Drug Diversion Program Helps Woman Be 'Super Mom Without Super Drugs'
BOSTON (CBS) – A young woman, let's call her 'Lois,' from north of Boston, she had a serious drug problem.
"I was addicted to stimulants, prescription stimulants. Adderall, Provigil, Ritalin, anything to make me super-mom throughout the day," she told WBZ NewsRadio 1030.
Read: Essex County Drug Diversion Program Hopes To Curb Opioid Epidemic
The working, single mom had a lot of weight on her shoulders and she said those drugs helped her to lift that weight.
"Those drugs gave me the ability to, essentially, do it all or felt like I could do it all, until I couldn't anymore," she said.
She couldn't anymore because she was arrested, charged with stealing prescription drugs.
"I had never been arrested for anything before, never even got a speeding ticket, so I was pretty nervous, and when they said that they were going to put me in the Drug Diversion Program, I just wanted to change my life around for the better, so I was all for it," 'Lois' said.
The Essex County District Attorney's Drug Diversion Program is the only one of its kind in the state.
Read: Young Addict Grateful For Chance To Stay Clean In Drug Diversion Program
It allows some non-violent offenders with drug problems to wipe the slate clean, to have charges dropped if they complete their prescribed drug treatment program.
"I think it's a great opportunity for anyone with an addiction to give them a second chance to turn their life around, if they're ready for it and willing to put in the work," 'Lois' said.
She's spent six months in a halfway house and she's moving ever closer to her goals – a steady, full time job, having her son live with her, and "to go on to do some schooling."
Her biggest obstacle is that specter of super-mom in the mirror.
"This Drug Diversion Program and Project Cope is teaching me that I can be super-mom without super drugs."
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Carl Stevens Reports