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Housewife to heroin addict: One mother's story

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We hear so much about the heroin epidemic in Western New York, but one side of the story is often kept quiet.  Now, one Niagara County mother is speaking out, telling her story about becoming an addict.

Shannon Beiders was put on painkillers after giving birth to her premature son.  By the time she left the hospital with her baby about a month later, she says she was hooked. 

Her addiction moved from pills to street drugs, and before she knew it she was using *and selling* heroin.

"I was neglecting myself, neglecting my children.  I had caught some serious federal charges.  And I was living the street life with two small children," she explained.

But Shannon is sharing her story because it has an amazing ending.  With help she detoxed, turned her life around, and is now helping others do the same.

For more information on how you can get help, click here.

Make sure you join us Sunday at 11, because 7 Eyewitness News Reporter Katie Morse will have her amazing story of recovery that she's hoping will help others.