Sean’s father left his mother before he was born. His mother was physically and emotionally abusive to him which resulted in Sean experiencing suicidal thoughts from a very young age. Desperate for affection, he grew up feeling isolated and acutely unlovable. Unable to maintain relationships, he turned to drugs and his life became frightening and chaotic. This resulted in periods spent in prison and culminated in him becoming homeless.
At 38, Sean felt the need to address his heroin dependency and was referred for therapy at the beginning of 2019. He was acutely aware that there were things from his past that he’d never had the opportunity to work through and was very fearful at first. He would often choke on his emotions and was genuinely afraid of becoming overwhelmed and returning to drugs as a way of coping.
With time and the careful building of trust with his counsellor, Sean found ways to express himself and began to authentically articulate his story for the first time. He committed to regular sessions and gradually became able to regulate his feelings, abstaining from substance use, even in moments of deep pain. Sean came to understand himself and his experience in a way that lessened the grip of his past on his present.
It’s from this basis, and a more secure sense of himself, that Sean proceeded to take on a permanent tenancy in a house with a garden, and to establish contact with his two children. He is no longer the absent father and is dedicated to building his relationship with them.
He’s also now engaging more earnestly with other support services and is making a real effort to secure meaningful employment’
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