Second Wind

Natasha, 44

She had a business, a café, a family. After a divorce and bankruptcy Natasha lost her footing.

Then came alcohol. At first it seemed like a way to get through a hard time. Then it began to take everything else: binges, an accident, falls, a serious physical condition. She started selling off her property.

But even that was not the worst of it. Her son could see what was happening to his mother. Alcohol was destroying not only Natasha’s life but also her relationship with her son.

Now she has blossomed, made peace with her son and is learning to live sober.

Valentina, 31

6 years of addiction and 19 months of a new life

At 24 Valentina went through a painful divorce, after which she began to abuse alcohol and then came across mephedrone. Use quickly became daily. Over six years of addiction she brought herself to a critical state: she lost weight, ruined her teeth, stopped taking care of herself and repeatedly tried to take her own life.

The hardest part was that Valentina lost the chance to be near her own child. Her parents took her son away, fearing for his safety. Close ones stopped answering her calls, friends drifted away. Valentina understood that she was destroying her life, but could not stop on her own.

Today Valentina has been sober for 19 months. She has rebuilt her relationship with her son and family, brought her friends back into her life, restored her teeth, grown her hair back and started taking care of herself. Now she supports herself, does sports and is gradually coping even with the eating disorder she has lived with since her teens.

“Now I can say with certainty that I want to live, not die,” says Valentina.

Her story is about how even after six years of addiction it is possible to rebuild relationships with loved ones, regain independence and see meaning in life again.

Polina, 27

10 years of addiction and a return to herself

Polina started using at 16. Over ten years addiction became part of her life, and she was left with heavy personal losses and several suicide attempts. Despite what she had been through, Polina wanted to change her life, but understood how hard it is to cope with pain without the usual ways of numbing it.

On her birthday Polina took an important step and went into rehabilitation. She is now in the fourth month of the programme and has visibly changed. She is learning to cope with difficult emotions without returning to use, and is gradually discovering a different life.

Polina hopes her story will help other girls who have faced addiction decide to make a change.

“I hope I can become an example and that my bitter experience will help someone,” says Polina.