Sheila
“I came to The Women’s Center after a trip to the JPS Psychiatric Hospital where I was held under a suicide watch…. I was 40 years old.”  So begins a story filled with episodes of abuse, heartbreaking neglect, and finally triumph.  Abused as a child, stalked for months then raped at 16 by a co-worker, Shelia turned to alcohol, drugs, promiscuity and self-mutilation to try and dull the pain of her trauma.   After divorcing an abusive husband, Sheila joined AA, but still could not deal with life.  Following her first attempt at suicide, she was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder.  Though she took her medication for several years, she never accepted her illness, and tried twice more to kill herself.  It was then she discovered The Women’s Center.   It was here, Sheila says, that she found a place that was warm, loving and caring, never judgmental. Intensive one-on-one counseling and group therapy helped Sheila finally face her past. Once I could face the truth of my life…I gained freedom.  Freedom from the pain, memories, the anguish, the sorrow.  These things no longer consume my life…  I go through each day with my head up, with a smile, excited about what will come next, good or bad.”  The services Shelia received at The Women’s Center gave her the tools to not only survive, but to grow and triumph over adversity.