My Recovery Story

In 2020, I was tired of trying to make sense of my life after decades of searching for answers to difficult relationship issues. I wanted to feel emotionally balanced and resilient.

 

I grew up in the church; my dad was acting pastor. Over three decades as an adult, I led and participated in numerous Bible studies, read many self-help books, listened to podcasts, worked through personal and marriage counseling, attended wellness retreats, and engaged in group therapy work. Often, it all seemed futile because I still felt stuck in an endless cycle of disappointment, frustration, and defeat regarding my closest relationships.  

 

With a failed marriage in 2004, I navigated single parenting for twelve years. I focused on my children and worked full-time as a college professor. When I met my wonderful husband, in 2013, it became clear that God had given me a second chance at marriage, and we blended our families with our near-adult children. 

 

For the first few years, it was bliss and adventure. We took our kids on vacations to help them connect with us and each other. We both worked hard at our professions, attended church, and enjoyed a close community of friends.

 

However, as many marriages experienced, the pandemic of 2020 exposed the worst in us. After several years of compromising people-pleasing and undealt with emotional dysfunction from family systems of alcoholism and addiction, we found ourselves feeling resentful, anxious, and isolated.  Our families of origin, along with our previous marriages, left us floundering in conflict resolution, obsessing over confusing hurts, and repeating dysfunctional patterns of relating. 

 

Hope came unexpectedly in 2021, through a twelve-step process of spiritual transformation in Al-Anon.  I couldn’t believe that years of confusion seemed to make sense. All my previous efforts to live whole and free came together with new awareness and understanding. I felt true peace for the first time in my life.  I found hope. 

 

Because I changed, my relationship with my husband, adult children, and parents changed profoundly.

 

I want to share my process with you. 

 

As a master’s level educator for 24 years combined with intensive training in mental health and recovery coaching, I offer you a safe place to work through your confusion and hopelessness with someone who has done and continues to do her own inner work. 

 

With the help of God, I believe I can help any willing and honest individual who truly desires change. Investing in high-end transformation will bring life-changing results: a healthy state of mind, body, and soul. You are worth it. 

 

Laura DeJonge, M.A., C-MHC, CARC