You Gave Alicia the Chance to Go to Treatment for Addiction

Alicia* desperately wanted to get clean. She knew she needed to escape the hold that addiction had on her life, so she called a treatment program. The program coordinator told Alicia that they had an opening in their program and would love to offer it to her. 

Alicia held her breath. It was happening. She was being given a chance at a future free from addiction. Then the program coordinator told Alicia the news that made her heart sink: Alicia would have to find someone to watch her 18-month-old daughter, Ava Maria*, for three days while she detoxed.

Ava Maria was the very reason that Alicia wanted to overcome her addiction. She wanted to be the best mom she could be for her daughter. 

Alicia was quiet on the other end of the phone, unsure of what to do. She didn’t have anyone in her life whom she trusted to watch Ava Maria. Most in her circle of friends and family were also battling addiction, and she worried about what would happen if she left Ava Maria with them. 

Alicia was about to end the call when the program coordinator shared about Together for Good (TFG). There was a program that would provide a host family who would care for Ava Maria while Alicia began treatment? It seemed too good to be true. 

Within minutes, Alicia had dialed TFG’s number and was talking to a case manager named Jen. When Jen heard the situation, she told Alicia that TFG already had a host family lined up to care for Ava Maria.

Just that morning, a host family had reached out to Jen, saying that they were available for “whatever needs come up.” Jen knew that God had prompted that phone call so that she could tell Alicia that TFG had a place for her daughter.

Within three and a half hours of Alicia calling Together for Good, Ava Maria had been picked up by her new host family for her three-day hosting, and Alicia was walking through the doors of the treatment program, ready to begin overcoming her addiction.

Research commonly lists “lack of…adequate childcare” as a primary factor that prevents women from seeking treatment for substance abuse.  

Many treatment programs – including the one Alicia is in – allow children to be with their moms during the program. However, nearly all those programs require the mom to find a place for her child to stay during the 72-hour detox period. 

A host family being able to take a child for those 72 hours will often be the determining factor in whether a mom follows through with going to treatment. 

We are so grateful for the dozens of host families who have specifically said “yes” to these emergency hostings. Through you, parents are overcoming their addiction.

When Alicia leaves treatment, she will not be navigating life alone. Together for Good will be right there, ready to support her with a parent advocate and respite hostings for Ava Maria the moment she asks. 

She will have the community and support needed to remain free from addiction.

*Names changed to protect privacy.