'I lost everything': Sask. woman is using her experience to help others with addictions

Two Prince Albert YWCA workers are using their experience with addictions to help others.

Lorette Whitehead is a client support worker at the YWCA’s Our House Support and Recovery Centre.

“It makes me feel excited and happy, especially when I see people really apply themselves,” Whitehead said.

She said she often tells clients what got her through her recovery. The mother of nine struggled with a crystal meth addiction for four years and went to the YWCA’s recovery centre in March of 2022.

“I lost everything to the drug. I lost my kids and lost my home, my drivers…within three months,” she said.

When she recovered, Whitehead got a job with the YWCA’s Stepping Stones Shelter.

“I’ve seen people that I know come there, and they’re shocked to see me working there,” she said.

The 45-bed shelter provides an overnight stay for people experiencing homelessness.

Jonas Beebe, the shelter’s project coordinator, said workers help connect clients to other resources such as income support and addiction counselling. The shelter is scheduled to open on November 1.

“We’re getting all our staff set up and trained properly for the opening day,” he told CTV News.

Beebe also has lived experience.

“I’ve come from an addictions background myself, and I know half the clients here on a personal level, and it’s way easier to connect with them,” he said.

He hopes his story will inspire others.

“It shows them that it’s possible,” he said.

Whitehead says she’s made a lot of progress in the last few years, including regaining custody of her children.

Now, she’s moved back to the recovery centre to help others through their recovery.

“It’s kind of hard to believe this is my life now, it’s just warming and exciting,” she said.