WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Support in recovery can come from a 12-step program sponsor, connecting with another person getting sober, and even family.
DCCCA’s Women’s Recovery Center is helping mothers get the treatment they need and keep their children close by.
Rachal Harper with Women’s Recovery Center is trying to remove the stigma placed on “recovery.”
“That shame, guilt, and embarrassment of what everybody is going to say about me when they find out,” Harper said.
The center offers a change with its unique “designated” women’s program.
“Which means women can bring their children to treatment up to age 11,” Harper said.
KSN News walked through the facility. The walls are decked out with murals and pictures for children, and there are rooms designed to meet the needs of kids and babies.
“What makes Women’s Recovery Center unique is because we have this licensed childcare center,” Harper said.
Mothers in treatment who don’t have proper childcare are met with a barrier, the center helps eliminate it.
“It also gives them that peace of mind because when they are not with them, they’re worried are they being taken care of, are they safe, are they ok?” Harper said.
Harper emphasizes mixing children and treatment isn’t easy.
“Do not get me wrong, it is extremely challenging, but it is rewarding because they don’t have those worries,” she added.
They are more than women in recovery, they are mothers.
“Whether they are helping to babysit or giving them encouragement, or when we see them out on the playground, it’s just amazing to see what having a child does for everybody,” Harper said.
Fighting addiction not only for them but for their children.
“Pain is inevitable, but recovery is a choice,” Harper said.
Women’s recovery works with USD259 and its bus system to make sure kids can get to and from school. The center also offers a reintegration program that allows women to leave the facility to look for jobs and start building a recovery community.
To see more Recovery Week stories by KSN’s Eddie Randle, click here.