For the first decade or so of my recovery from a substance use disorder, I believed that recovery only happened after people hit rock bottom. As I listened to people in Twelve Step meetings share their descent into the hell of addiction, I somehow picked up that people were only motivated enough to seek recovery after they had lost their dignity, relationships, health, jobs, and worse.
This message (and reality) remains true for many individuals, and we need to respect that. But it isn't true for everyone.
We need to talk and write more about early intervention. Addiction and mental health issues present and progress along a continuum.
As much as we need to be here for the women who do hit a hard bottom, we also need to go upstream and help women who are struggling before things blow up in their hearts and their lives. I've made peace with how my own multi-bottomed story played out, but I sometimes wonder what my life would have looked like if somebody had noticed me struggling sooner.
Life is fuller and better when help comes earlier.