motherhood
I became a single mother at the age of 19. I gave birth to my first daughter in 1994. Shortly after I returned to the same lifestyle. My parents helped me with my daughter so I could stay in the streets.
In 1996 I met my first husband. Throughout our relationship he was both physically and mentally abusive including before and after I gave birth to my second child.
In 1998 I gave birth to my son. Before he was born I was told that my son would be born with a heart defect. They strongly advised me to abort him. However I chose not to, when he was 3 months old he had his first open heart surgery. 6 days post-op he went into cardiac arrest, the doctors were resuscitating him for over an hour while I was present. My son miraculously survived, two months later they sent him home with hospice as they didn't believe he would survive past 5 months. Little did I know that this would be the start to a very difficult part of my life as my son was left disabled from an anoxic brain injury. However god had a different plan as my son is now 25 years old.
I met my second husband in 2002 and I began selling and trafficking drugs. I was arrested and charged with trafficking drugs in 2003. I spent two years in prison, 7 months in work release, and 3 and 1/2 years on strict parole. My second husband was also abusive physically and mentally. I gave birth to my last daughters in 2005 and 2008. My husband was sent to prison in 2011 for 6 years. I was left alone to care for my 3 children.