Sonya Perez-Palmer’s grandchildren will push her buttons until they find the detonator.
There was a time when the grandmother of seven was quick to explode, but now she defuses the situation by pulling out her journal and writing down her thoughts.
It’s a coping mechanism she learned in the Farrell Family Center’s Families in Recovery Program — a seven-week program developed by PA Family Support Alliance aimed to help parents overcome addiction, and rebuild and strengthen relationships within the family.
“You can teach an old dog new tricks,” Perez-Palmer, 56, said about her newly learned coping mechanism. “It helps me stop and think before I react. It feels so good to know why I’m acting a fool.”
The program covers seven topics — one per week — including identifying strengths and needs within the family, communication styles, discipline and development, all teaching its members how to balance the needs of their own recovery.