My story is very similar to the rest of the members of my group: alcoholic parents, a messed-up family, lack of trust, and anger issues. According to my mom, my grandmother was also an alcoholic and a drug addict. When she had my mom, my grandfather left, so my mom never knew who her father was. My father grew up in bars and became a drunk. I used to think all adult men were drunks. My dad’s dad died when my dad was eight years old. Both of my parents had difficult times growing up. Learning from my parents’ past helped me understand them better.

Before Alateen, I constantly felt worthless, like I should be dead. I didn’t care for other people. Alateen helped me want to live. They are like a family, they care about me. They are always there for me, even when I’m angry and frustrated. In most of our stories, our families were not there for us physically or emotionally.

I believe that this program saved my life. Without Al-Anon/ Alateen, I would be throwing my life away or worse—killing myself. I’m thankful for this program and my new family in it. Whenever times are rough, I know they could be worse.

Whenever things are good, I know they could be better. That’s why the slogans, the Serenity Prayer, and this program get me through life.