BILLINGS — Kyle Spang suffered from substance addiction for half her life but recently at the Eagle Seeker Community Center, she celebrated almost two years of sobriety.
Spang's struggle with addiction began from trauma she suffered when she was a child.
"I got physically and sexually abused and was taken away from my family. I remember numbing it at a young age with cigarettes first, then marijuana and alcohol and I numbed it and I haven’t known any other coping mechanism since," Sprang said.
That form of coping led her to start abusing meth, "It went from every weekend, to daily and that went on for years."
Those years of substance abuse were not only destroying her life but her family's as well.
"It’s hard to watch your daughter have to deal with that way of life. You figure out ways to cope with it and just pray a lot," said Bently Spang, Kyle's father.
"I lived my life every day in constant fear. I wanted my mom there, but my mom wasn’t there," said Kyle's daughter Destynee Two Moons.
Spang’s addiction eventually cost her more than her own health.
"It’s one thing to hurt myself but to harm my child, that was the turning point," Kyle Spang added.
Her son was taken from her, and that was the moment she knew she had to make a change.
And with the help of the Yellowstone ICWA family recovery court, she started a journey that’s seen her stay sober for almost two years and helped her get her son back.
Her family and friends recently gathered to celebrate her success.
"I’m very proud, I’m extremely proud. There were times when I thought that I would never be able to see this day where I would be able to have a present mom. A mom who I can count on," added Two Moons.
"I'm so proud of her efforts, she stayed the course and really just buckled down and did everything that was asked of her in this process and everything that needed to happen for her to stay sober," added Bently Spang.
Her efforts are now focused on ensuring that others currently struggling with addiction know they have the strength to get sober as well.
"I want to be a voice to make those connections for the rural communities to be able to get those resources and that’s making connections," said Kyle Spang.
