Hello Everyone!!
As I try to include a wide range of recovery inspiration on Mondays, Liz is no exception! I ran across her story by pure accident while I prowled author and aspiring author pages on facebook. Part of writing your own memoir is the research into other memoirs that touch on the same subjects. Out of all the books that could have grabbed my attention-It was hers.
I believe that you can only truly heal when you share your story and use it to help others. Liz demonstrates this flawlessly in her writing. As I secretly stalked her amazon reviews and facebook page, I knew I had to ask her permission and get her story to share with you all. She was beyond open and willing to answer any question I threw at her.
What I found most compelling about Liz is the fact that she found her sobriety purely through God. She denies having ever attended a meeting, rehab, or anything of that nature. Grasping her sobriety with both hands and never turning back. Now her book From Heroin to Christ can be found in Narcotic Anonymous meeting libraries, Correctional Facilities, Rehabilitation Centers, and even Harvard University Library!! How amazing is that?? She has given away more than 200 paperback copies and 500 e-books. Using her author skills as a platform to minister to others in the grips of addiction and show God’s unfailing love through his work in her life.
Liz lived an extremely sheltered life. She was born into a large Catholic family. She experienced poverty, neglect, rejection, sexual abuse and abandonment before the age of 14. She desperately sought for someone/something to relate to and be there for her. This began a steady decline in her quality of life, but was expedited to addiction when she fell in love with a drug-dealer. Together they used heroin and methadone everyday for the following 20 years.
Due to the abuse towards both her and her children, all of her family relationships were affected to the point of termination. They were completely isolated from all friends and had little to no socialization with the outside world. Circumstances forced Liz onto the streets with no where to go. After being homeless for months her life hit an all-time low after a failed suicide attempt. The loneliness and isolation proved to be too much to bear any longer and she wanted out!
This was her breaking point. She walked into a Pentecostal Church and found her sobriety through pure persistence and determination. She found strength on the shoulders of her Church family. Liz’s miraculous story and humble nature inspired me more than I can begin to explain. She has been clean now for 11 years and says she no longer has any desire to use. Her fight from addiction to advocate has given her all she was lacking so many years ago. She now no longer rejects herself and knows her worth. She is quite content living a simple life of acceptance and thankfulness for both the good and bad times. Sharing her story to help others find the fuel needed to be sober just one more day.
2007-2018
Thank you Liz! And might I add you look amazing!! Good luck on all your future endeavors!