“I was burying my head in the sand. People were telling me she was doing drugs and I didn’t believe them,” said Judith (Judy) Cain about Chelsey Cain, her daughter who has been in recovery for 7.5 years.

Judy mentioned that she and Chelsey once joked about those with a substance use disorder, though never expected it to affect their lives in the future, at the time. The trouble first started in Chelsey’s teen years, when academics and school were never her priority. She later moved into her mother’s basement, where Judy would find drug paraphernalia like burned spoons, laying around the room.

After being kicked out of her mother’s place, and willingly leaving to separate Judy from her habits, Chelsey moved into a house with a couple addicted to heroin. Desperate to fuel her addiction, Chelsey began to advertise and sell her body through Craigslist. She even stole guns from her next roommate, Frank, and sold them to drug dealers to fund her drugs. Chelsey was eventually arrested for theft, and was sentenced for 18 months in prison.

“I do believe that being incarcerated saved your life,” said Judy to Chelsey. Despite being in recovery for more than seven years, and regularly attending 12-step recovery meetings, Chelsey still believes that there is still an addiction in her that could manifest at any time in her life.

I loved how genuine and unashamed Chelsey was. She showed us mugshots from her three arrests, which I think now represents her growth and courage. Today, Chelsey is pursuing a PhD in Temple’s criminal justice program.