Catching up with Brandi

In 2016, Brandi boldly shared her story of recovery to an audience of hundreds at our annual event, A Day for Meta House. Her video, Learning to Live Again, invited the community to step into her story with the purpose of understanding how addiction takes hold and how much strength is required to break that hold. In Brandi’s story, we saw a daughter, friend and young mother who had no plans of seeing her life slide into the disease of addiction. As she mentioned then,

“[Heroin] only took one try and I was done for. It was cheaper, it was more powerful. It numbed my thoughts and emotions to where I didn’t have to deal with them… to where I didn’t have to deal with life.”

She worked incredibly hard to consistently attend and engage in treatment. Over time, she achieved a place of health to where she reunited with her daughters and worked a steady job. Even then, Brandi knew living in recovery wouldn’t be easy. It would be worth it, though. At Meta House, women and children are given the tools they need in order to continue to live and thrive in lives that aren’t bent to the will of the disease. Like every woman who leaves Meta House, Brandi’s story continues to unfold. In 2018, Brandi returned to Meta House, no longer as a client but as a staff member. Working as a Peer Support Specialist, Brandi supported and advocated for women in the early stages of confronting their disease. “It’s important to show women [recovery] is possible,” she says. Knowing that she needs to prioritize her recovery, Brandi continues to attend meetings three times a week, utilizes her sponsor and leans on her support system. In January of 2019, Brandi celebrated five years of recovery. Brandi’s proud of the life she’s rebuilt with her family as well as for completing a pre-apprenticeship electrician training program with honors. Before coming to Meta House, Brandi worked on one of the largest construction projects in Milwaukee. Brandi says she,

“expects growth to feel uncomfortable, but keeps her eye on the prize.”

Like us all, she continues to dream and plan. Brandi dreams of a buying a house for her family and was recently promoted to Admissions Specialist at Meta House. In this role, she navigates the challenges women face when first trying to access and enroll in substance use disorder treatment. We at Meta House are grateful for such a steady, compassionate team member working on behalf of other recovering women, as well as for Brandi’s willingness to share her continuing story. In Brandi’s story, we are reminded recovery is possible and is beautiful.