Teresa lives in a small town right outside of Syracuse and has been one of the recipients of services from Vera House. At one time she had a workable and responsible life. She had been a manager at the postal service, supervised between fifteen and twenty-five people, and owned her own home.

Then, life took an unexpected turn. A man walked into her life and turned her story upside down. He was handsome, socially adept and fun. But, he was no prince and they did not create a fairy tale ending. She, eventually, lost her home, her job, and any stability from her former life. Remembering what happened still infuriates her.

"He walked into my life and I thought, 'This is fun and I don't have to be responsible.' Even though I was the bread winner and owned the house I somehow allowed him to take over. When he told me I couldn't balance the checkbook., I even bought that. In the face of violence and threats I kept denying that anything bad was happening to me. You know, sometimes it seems amazing even to me that I got myself into this mess."

In 1997, still in the relationship, she began talking with an advocate with whom she found the courage to describe everything that was happening. She finally left him in 1998 and became a part of the program at Vera House. She feels grateful to them as well as the post office personnel.

"The post office officials were key in advocating for me and getting me a therapist. They followed the procedures outlined for survivors of domestic violence. They really tried to help me for years. Finally, in 2002, I went on disability. I suffered from post-traumatic stress. I had no previous medical or psychiatric problems before this mess. I had been a normal middle-class white American woman with a good head on her shoulders."

Teresa found Turning the Corner through her involvement in the Onward and Upward Program at Vera House. Yvette told Teresa, "Boy do I have something for you!" Teresa took the workshop in September, 2004. While she reports getting a lot out of the program, full participation took some courage on her part.

"Some of the experience was hard for me. I wasn't comfortable socially. I had become very secluded as a result of my experience with this man and I wasn't confident about my social skills. I was reluctant to participate in some of the exercises and activities because I didn't want to show that I didn't know something. I am the type of person that keeps what I value to myself because, in the past, whenever I have shown stuff that is valuable it's been taken from me."

Nancy created an atmosphere that made these decisions easy for Teresa to make.

"Nancy presented things in a way that invited participation or she treated your decision not to participate with complete respect. She didn't make anyone do anything. It was all my choice."

Teresa chose not to do several exercises: she did not want to make a collage because she suffers from neuropathy which makes handling scissors difficult; the participants create a name for their personal company and Teresa did not want to do this; and she did not want to burn negative thoughts and words that she was carrying in her head.

"Nancy either said, 'No problem!' or created another way for me to do something similar. She is very accepting. She is on your level while being professional. You know what really stuck with me was that she was a professional woman and she talked in a language that was comprehensible but not condescending. And it was inviting me to participate. Most importantly everything that she used in the classroom, I could go back to because of all the handouts. So I walked out of there with something in my hand and in my head something concrete I could use immediately.

In spite of Teresa's intermittent participation, she felt as though the work had helped her "turn a corner." Prior to the workshop she favored avoidance as a strategy for dealing with her money. Now, with the handouts and exercises from the workshop she feels much more comfortable with the idea that she could control her finances. Since then she has set up a budget and appreciates its usefulness. She feels she has really mastered something.

Teresa is currently in a junior at the University of Phoenix online school. She is studying accounting (of all things!). She maintains her relationship with Vera house through volunteering. She helps other survivors with their resumes and helps the administrative staff with the mail.

"I've finally landing on my feet after stumbling along. Nancy walked in at the right time. On one of the worksheets she gave us is a saying: "Success comes from success." I think this class helped people regard themselves as successful. Nancy gets everyone caught up in the excitement and the sense of possibility. I'm smiling now just telling you about it."