I understand what you are going through. I have been there: overwhelmed, terrified, and wondering what is going on. I have lived with the impact of untreated addiction and mental health my whole life. I was the granddaughter and daughter of alcoholics and addicts. I was in two marriages impacted by addictions. And most heartbreakingly, I watched and intervened, rescued and failed as my only child became addicted to substances as a way to deal with his pain.

During his last intervention, my son said to the interventionist: “I will go to treatment if she goes.” And he pointed to me. That was the moment in which so much changed. Even in the throes of his pain, my son knew three things: 1) his mom was suffering beyond words, 2) his mom needed more help than she was getting in therapy and 12-step meetings, and 3) his mother getting more well would help him to get well. At the age of 19 and in the throes of his addiction, he was the wisest person in the room.

I said, “Game on!” Off to treatment he went and I was left to find a place for me to go. I discovered this: no place existed that had all I needed to help me heal, mind, body, and soul, considering how:

• disconnected I had become from my true self

• intergenerational patterns were having their way with me

• what I thought was protective was destructive

• I was hustling for worthiness while wrestling with terror, shame, and chaos

I created my own program from the resources I could find; it was critical to keep my commitment to my son and myself. I went to a 30-day inpatient program for trauma. It was beautiful and powerful. And yet, while I was there, it also became clearer that what I (and many others) needed still did not exist.

I decided to create and open the very place I was looking for in my darkest hour and could not find: a sanctuary that invites moms and dads, spouses and siblings to mindfully self-reflect, to turn the mirror on themselves with compassion, to exhale and dig deep, and to experience a new way of connecting to themselves and those they love.

When one family member awakens and begins to heal, inspiring shifts ripple throughout the family.
Come HOME - we are saving you a seat.

Karen J. Benjack, M.Div., MSW
Co-Founder, Chief Therapeutic Officer of Home