has served its purpose. Welcome to Laura's Safe Harbor — change is possible, and you do not have to walk this path alone.