Sheila Prior

Rise and Fall: a Memoir of Drug Abuse Sheila Prior

Sheila Prior has asked herself a hundred times how she raised three children in the same house, and one of them ended up in county lockup awaiting sentencing and prison. The same rules applied to all three children, and yet her son took a deadly path. In Rise and Fall, Prior and her son tell the story of his experimentation with drugs and alcohol from age fourteen to where he is today-turning thirty in a jail cell. A guide to understanding the balance children strike between school, sports, friends, and drug use, Rise and Fall shares a personal account of how one young man led a double life, becoming addicted to heroin while living with and being supported by a loving and giving family. It tells how the man finally hit rock bottom and how his family, especially his mother, began to deal with the consequences. Through this story, Prior and her son hope to raise awareness about the affects and consequences of drugs, to help parents recognize enabling behavior, and to accept that jail may be the ultimate punishment and even salvation.