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Colorado Springs' first residential treatment for addicted pregnant women, new moms to open

Gazette - 9/26/2022

Sep. 26—It can take up to two years for women who actively use drugs or alcohol while pregnant to prove they're safe, stable and fit to regain custody of their babies after a child-welfare agency steps in following the birth.

But a new project that began in 2019 and is opening in a few weeks will provide a way for addicted expectant women or moms of newborns to remain with their child while they receive intensive, free treatment and counseling for substance use.

Renovations are nearly finished at a large home east of downtown Colorado Springs, which is being reborn as the Bloom House Residential Treatment Center.

It's the only residential treatment program in El Paso County that keeps a baby with a mom while she works on moving from using to recovery, said Beth Roalstad, executive director of Homeward Pikes Peak, a housing nonprofit that's behind the project.

"It's a huge difference — we're getting up stream, so moms don't lose their children," she said.

While Denver and Pueblo have similar programs and local women have been referred to those if there was space, the need for such a service here is high, she said.

Children's Hospital Colorado in Colorado Springs reports seeing more than 100 babies a year who are born with negative effects of a mother's drug or alcohol use, Roalstad said. And on average, six to eight pregnant women are in the county jail on any given day, many facing drug charges.

Homeward Pikes Peak operates five other supportive housing programs, and adding the Bloom House means the organization will help women on every level of addiction, Roalstad said, from outpatient services to residential treatment at the Bloom House and its Project Detour transitional sober-living house for 10 women, which opened in 2017.

Eight women will reside at the Bloom House for 90 days or until they're ready to transition to the recovery phase. Medicaid, private donations and grants are funding the program, Roalstad said.

Idala Espinoza, 38, graduated last month from Homeward Pikes Peak's sober-living setup called Project Detour. She was arrested on recurring drug charges when she was one month pregnant and released at seven months of gestation to Project Detour, instead of serving more jail time.

Espinoza said she hadn't used methamphetamine or weed during pregnancy and wanted to stay clean.

"It was heaven-sent," she said. "If it wasn't for Project Detour, I'd be sitting in jail wondering where my baby was."

Instead, she said she received "non-judgmental support" from people who understood her situation.

"I know a lot of people are going to be comfortable here with their children," she said Monday, while visiting the Bloom House. "They'll get the support they need — they're not going to feel lost."

The Bloom House is thought to have accommodated tuberculosis patients in the late 1800s and most recently served as a visitation center for mothers to meet with their children whom the county Department of Human Services had placed in foster care.

Drug and alcohol clients will be supervised 24/7, receive case management, undergo addiction treatment for 10 hours a week and take classes on breastfeeding, parenting, nutrition and do activities such as yoga for another 10 hours a week.

They'll cook and eat together to support each other on their journeys, Roalstad said, under a model that includes structured time and giving back to the community.

"We're not just helping someone stop using alcohol or drugs, it's really preparing the whole person to be a mother and be successful," she said.

Referrals for clients will come from hospitals, jails and human services, she said.

The organization also bought a house next door to use as offices for staff, including seven new employees, and meeting rooms.

Purchasing and upgrading both homes cost a total of $1.45 million, Roalstad said.

Remodeling began in February to convert what had been an office environment into a home setting, with a refurbished kitchen, dining area, living room and bedrooms, each with a crib or bassinet and a flower theme.

The Rose Room, for example, has rose-patterned pictures on the walls and soft pink and white accents.

"Maybe a woman would think of a rose as her special symbol of recovery," Roalstad said.

Make it A Home donated all the furniture and décor and created an atmosphere emitting a cheeriness that speaks of new beginnings.

The all-volunteer nonprofit opened in 2019 in Colorado Springs and provides free furniture, interior decorating and household items to single mothers and women exiting homelessness, domestic violence and other tough situations.

Members of a Schriever Space Force Base squadron and from Academy Christian Church were part of a volunteer force that set up furniture, sewed curtains and decorated, said Amy Silvas, founder and president of Make it A Home.

It's the organization's 51st project, with everything funded by donations, she said.

"When we knew the Bloom House was for moms and babies, we were really glad to be a part of it," Silvas said. "We loved the theme of flowers and growth; we think it'll be a great thing for our community."

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