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Past Resident Testimonials
Real people. Real stories.
I’m from Cleveland Ohio and am 35 years old. I had been struggling with substance abuse since early childhood. I went in and out of treatment centers and sober houses for years to no avail. A life changing event happened when I was 33 and I decided to give it another try. I went to a rehab in Youngstown Ohio. After completing inpatient treatment it was highly recommended that I continue on with outpatient and live in a sober house. Nikkis house came highly recommended by all the staff whom I respected very much. So I decided to surrender, throw “my plans” out the window and take every suggestion that was given to me. When I arrived at Nikki’s House I was so relieved at the neighborhood, atmosphere and area it was in. Beautiful houses, trees, flowers - beauty everywhere. Places I have been before are usually put in low-income neighborhoods near places where we would have previously used. This is detrimental to a newly sober person. Having that temptation so close and being put somewhere where you desperately want to escape from is counterproductive in my opinion. So right off the bat I was elated at the instant peace and serenity I felt pulling in. I was greeted with love, care and a family atmosphere. From the beginning Miss Nikki did everything and anything she could to help with anything I needed. She made all resources available. I never worried about food because we were given opportunities to meet with people who could give us assistance through many avenues. They made counseling and outpatient a priority. All the help you can ever want or need is available here. I learned how to be a productive member of the household with tasks, chores and responsibilities. As time passed and I got a job I learned how to be a productive member of society, manage my money (we did financial classes as well). Just through always having this safety net of the house and support there, I basically learned how to be human again. Living with others, respecting space and boundaries and developing real friendships. These are all the things that equipped me to be able to live in the real world. We went to meetings, did groups, meditations all things that strengthened my foundation of sobriety that I still use as the cornerstones today in recovery. As time went on I faced challenges regarding custody court and Miss. Nikki was there with me every step of the way. She would drive three-hour round trips to Cleveland to be with me at court and to testify on my behalf... many times! She would go with others to court and to probation. There isn’t anything she wouldn’t do to help us and I respect her so very much.
I stayed about 9 months and to be honest I would’ve stayed longer but I had to get my own place for court. I will say this... being there and the help I received was integral in my sobriety. I don’t know if I would’ve made it otherwise. The love, family, support, responsibility, accountability, spirituality and overall healing I gained cannot be put into words. I still go there and try to give back but I will never be able to repay all that was given to me. I will forever be grateful to Nikki, her mother, Miss Irma, and the home they built to put back together a broken soul that I once ways. My sobriety date is August 10th, 2018. I have a 2 bedroom home, a car, a job, a career in the works, but most importantly, I have my son and family back. People trust me today, I love myself inside and out. If you would have seen where I was over fours years ago to the life I’ve built today you would believe in miracles. God bless Nikki’s House and to all the others she will help to recover and hopefully get to where I am today.
A.B.
When I arrived at Nikki's House the first thing I noticed was how welcoming and nice everyone was. They're very easy to talk to and have become a huge part of my support system. Miss Nicole, Miss Irma, and Carrie have consistently gone above and beyond their responsibilities and obligations to help me. I can't imagine being at any other sober house, it's a beautiful home in a beautiful neighborhood and I'm very grateful to call this my home.
A.S.
I worked as a Medical Technologist for thirty-eight years, fifteen of them in active alcohol addiction. I have been in several inpatient facilities, numerous detoxes, and countless psych wards. While in treatment, I made rapid progress but upon discharge or shortly after, I relapsed. I was unable to make the transition from structured treatment to everyday life. Nikki's House provided me that transition. As a resident of the house, I completed IOP, worked the 12 Steps, and learned to deal with some of my mental health issues. Nikki's House afforded me the freedom to fail but the accountability to succeed. For anyone who is looking for a bridge to sobriety, I highly recommend Nikki's House.
R.B.
My experience at Nikki’s House has been nothing short of amazing. This is my first time in a recovery house, so I came into the process very fearful & anxious… unable to stay sober on my own & lead a productive life. I immediately felt comfortable here, Miss Nicole & the house manger, Carrie are beyond helpful & encouraging to all the residents! They have dedicated most of their time to the well being of every woman here & work endlessly to provide us with resources, to aid our recovery. For that, I am thankful.
This house provides a positive, supportive, and SAFE place to recover from drugs & alcohol. It is a gorgeous house in a great neighborhood. I couldn’t imagine being elsewhere.
I now have the imperative things that I was lacking in active addiction - structure, female support, accountability & peace. Ive been freely given the guidance & direction that I need on my journey to long term recovery. Here, I’m able to become a well rounded woman & productive member of society.
Nikki’s House has been an enormous blessing in my life & I never thought I could lead the life I have today. I am so happy to be living here!”
R.A.
This is my first time I have ever been in treatment. After I coined out from treatment, I came straight to Nikki’s House! I am going to be 62 in July. This is the happiest I can ever remember being except for the births of my children. I actually am living with 4 women I was in treatment with. And the other women I’ve become very close to. My life has done a 180 since I’ve lived here for the good.
We have a routine here. Meditation every morning! We pray out and start our days, I just graduated from a eight-week class in IOP. To me to accomplish that is an amazing victory, and I could not have done it without having a safe place to be after only just 30 days!
My grown adult children confronted me about my addictions while I was brought to hospital severely beaten and completely broken. They told me they wanted me to do a year in treatment. I told them no way!!! I will do only 30 days and that’s it! I just had my 90 days clean and sober. I have dedicated myself to a year here at Nikki’s House. We have a most awesome kind sweet patient house manager that lives with us. She holds us accountable for all of the things you’re supposed to do while in recovery. She does this with love compassion and the desire to see us have happy Healthy sober and clean lives. She is there for us in every aspect of our lives.
I have become the Mother my children thought they had lost along time ago. I have learned to regain back my self-respect. I have found my self-confidence once again. I have learned to love myself and forgive myself so that I can move on with my recovery. This house gives us the opportunity to have this time to get sobriety under our belts. While we work on ourselves and work our program.
In this house we do a lot of cooking laughing healing, We have each other’s backs all the time and anytime of the day. Never alone never again. We lift each other up we listen to each other. We help each other we trust each other and most important of all we understand each other. If I didn’t have Nikki’s House to come to I might not be alive today. My relationship with my children has grown has healed they are my biggest supporters out there. They are so grateful for this house because their mom is healthy happy clean sober and not depressed or suicidal.
I have attempted suicide in the past not so long ago. I had no desire to live before I went into treatment. Now I wake up every morning grateful That I am alive. Grateful to see the sun grateful for Nicole’s sober house. I have made life time friends here. And forever I will be grateful for this amazing experience. I am turning into the person that God created me to be. Sober house living could save many people’s lives. And I forgot to say that I have been an addict and alcoholic for years! I have a disease that there is no cure for it but it’s treatable and possible to recover…As long as you have these kind of sober living places and attend meetings often, working a 12-step program. Thank you so much Miss Nicole for giving me my life back!!
T.V.
Family Testimonials
Stories of family care
Twenty-two months ago a new and very different chapter of our lives began at Nikki’s House of Recovery. Almost 2 years ago we took our daughter to this house. It was a God send and saved our family. We had been embedded in the disease of alcoholism with our daughter and spent years trying to fix, control &
cure her. As the disease escalated things only got worse and she could no longer live in our home. She had burned bridges and had nowhere to go. We met with the Director of a Glenbeigh IOP facility looking for help for placement for her. He called Nikki’s House and said they had an opening. She knew she had nowhere else to turn and we drove her there the next day. None of us knew what to expect and emotions were running high. Nikki immediately made us feel comfortable about bringing her there. She explained everything in detail, and we felt it would
be a safe place for her to begin recovery. My daughter was anxious and resentful, but we felt a sense of peace. After an adjustment period of a couple weeks she seemed to settle in. Slowly she moved forward and began to regain her life. Each passing week got a little better and she had found a community where she felt secure. Serenity was slowly coming back into all our lives. Our daughter was on a schedule of chores, meetings, service to others, etc and we slowly began to see changes. Communication with Nikki was always addressed quickly and we began making visits after she was there a couple months. To see how she has progressed in so many areas of her life is amazing. She’s finding purpose, helping others, growing in her own program and we have our daughter “back”! We’ve done our part learning about alcoholism and our role in relating to her through Al-Anon.
This House and the program Nikki has created has saved our family and we’ll be
forever grateful!
M.L.
We are so thankful for Nikki’s House! Our daughter’s decision to live at Nikki’s House following her last relapse has been a life saver, both for our daughter and our family. Their focus on sober living in a supportive, family-like environment has made a world of difference.
Three things stand out in particular. First, Nicole and the house manager are both recovering addicts and have firsthand knowledge of the struggle of addiction and recovery. That experience allows them to provide a balance of empathy, accountability and tough love. Second, there’s a focus on regular meeting attendance, IOP participation, and daily meditation. This requirement helps cement habits that are absolutely necessary for a successful recovery. Finally, Nicole and her staff are very supportive of the residents’ families. They regularly communicate with us, are always available to answer questions and provide reassurance, and have been true partners as we help our daughter in her recovery.
Our daughter is getting ready to return home. We are very hopeful—her experience at Nikki’s House has done more to prepare her for sober living and continued recovery than we’ve seen in the past. We also are comforted to know that Nikki’s House will be a resource for her, even after she’s moved out on her own.
T.B.
My mother is a resident currently and started her journey of sobriety just a few short months ago. The changes I’ve seen in my mom over that time have been astronomical. I am so thankful that she has a safe place with kind people surrounding her and she has flourished in this environment. Every time I talk to my mom, she is happy and laughing, telling me about what she learned about herself, her recovery or some funny thing that happened that day. It has been truly a blessing to hear the joy in her voice each time I talk to her. Thank you for all you do and thank you for being a part of bringing my mom back to me.
Sincerely,
A grateful daughter
V.T.
I am so grateful to Nikki's house for the expertise and service they are providing for my mother. The stable environment cultivated by Nikki’s house has allowed my mother to grow as a person. The plan and structure provided in this house has given her the opportunity to become a better version of herself. The change is evident. Words cannot begin to express the gratitude and appreciation I have for this house. It’s truly given my mother a well-deserved second chance.
V.R.
As adults, my siblings and I have struggled to find ways to connect with our mom. There always seemed to be some crisis in her life, and we tried to help her in a variety of ways. We tried giving her money for rent, money for groceries, buying her new furniture, buying her a car, suggesting therapy for depression, listening to her troubles as patiently as possible, and offering all kinds of suggestions. Her life had spun out of control and none of us knew why or when it happened. We just knew that nothing we did seemed to help her constant dire situations. Eventually, her woes made the three of us feel hopeless and we each distanced ourselves from her. It was painful to watch our mom fall to pieces constantly, always blaming others for her problems. It didn’t occur to us until recently that her problems were drug and alcohol related, because we truly wanted as little to do with her as possible, therefore missing any signs that might have led us to this conclusion sooner.
When she talked about ending her life earlier this year, mom ended up in the psychiatric unit of a local hospital. She signed a form that gave the medical staff permission to discuss her records with me. I knew that the only way she would come clean and admit her problem was if I had irrefutable evidence. I asked the medical staff what drugs were in her system, even though in my heart I already knew the answer. My mother was using meth. Gut-wrenching is the only way to describe the feeling of someone confirming to me that the woman, who raised me, taught me right from wrong, to stand up for myself and for others, was a drug addict.
After reflecting on the fact that my siblings and I had likely been unknowingly funding her drug and alcohol habit for our entire adult lives, I made the decision to give her an ultimatum. Seek treatment or lose me (and her grandchildren) forever. It seems harsh, but I was truly at my wits end and I had no idea how else to help
her. She needed to help herself at this point.
After several conversations and some research, my siblings and I agreed to move her belongings to a storage unit while she went to rehab. Initially, mom thought I was crazy when I suggested an entire year in a sober living facility. She agreed to go for one month. That was all she was prepared to give us. Once she began detox and rehab, she really began to reflect on her life and the mess that it had become.
For the first time in my entire life, my mom was able to be truthful about her
struggles without being defensive or on guard. After the initial month at a rehab facility, mom transferred to Nikki’s House and that is where she truly began to blossom. She is lighthearted, honest, direct and approachable for the first time in ages. We recently had a disagreement, that, in years past would have led to a huge fight and months of silent treatment due to hurt feelings. Because of the coping tools that she is learning at sober living, my mom and I had our first “grown up” disagreement, where we each spoke our truths, apologized for hurt feelings, and put it behind us. It feels like I have a mom for the first time in my adult life. One that I would turn to for advice. One that has some wisdom and clarity, now that she is clean and sober. Her time at the sober living facility has been nothing short of a miracle. For myself, my children, my siblings, and my aging grandmother. But most importantly... for my mom, who had the strength and courage to take the first step to a better life. I am so thankful for her mentors, peers, counselors, etc. and I know that our relationship would have been irreparable without the work that they are helping her to do.
G.M.
Other Testimonials
The surrounding community notices, too!
I first met Nicole in 2017 when she came into the Trumbull County Adult Probation Department and introduced herself and provided information concerning her soon to be opened sober house for females. She not only provided information about her sober house but also about herself. I took an immediate liking to Nicole. I found her to be open, honest and easy to talk to.
Since my initial meeting with Ms. Wesley, nothing has changed my opinion of her. She operates, in my opinion, one of the best if not the best sober house in the area. She truly has the best interest of her residents at heart, and I have seen some wonderful changes in some of her residents. Conversely, she is fair and firm and is not afraid to dismiss a resident who is not complying with the house rules.