We are honored to have Alysha Giliberti back at our table this week. Alysha tells us the heartwarming of her sister, Terrisa Noel Rivera-Jones. Terrisa is forever 31 after an overdose of fentanyl. Terrisa struggled with addiction and mental illness for the majority of her life. She was homeless on and off until the day she died. Terrisa was an amazing artist, extremely creative, and incredibly smart. She was funny, witty, and fun to be around (if she liked you). Terrisa worked in the mental health field and had many jobs over the years helping people; from working with substance use disorder to art therapy to assisting homeless veterans, Terrisa enjoyed helping anyone at any time; no matter what she needed for herself. Terrisa also had two girls whom she loved deep down to her soul. All of these things existed at the same time. Terrisa would want her girls to know they are loved beyond measure and they’re capable of loving themselves and others just as much. Terrisa was unapologetically herself and if her story can help anyone out there, she’d want it told. This is part 1 of a 2 part story. Listen next Wednesday for part 2 of Terrisa’s story.

From: Love, To: An Addict

The saying goes, “We can’t love you more than you love yourself”

But we loved you more than you loved.                  yourself

At times when you just couldn’t

Or the times when you just wouldn’t

We loved you when you felt like you just  

          shouldn’t  

And when your shame took over

And days passed by

And the time between the calls 

grew longer

We loved you more than you loved yourself

The saying goes, “we can’t want it for you”

But we wanted it for you

When you wanted to numb the pain

Or put the voices in your head at bay

And hoped that time didn’t slip away

We wanted it for you 

When you were hurting most

In the state of chaos and confusion

In the midst of your deep loneliness

And, let’s face it, even in your delusions

We loved you more than you loved yourself 

And we wanted it for you

And when your heart said yes but your.                    brain said no 

we wanted to be a safe space for you to.                  go 

And in your shame 

and maybe a little bit of “fuck it” mentality 

ultimately you chose your reality 

a reality that none of us wanted for you 

a reality that we would give anything  

to change for you 

If only you knew 

how much we wanted it for you 

if only you could see you 

from our point of view 

But we believe you knew

That we loved you more than you loved.                 yourself 

and I promise you 

we wanted it for you

The saying goes “you can’t change the past” but we would give our last breath 

to have you back

And then we realize 

you are a sitting at the Father’s feet 

you’re finally at peace 

and now we speak in your memory 

From: Alysha, To: My sister

https://www.healthright360.org/

(Prototypes rehab that I mentioned. Looks like they have an umbrella company now, but this is the correct one)

(National Alliance for Mental Health) https://nami.org/Home

https://www.211.org/get-help/substance-use

https://copingskillsforkids.com/blog/2016/4/27/coping-skill-spotlight-5-4-3-2-1-grounding-technique

(This also has free coping skills resources, which I printed out and put in my daughter’s room when she was little)

Related Episodes:

Episode 99: I Have Been Sober For A Year and I Love It, w/ Alysha Giliberti

EPISODE #90: YOU CANNOT LOVE SOMEONE SOBER W/ WENDY DUGAL

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The post Episode #128: In Memory of Terrisa Noel Rivera-Jones: Humanizing Addiction Part 1 of 2, w/ Alysha Giliberti appeared first on Beyond Picket Fences.