Ex-drug addict speaks about her journey to recovery

A drug or alcohol addiction affects not only the life of the abuser but also the lives of their loved ones who are often left to pick up the pieces.

Unfortunately, chemical substance abuse is a widespread problem that affects countless individuals in our communities.

Monique Wentzel of Davidsonville is a former drug addict who is still haunted by her years of drug abuse. She wants to warn the youth going down the same path to change their ways and come clean.

The 24-year-old who was addicted to crystal meth and other drugs told the Record that she started using drugs because she felt all alone, unhappy and thought that her family didn’t want her.

After falling in love with a guy she met, Monique fell pregnant and was very happy but never sober-minded to give her child the love and attention a child needs.

Many locals have called Monique ‘incredibly brave’ after seeing photographs on the Facebook page Davidsonville Nuusblad that were taken of her while she was in the clutches of drugs and after she became sober. These were used to tell her story and warn others of the dangers of drug abuse.

“After a very long time my mother came to visit me, and I could see in her eyes that her heart was very sore and broken. “When she looked at me she told me that I was not the daughter she knew. She and my mother-in-law contacted my cousin and other people whom I didn’t even know and just asked me one question, ‘do you know there’s a God who loves you’? “I froze and said ‘yes’, and asked myself if I wanted to change or stay addicted to wrong things. There was a voice speaking to me that told me I needed to change. I decided to take the first step before thinking about anybody else. I made up my mind to take that step which wasn’t easy as I had to leave my child behind,” said Monique.

When asked to share advice for the youth in her community, Monique mentioned the importance of not forgetting that there is a God who loves and cares about us.

Monique admits that as a sober mother to her daughter she now sees and feels the love she thought didn’t exist – it was the drugs that made her not see the love of her family.

“Thank you very much to God and the Jesus Maak Nxa NPC, as well as sister Nicole who had a lot of patience with me, the church and my family members who prayed for me and trusted me,” she said.

Jesus Maak Nxa NPC is a faith-based foundation with its primary focus on creating awareness and offering solutions to all types of abuse-related issues, providing mentorship and guidance through religious principles with the purpose of self-discovery within Christ.

“We remember the day we went just to speak to Monique and she said she wanted to leave now, as she’d made up her mind. She left without her clothing, and asked us what took us so long. We run a safe haven for females and our mission is to be dedicated and passionate about helping sons and daughters discovering who they are in Christ. We help them understand they have a purpose, to be self-confident, become healthy, to be respected, that they are forgiven, redeemed, loved, adopted, accepted, and chosen as Apostle Paul emphasises in the book of Ephesians 1,” said the Founder of Jesus Maak Nxa NPC, Clarence Olivier.