Heather Truchan(right), clinical lead of women's programs at the Ellen O'Brien Gaiser Addiction Center in Butler, sits and talks with a patient in the Center's new garden space. The patient pictured is not Rebecca.

Alcohol and Vicodin entered Rebecca’s life at age 12.

She grew up seeing her dad use both. She picked up the substances herself after her dad’s best friend sexually abused her. He killed himself once the truth came out, and she felt the blame.

She dealt with it the same way her dad did.

“I grew up around alcohol,” Rebecca said. “I grew up with alcoholism. And I grew up with addiction.”

Today, Rebecca is a 46-year-old Butler resident. Rebecca is her real name, but her full name isn’t being published to protect her identity.

She’s about a year-and-half into her recovery. Addiction ran most of Rebecca’s life for her, and today, in her long-sought sobriety, it’s clear that it all began as a child.

This is an excerpt from a larger story that appeared in Sunday’s Butler Eagle. Subscribe online or in print to read the full article and learn more about Rebecca’s life.FB: SURVIVING THE FAMILY TREE: Addiction ran most of Rebecca’s life for her, and today, in her long-sought sobriety, it is clear that its roots started in her childhood.