SHARE Magazine January 2015 | Page 19

MONY k to Church happy when you ” of Melissa Flageul much. I nearly broke down as life was unbearable it was awful. Missing my eldest boy was the most terrible pain. Relapse Then my daughter started over-night contact with her Dad on August 31“ 2013. As it was Dads contact weekend that meant I had none of my children at home. I couldn’t bear it and went out drinking with friends starting in the afternoon, anything to forget. The vicious cycle began on every Dads weekend. I drank myself into oblivion, stayed out all night as I couldn’t bear to be in an empty home without my children. On my fortieth birthday I was out clubbing I bought some cheap nasty ‘Poppers’ (I hadn’t touched any type of recreational drug for years) and drank loads of shots to try and reach oblivion. I was sniffing ‘Poppers’ just to try and reach a place away from my life where I could not feel the pain. Next thing, I felt stillness and everything went quiet. I knew who was trying to reach me when I felt that love again. God was reaching out to me. Even at my worst God loved me. Now it would be great to say I turned to God at that point but instead I ran to the toilets because I so needed to get away from God! I ran and hid. I sniffed loads more ‘Poppers’ but they stopped working. I drank three shots in a row but nothing would work. I couldn’t shake off God touching my heart, and I did want Him to touch my heart but I felt so ashamed of the way I was living my life. I saw a leaflet for Divorce Care at the Ice House Christian Centre and then weeks later at my boy’s school. I turned up one Saturday morning; the people in the room seemed crazy going on about Jesus being their strength, reading Scripture and I thought, oh no not Christians again, they’re doing my head in. I need to get out of here quickly and hope they don’t start singing. They showed a DVD and it was even worse than Scripture more Christian stuff. I kept my coat on all I wanted was a Jack Daniels, a Coke and a cigarette. But most of all I wanted out of that room but something kept me sitting there. After the January - March 2015 SHARE|MAGAZINE | 19