How did you get started with drugs and alcohol?
I was first introduced to drugs by smoking weed. I remember smoking my first blunt and feeling like, "Oh my God. This is the best feeling." I loved it and found that there was never enough. I didn't realize it at the time, but my addiction was already to alive. My dad left our family when I was 3 years old - around the time I was molested - so I always struggled with making guys my higher power. I was always looking for a man to come in and save my life. By the time I was 15 years old, I was kicked out of my house, a high school dropout, and addicted to heroin. I continued this path for years until I accepted help at Nexus Recovery and Dallas 24 Hour Club.
How did you end up at Dallas 24 Hour Club?
I ended up in a bad situation with a dealer and found that I had nowhere to go. I called a friend of mine that I knew could help me, and they did help me. They gave me a ride to Nexus Recovery. At first, I was just thinking it would be a safe place for me. I wasn't thinking it would change my life. I showed up at Nexus Recovery at 2:30 am after being awake for 9 days.
I enjoyed my stay at Nexus Recovery but was worried about where to go after treatment. I knew that if I went back home, I was going to get high. Nothing had been able to stop me previously. Not my life or the lives of my children. I knew I needed to find a place with sober people and sober recovery.
When I arrived at Dallas 24 Hour Club, I had a sense of belonging and welcoming that I have never experienced in my life. To me, that was confirmation from God that I belonged here. There wasn't an opening for me right away, so I spent the first night in the dining room. I woke up the next day, walked outside and watched the sun come up, and I felt this massive feeling that this is exactly where I was supposed to be. For the first time in my life, I was just following direction. I wasn't trying to create a plan. I wasn't trying to do it my way. I've spent so much of my life living and running off of fear. Being at The 24 was the first time I finally felt free.
Finish this: If it weren't for Dallas 24 Hour Club...
If it weren't for Nexus Recovery or Dallas 24 Hour Club, I don't know where I would be. I could be dead. I could have been sold in another state. Who knows. All I know is that Dallas 24 Hour Club is where God wants me now. I am free.
Kylie successfully discharged before Christmas and has an apartment with her little girl.