Sarah, a fictitious 9 year old girl, learns that her mom could be coming home from drug rehab before Christmas.  Her mom has been drug rehab for prescription drug addiction for several weeks now.

Mom Might Finish Drug Rehab Before Christmas

Mom wrote me another letter and I just got it today in the mailbox.  I haven’t gotten too many letters from her, but I’m keeping each one and looking at them every day, because she keeps telling me what she’s doing at her drug rehab place thingy. 

Today her letter is pretty short because she’s already told me some things before.  But today I got the best news ever!  She said she might be coming home before Christmas.  Wow - that would be great!!  And that’s been my Christmas wish I’ve wanted the most, just to have her home here with us. 

In her letter she said she wasn’t sure and wasn’t going to promise that, but she was thinking she’d be ready by then.  Her doctor and the counselor people at her drug rehab place there are going to see if they can help her be finished in time.  Which I know, she said she can’t promise it and if she needs to stay she’d have to do it.  But I’m really hoping she’s done then.

Family Helps Daughter Who Misses Mom at Drug Rehab

My grandma has come out to stay with me, mostly because she knows how much I’m missing my mommy.  When mommy was first gone, I could sleep very well.  I kept getting up at night and my brain just kept thinking and thinking and thinking, and then I’d get sad. 

Usually I’d go into Mommy and Daddy’s room to see if she came back and I didn’t know it, but she didn’t.  Then I was really tired during the day because I didn’t hardly sleep much.  So that’s when my grandma came out, to sleep nearby me so I wouldn’t be so lonely in the night.

Mom Gone at Drug Rehab Daughter Can’t Sleep

Actually, I was sometimes up in the night even when Mommy was here.  I’d sneak into her bedroom and just kinda hold her hand when she was sleeping.  It made me sad because I couldn’t help her be better, but I just wanted to hold her hand sometimes.  I was pretty tired in school those times too. 

But now I’m sort of better because my grandma is here.  My daddy needs to sleep because he works all day, and I see him after school.  I have supper with him and he comes to my soccer games.  He used to be up with me sometimes when Mommy was still home.  But now my grandma helps me if I can’t sleep.

Sarah Looks For Christmas Reunion

But all I can think about now is Mommy coming home for Christmas.  I really really want her home right now, but I also really want her to be better, so I guess she still has to be at her drug rehab place for a while.  Grandma said she’d help me to make a sign for Mommy and clean the house and have a really nice Christmas for her at home.  That would make me really happy.  And I want to see her being happy too.

Sarah, a fictitious 9 year old girl, gets a letter from her mom who’s in drug rehab for prescription drug addiction after an accident.  Sarah is excited and sad as she reads the letter. 

Letter From Mom in Drug Rehab

(Smiling) My mom wrote sent me a letter and it came today!  I’m so excited!  She’s still up in her drug rehab place that’s really far away, and she’s been there for almost a month now.  I was thinking it might be forever before she could write to me so I can’t wait to get it open.

“Dear Sarah-bear,

Hi sweet pea, it’s Mommy.  How are you?  I miss you so much you couldn’t even imagine it.  I think about you and daddy every day I’m here.  I am lonely for you, but I am with some very nice people here and that helps. 

I wish I could have written to you a little sooner.  I wasn’t feeling very good when I first got here.  I had to stop taking the medicine that was hurting my body.  I felt like a had a bad cold with a headache, cough, achy muscles, even an upset stomach sometimes.  I did a lot of resting and wishing that I felt better.  Finally last week I was able to stay out of bed most of the day, and feel good walking around and doing things. 

Peaceful Surroundings of Drug Rehab

This drug rehab place is like a big beautiful house.  It’s not like I’m on a vacation, but the inside and outside are peaceful and nice to be in.  Being in a beautiful place has helped me when my body and feelings felt so bad.

I want you to know, Sarah, that you are such a great kid.  I’m so sorry about everything that happened with me and the medicine.  I know you’ve missed me a lot - nothing’s been the same since my car accident.  You’ve had to be such a big kid, even though you didn’t really understand what was happening. 

I’m sorry I was not there for you.  I was there in the house, but I didn’t let you be with me much.  I didn’t let Daddy talk to me much either.  I didn’t know the medicine was doing such bad things to me until I went here to drug rehab.  Please know that I love you so much and I never meant to make you feel so lonely.

Kind People Helping Each Other in Drug Rehab

There are other people like me staying at drug rehab with the same kinds of problems.  Some of them have kids and families, some don’t.  All of them feel sad about how things went before they got here.  I can talk to them about my feelings and how I’m going to be better when I come back home.  I can’t promise that things will be perfect when I come back, but they will be much better.  I want that very much.

I am going to exercise outside today next to the ocean.  It helps me to feel relaxed, and I can also think about you when I’m out there.  I can’t wait to come home to you, but I’m not quite done here yet.  I will write to you again.  I have a picture of you and I tell you goodnight every time I go to bed.  I’ll be saving up some hugs for you.

Love always,
Mommy

Sarah, a fictitious 9 year old girl who’s mom went to drug rehab a few weeks ago for prescription drug addiction

Mommys Secret With Taking Too Much Medicine

My mom didn’t tell us this, but she’s been taking some bad drugs for a long time.  She had these actually to help her because she was in a car accident, and she couldn’t walk for a while, and her back hurt pretty bad.  She kept saying that her back was sore and she took her medicine for a long time.  Except we didn’t know she was taking way too much and it was hurting her body.

I miss my mom now, because she’s been gone for a few weeks and I’m used to having her around.  But actually, really I’ve been missing her for a long time.  Because she’s acted kind of sick ever since she had the accident.  Some parts of her have gotten better, but she’s still just been pretty sad and crabby.  Like she’s here, but she’s kind of not here. 

She can’t do stuff with us because her back is always sore, or she’s in her room sleeping.  Or she just wants us to leave her alone.  Then she cries because she knows she’s not with us very much.  I don’t like it when she feels so bad, but I get sad because she’s like somebody else all the time.  She’s my mom but she’s not my mom.  I miss my mom from before she had the accident. 

Drug Rehab Is Where Mom Needs to Be

Daddy says that she’s at a place called drug rehab.  I didn’t know what this drug rehab thing was before.  But he says this is a place that will help her stop taking her medicine so she can think better and not feel so sad.  I didn’t know medicine could make you feel worse, because she had it to help her.  But I guess she started wanting her medicine more than anything else. 

He knows I miss her, and he does too.  I really really wish she didn’t have to go away to get better.  I wish she could be here in our town so I could see her every day.  But Daddy keeps saying that this drug rehab place is the best thing for her now, and after she’s there she can be with us again.  And she will be better.  I think about her all the time, and I don’t know really what she’s doing all day.  But she did write a letter to me to say that she loves me and can’t wait to be home.  And I keep that letter in my backpack every day. 

My Favorite Day Mom Home From Drug Rehab

My favorite day ever will be when she can be back home with me and Daddy.  I just hope she doesn’t ever ever take that medicine again or go back to that drug rehab place for so long.  I don’t want to keep crying about her anymore.  I love her and I want her back like before her accident, not the sad mom I had after the accident.  I can’t wait to hug her again.