'Intervention' Recap: Jamie

OH maaaaannnnn, this one broke my heart last night. See to me, there are two kinds of addicts. Your immature hedonists like Charlie Sheen, and then there are the ones' like Jamie that are really in true pain and are wonderful people underneath all the sick. Mostly victims of their circumstances that try like hell, but just don't have any tools. That's Jamie.

Jamie is a 27 year old woman with a dysfunctional family, that I would love to learn more about. Her parents separated after 22 years of marriage, he older sister is a complete histrionic mess, and along with Jamie and her twin sister Jen, started partying as soon as they could reach the top shelf of the fridge.

Jamie and her sister Susan both agree that it's their father that was the abuser. And I can see that. He seems to be a control freak of the highest order, and even worse? Evangelical. Not that there's anything wrong with my Evangelical homies, it's just that it tends to attract sanctimonious a-holes like Jamie's father. All hell-fire and brimstone.

However, on the flip side of that coin is Jamie who found a little bit of solace and stability through God, and tried her damnedest to pull her stuff together and help others. That made me instantly fall in love with the girl. She's got some fight in her unlike her mess of an older sister, and just needs some sane people around her. It takes a person with tremendous inner strength to not only want to help herself, but help others along the way.

Unfortunately, for all the good Jamie was trying to do for herself, her twin sister Jen was still a booze and pill hound, and eventually OD'ed. Jamie managed to white knuckle it for a year, but fell off the wagon on the anniversary of her sister's death and has been a mess ever since. Doctors have told her she was going to drink herself to death, but she's so lost she'd rather be numb than feel any kind of pain.

Now having a family member die because of substance abuse has made this family even sicker. Jamie's father, John is an enabler of the highest order, but he doesn't feel that way. Do the enablers ever really feel that way? But it's pretty clear to see that John has that crux of overwhelming guilt combined with a need for control masked by his muy macho pride that makes things a sticky mess for his kids. He has crippled them to the point of being dependent on him, so he can control them, but because they're adults, it's a constant power struggle, he knows he messed them up but can't emote, and I'm going to need an extra therapy session this week if I keep typing about it. The bottom line with dad is he needs to let go, and admit he was wrong. But that'll never happen it seems, so let's get back to Jamie.

The intervention gets set up, and it's the darling Candy Finnegan in the house ready to kick ass and take some names around here. Basically this family is so scared of the secrets coming out and appearing...oh I don't know...not perfect and maybe a little human that they all just become unhinged. Especially Susan. I really think though, that Susan got hip to the game and didn't want to get sent to rehab too. That one seems very much like her father. Control freak central.

But the intervention goes on without Susan, who has threatened to kill herself rather than go, and since Candy DON'T PLAY she made them call the authorities to report it. This causes Dad to go totally bonkers because now not only is he losing his grip on Jamie, he's losing his control over Susan as well. I'm not even all that bright and I figured that one out.

So things simmer a bit and Jamie shows up... the friend was really on point and a good influence. Dad went totally off script and I thought Candy was going to snap, jump, and put him in a hardcore bitchtrap...basically for berating Jamie and making her problems about him during HER intervention. Jerkface.

The pastor was the last to speak, and I wish she would have been more assertive with the situation and John's little outburst. Instead of just sitting there, she's really in a position of authority for ol' John and could have checked him fast. But she did seem to be the one that got Jamie to go. That poor girl just needed someone to believe in her a little bit and not make it about their own ego.

Jamie got in the van and headed to Florida to rehab. You knew she would, the poor thing just needed a way out of that hell hole she calls her family. I wasn't surprised to see her look so much better and seem so healed in a good environment. There's a good soul under there and she'll go pretty far as long as she stays the hell out of Canada and her family. I almost kicked the TV when I saw that her dad refused the family program and nothing was done about Susan. All the more reason for Jamie to head to sober living and start a new life, far, far away.

I really hope we get an update on Jamie. As of last night she has been sober almost four months, and I'm really rooting for her.

Read more: http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/reality-zen-with-jenn/#ixzz1G1kCqez1