Sharing BALM’s Amazing Approach to Life with Others

BALM Testimonial by:

Jill Prevas, BSN, PCC, CBC
Certified BALM Family Recovery Life Coach and BALM Parent
Pennsylvania/Maryland

Finding Beverly Buncher and the BALM Institute was such an answer to my prayers. It all started in December 2014 when I hired a True Purpose^® life coach to help me find my life purpose. I was already an entrepreneurial businesswoman. In 2008, I had left nursing school, became a certified health coach, and for three years had a health coaching practice. This was rewarding work; however, I felt like I was spinning my wheels, and something was missing. Through the True Purpose^® work, God confirmed that my true passion was to come alongside families who had loved ones struggling with addiction.

This passion came about because in 2009, my husband and I discovered that our beautiful seventeen-year-old daughter was a full-blown heroin addict. At this time, the BALM program was not in existence. My husband and I followed the traditional route of attending Al-Anon meetings and working with a certified addiction therapist. Fortunately, through participating in Al-Anon and therapy, and following the recommendations of the treatment professionals, our family obtained healing and recovery. Our daughter also received sobriety through a lot of hard work on her part. I am happy to say, she has multiple years of uninterrupted sobriety.

Unfortunately, our family story is not the norm. For whatever reason, most family members do not go to Al-Anon, they do not seek professional help for themselves—they jump right in and attempt to manage and fix their loved one’s addiction. This does not typically bring positive lasting results to the family and definitely not for their loved one with Substance Use Disorder (SUD). Because of the process our family went through, and because our daughter had success with recovery, many people would reach out to my husband and me and ask for direction. We would share our experience, but many would still not heed our suggestions. That would soon change as I continued my True Purpose^® work with my coach.

Fortunately, as my purpose was being revealed to me, my life coach happened to know Beverly Buncher and the wonderful work she was doing with families. I will always remember my coach saying to me, “Write this name and number down and call this lady ASAP.” I followed direction and called Beverly that afternoon. We hit it off. I loved her mission of “helping all families blaze the trail to recovery.” This absolutely fit in with my purpose. I signed up for the coach certification program and have never looked back. Because of my BALM coach training and the wonderful evidence-based curriculum, I have the opportunity to help hundreds of families “blaze the trail to recovery in their homes.”

During the course of this work, I have referred many other coaching students to the BALM Institute, including my husband, Chris Prevas. He, too, has a God-given calling to help families navigate the family disease of addiction. His goal is to eventually leave corporate America and join me full-time in pursuing our joint mission. He is already coaching clients and attending networking events. It’s just a matter of time for him to be coaching full-time. In addition, many of the other coaches I have referred to Family Recovery Resources are local and within our community. We believe we need an army of BALM Family Recovery Life Coaches. This work is so important, it is lifesaving. With so many BALM coaches in our community, the word is beginning to get around. In fact, churches and therapists are beginning to tell families who come to them with addiction issues, “You need a BALM coach.”

Additionally, in the treatment world, there is still not enough emphasis being put on the importance of the family getting healthy. Almost every treatment program focuses on the loved one with the addiction. This is great; we need this! But the family is just as important. As a result of not focusing on the family, the cycle of family addiction continues. The BALM Family Comprehensive changes all of that. A structure of change is provided. The family member receives education on the disease of addiction, plus new ways to communicate with their loved one.

They also become part of a community that provides support and encouragement. As a family member begins to implement the BALM Principles, they realize a transformation is taking place. They receive the tools to mirror love, peace, and calm back to their family member, instead of fear, shame, and blame. They also learn how to “Be A Loving Mirror” to themselves.

As a Certified BALM Family Recovery Life Coach, I get to see firsthand these wonderful changes take place in my clients’ lives! I am so grateful that I have the professional tools needed to coach family members through the trials and sometimes craziness of addiction. And the best part is, I get to use the BALM Principles in my own life as well. Being A Loving Mirror to myself and to others is an amazing way to approach life!

If you would like to hire Jill as your BALM Coach, contact Tracy at tward@familyrecoveryresources.com and she can set you up with a complementary coaching session or call 1-888-998-BALM (2256) option 2.

For more info on the 1-year BALM Comprehensive Family Recovery Education Program please CLICK HERE and someone will contact you.

For more info on the BALM Family Recovery Life Coach Training Program CLICK HERE and someone will contact you.