I've been on welfare for 2 years and am getting off welfare the first time for this country in 60 years. Here's how I did it.

I'm a 31 year old. I have a 9 month old daughter. I also have 5 other children, but I lost them all to adoption because of my struggles with addiction. I come from a long line of generational addiction and welfare. I've given birth to 6 children, and only one has been afforded the opportunity of having a healthy mother. I've tried to stop drinking so many times, but I've finally landed on a program that has worked for me. One day at a time. <br><br>I fell into the same cycle every other woman in my family has. Teenage pregnancy, addiction, welfare, abusive relationships, and now, hopefully, recovery. When I was 3 months pregnant, I stopped drinking and deleted my boyfriend's number. I wanted better for my baby than my life. <br><br>I got pregnant again a year later with my second daughter, and had the same resolve to stop drinking and do better. I didn't. I miscarried her while drinking. I cut my wrist and wound up in a psychiatric hospital. I was in such emotional pain I didn't know how to deal with it. <br><br>I got pregnant a third time. I was very serious about doing better. I stopped drinking and went to therapy, and after a month of my pregnancy, I miscarried again. This caused me more pain. I felt like I'd never get to have a healthy baby. <br><br>I was at my lowest point when I met my daughter's father. He had a lot of money, and I used a lot of it to get alcohol. He also had a lot of pills, which I took to try and end my life. I got pregnant again. We had a miscarriage scare, and I was told I'd have a miscarriage. I didn't. I had my baby, and she thrived.<br><br>She's 9 months and was the turning point for me. I realized I couldn't continue to destroy my own life and harm my daughter. I was on welfare, and I knew I had to stop relying on this. I stopped drinking and went to therapy. I sought out places to stay when I needed out of the situation with my daughter's father, who drank a lot. <br><br>I was scared to ask for help, but I knew I needed it. I am a changed person. I am more polite and less in need of immediate gratification. When you're drinking, you're always living in the now. But I've learned to thrive in the tomorrow. I have a future now, and it is bright. <br><br>I've always been ashamed of being on welfare. But it's helped me through some of the hardest times of my life, and now I'm making my best efforts to get off of it. More importantly though, I've gotten off welfare for my family. <br><br>My daughter's father is also a recovering addict and alcoholic. He worked tirelessly for 12 years to support himself and me and our daughter. He also worked on improving himself and being a better father. <br><br>We are both better people, and we're working on building a life together. <br><br>I know we have a long road ahead of us, but it's a better road than our past.