Sarah’s Story
From the outside, most would judge Sarah instantly upon meeting her. At 27 years old, she was extremely ill, addicted to heroin and crack and exchanging sex for money to continue to fund her drug use and housing needs. Nevertheless, when we met Sarah, we didn’t judge. We took her into our clinic and provided her with medical care and treated things like asthma, pneumonia, sexually transmitted infections, and various injuries without expecting anything in return. For the first time for as long as she could remember, Sarah was provided with a safe space, a relationship that was not transactional. One that gave freely, demanding nothing of her. Over time, through that relationship, we built trust. She began to open up more about her life and learned that the reality of her story was much more harrowing than it appeared.
Sarah was being trafficked. The father of one of Sarah’s children had used Sarah’s homelessness and addiction against her in order to gain custody of their child. He then used visitation time and housing at the hotel he owned as leverage to control and manipulate her into having sex with in exchange for money, which he then took. This life consumed her and she often felt that there was no escape for her. Things came to a head when one day, Sarah became violently ill. She was coughing up blood, covered in a rash, and incredibly weak. There were moments when it felt like she might not survive. Still, we continued to show up for her, offering whatever care we could. Slowly, she began to recover.
As her physical health improved, something else began to shift. One day, she told us she was ready to leave her life of trafficking behind. She wanted something different. She wanted to heal. She wanted a chance to start over. We helped her take that next step, preparing her and connecting her with a residential treatment program that could support not only her physical recovery, but her sense of identity, strength, and hope. While she was in treatment, Sarah found out she was pregnant, which made her decision to change feel even more urgent and meaningful. We continued to walk alongside her through her pregnancy and the birth of her child, and we remained a steady source of support as she transitioned out of treatment and began rebuilding her life.
Today, Sarah’s life looks very different. She is living in a stable environment, attending school part time, and working as well. She is expecting another child and continues to move forward with strength and purpose. Perhaps most meaningful of all, she now refers others from her past life to our clinic, hoping they too can experience the same kind of care and support that helped change her own path.
