Back in 2022 my, then 11-year-old, daughter opened up about being sexually assaulted by a family member. We got justice for her and thought that we were on the road to recovery when things started to spiral downhill. In 2023 we started to notice some self-harm marks on her. We got her in to see a counselor but that did not seem to work, she continued to spiral and started to find comfort in drugs and alcohol. Last August, was the worst. She tried to hang herself from her loft bed with an extension cord. My, then 9-year-old, daughter walked into the bedroom to find her limp with the cord around her neck. We started to perform life saving measures until paramedics got there. She then spent a week in a psychiatric hospital and was released a week before school started. We thought we were on the mend, until her ideation became too much and we had to admit her again in December where she spent her 14th birthday. To this day we are on high alert with even though we have an amazing team of counselors and support, there is still that fear that she might try again and we may not be so lucky to save her. This past year, Toby Mac's song Faithfully has really struck a chord with me and hits home hard.
I have attached the most recent family picture we have, we are missing my oldest son as he was out of state for work, from this past June at a Lainey Wilson concert, grateful to God and everyone who has been there with us and for us through this last year. She is still here and continues to smile bright.