Success Stories

When Meredith started her probation this spring, she did not have much support.  She lost custody of her four-year-old son, Tobey, to a drug-related charge and he entered the foster care system.  She also faced possible jail time if she violated her probation.

Meredith began working with Treatment Accountability for Safer Communities (TASC), who helped her enter substance abuse and parenting programs.  If she passed all of the programs, she might one day regain custody of Tobey.

TASC referred her to Meghan Dahlin, MA, LPC, CFI, a mental health clinician with the Kempe Access to Services for Parent Infant/Child Relationship Enhancement (ASPIRE) Program.  ASPIRE treats trauma exposed children to ensure that these children do not become abusers themselves.  ASPIRE is a component of The Justice Initiative for Drug Endangered Families (JI-DEF), which provides opportunities for parental substance recovery, the prevention of child maltreatment, and reduction of child welfare involvement and out of home placement when appropriate.

Starting in May, Meredith and Dahlin met once a week, weather permitting.  At first, Meredith lacked motivation and felt reluctant to meet with Dahlin.  She did not see how issues with attachment and discipline affected her relationship with Tobey.  “There were hard times at first, like getting motivated to get him back,” she said. 

Soon after her meetings with Dahlin started, Meredith came to the realization that she wanted to succeed and see her son again.  The road to recovery was not easy.  Not only did Meredith have Dahlin to hold her accountable for her treatment, but she also had to fulfill other components of the JI-DEF program in order to see Tobey again.

During her weekly meetings, Dahlin taught her different parenting techniques.  One constructive discipline idea she learned was Magic 1-2-3.  This involved counting to one, two, then three each time Tobey misbehaved.  If she reached the number three, then Tobey had to spend three minutes in time out.  This way, he would learn the consequences for his negative actions in a non-abusive way.  “I didn’t believe it would work at first,” she said.  “But it actually worked.  Meghan was such a great coach and it turned out to be really helpful.”

Meredith now had someone she could talk to and teach her how to become a good mother to Tobey.  She needed someone to be in her corner and could count on for support.  Even between their weekly meetings, Meredith could reach Dahlin by phone any time she needed someone to talk with for help.
With her new support system in place and her treatment completed at the beginning of September; she soon regained custody of her son.

Back home with his mother, Tobey is flourishing.  Every morning, he attends preschool and he spends afternoons in day care.  His social skills have improved and he has a great relationship with his friends, who hug him goodbye everyday when he leaves preschool.

Meredith is also succeeding.  She is attending college and one day dreams of becoming a pilot.  She feels a huge sense of relief and much less stress.

Meredith found the support system she needed to hold her accountable and make her a better parent.  And now, Tobey has the support he needs from his mom. According to Meredith, “I’m really happy for how everything has turned out.”

Pseudonyms have been used and photographs substituted to protect the identity of the children and family members served by The Kempe Center.