Season 2, Episode 6
Kristen
Age: 24
Location: Wisconsin
Addiction: Heroin, alcohol
What’s memorable: She gets fired from her job as a prostitute because of the Intervention cameras. Her boyfriend beats her up. The long, excruciating intervention.
Official synopsis: A young mother, addicted to alcohol and heroin, is in the midst of losing custody of her 5-year-old daughter Sadie, who recently told her “mom, you are a loser.” Kristen has now reached the point of no return. Her family has reached out to Intervention as a last hope of saving Kristen.
Original Air Date: January 2006
Interventionist: Jeff
Can you please tell me the rehab center she went to?
Palmetto in Louisiana.
Pamello
Does anyone know if she is still clean and sober? I show this episode in my recovery class and everyone ask but I can not find any info. Thanks
She is sober now and has been for several years. I know her personally and she has come so far and grown into an amazing, strong, woman in recovery from her addictions! While she didn’t stay sober right after this episode, as I said she is now, and her story is an inspiration to many in the recovery community!
That’s great news
Wa5ching that episode right now. I often watch Intervention reruns & look up the addict to see if there’s an update. That is wonderful to hear ♥ My name is also Kristen. I fought with opiate addiction not heroin but pills bug I am also recovered & recovering! Keep it up Kristen!! Wonderful to hear you beat it & changed your life. #blessed #everydayisagift
This is exactly what I came looking to hear. I’m an ex addict myself, who also prostituted and sunk very low after losing my mom. When I became pregnant, I did everything I could to stay clean, but about 2 weeks after giving birth, I unfortunately fell right back in. My daughter was then taken away at just over a year old, and I fought tooth and nail to get her back. It took 2 years, I’ve now been 11 years sober, and am doing so much better. People can change, and I’m so proud of Kristen, and others in recovery. I feel like I can relate to her, which is why I wanted to know how she’s made out. It’s an extremely tough disease, but our spirits are tougher. Thank-you for updating us all on her success Shelby, and for being a loving , respectful friend to her as well ❤️
Kristen was my favorite episode. i loved her and really loved her relationship with her family. If anyone can please let me know how shes doin thatd be awesome.
After searching for details on Kristen’s follow up, I found this on wikipedia: “Kristen relapsed several times but got sober in 2007. She gave birth to a son in October 2006 and regained custody of her daughter Sadie in 2008.”
Why aren’t all the people on this website updated with current status?
Give me there numbers I’ll call.
I’m a recovered addict/alcoholic, I love it when people ask if I’m clean & sober. But they don’t have to ask because of the joy I display.
Thank God for Intervention.
Monte
well obviously because many of them do not successfully overcome their addictions and they want to be left alone.
Rehab is for quitters, and nobody likes a quitter. Can’t you just “display joy” without going to rehab? Or is intervention and rehab the best way? I don’t have a problem with drugs. I have a problem with cops and money. If I had a money tree and had invisible powers, so when the cops showed up I could disappear, I don’t think drugs would be a problem. I don’t know, maybe I’m in denial. Can you do intervention for yourself, by yourself. I don’t have anybody. But I should probably get help, I almost died twice in last month. I don’t know what I’m saying, wasting your time. Can anyone except for you see this message? Thanks for listening
Hi Travis, I hope you’re doing okay. I used to always say my parents didn’t raise a quitter either. Don’t you think dying would be a much bigger failure than rehab? No one ups in this life. I hope you’re well buddy <3
I pray you find recovery for yourself and can find peace with the positivity you can find within the world once you do!!!
You are a special one.
Congratulations on your accomplishments my dear. I too am sober and happy. I wish you nothing but the best, and wish you well on your continued success in the future ❤️🫂
This is one of the most powerful episodes I’ve ever seen. I would love to know how she’s doing now, and how Sadie is as well.
I just watched this episode and it broke my heart. I hope Kristen is doing well today.
Kristen is a smart. How is she?
Her goals were to “become a lady and become a productive member of society.” This episode always stayed with me. I wonder if she is out in the world with her child(ren?) living her goals? She seemed to have such a hard life. I wanted her to be happy. Would love an update.
I’ve wondered how Kristen has been doing for the longest time. Her intervention was BRUTAL. Very emotional. I saw so much potential in her! Any updates would be nice!
Just watched her episode. I wonder how she’s doing now? How’s her family doing as well?
Wish someone had an update on her. It’s been 12 years! I liked her a lot. Those Wisconsin accents crack me up 😂
I too would love to know how she’s doing. She was one of my favorite episodes and I always wondered about her. I wish we can get an update because I can’t seem to find anything on her. Maybe someone could post???
Hey, we don’t have accidents in Wisconsin everybody else does.
Hey we don’t have accents here in Wisconsin everybody else does
I just watched this episode and the intervention was so heartbreaking. I hope she’s doing well.
Kristen said she has had every sexually transmitted disease there is. So I am assuming she was HIV positive? How is she now?
She may have been exaggerating. She’s probably caught a lot of different STDs since she worked as a prostitute but I don’t think she caught every single individual one. Since it didn’t say she needed to take meds for anything serious, she probably only caught the non life threatening diseases.
From your keyboard to god’s ears. I pray she is ok.
By the way, when she said she had asked everyone for help in her family and they refused her, my heart broke for her. And then to hear her sister say “I can’t stand that she blames everybody but herself for her problems”, just infuriated me. She is so smug and intolerant. Driving her fancy new car to bring Kristen a sandwich.
Just seemed so judgmental and harsh.
I wish her all the best as well! I don’t think her mom was that bad. I do think the relationship between her and her sister was very toxic. If they’re still in contact with each other, I hope they resolved all their issues. Also on the sister, I can’t assume anything about anyone since I only see 45 minutes of their life temporarily, but I think what the sister was referring to was when she got fired as a prostitue and then calls her sister and blames her. I do think the sister was maybe a bit harsh but I’m not judging her because we didn’t have to deal with Kristen so we don’t know what really goes on you know?
One last thing —– was that relationship with Uncle Pete a bit….. abnormal?
I think you are reading a little too deep into things. Maybe she just felt close to her Uncle and wanted him there to comfort her.
yeah maybe. I thought it had an incestuous vibe though.
I agree. I googled her immediately after seeing their interaction because something seems off .
It didn’t seem abnormal to me. Maybe she didn’t have much a relationship with her father. She was close with her uncle and he was like her father figure. There were all women at the intervention and maybe she was just close to her uncle and not them. Actually some women get along better with males(even with in their own family).
Yeah but she admitted to having sex with her uncle …. And the guy didn’t want to be seen in camera . His interaction was very odd.
Watching this episode right now on the justice network in WI. Kristen is very lucky she wasn’t killed through her job. Very lucky. She also asked for help but according to her family, the help wasn’t enough or she burned bridges every time. It’s what a lot of addicts do. Only trained professionals can help. Family members shouldn’t be burdened with guilt for failing to help family that are not serious in helping themselves. Professionals are trained to control addicts manipulative behaviors so they have a little success but almost 100% of the time, family cannot help an addicted member. My late brother died of a heroin/fentanyl OD in 2013. He was given rehab options, family paid for a lot of his bills but nothing was ever enough. The brain is physically changed by the drugs and sometimes it’s permanent until death.
Hayley, there was an article recently in “the Atlantic” on how people have recently identified the actual gene that is mutant in the brains of addicts. It is called the GABA transporter 1. It is responsible for shutting off neurons in the amygdala, the seat of panic and anxiety. When there is no GABA transporter 1, there is horribly unrelenting anxiety. If someone has had some trauma in their lives, their anxiety is already elevated and now it never goes down.
My dad was a violent, abusive very mentally ill alcoholic. I was so happy to see that paper. For the first time ever, we have an actual molecular link to addiction that could explain the beginning of the big complicated picture. It is not that the drug changes the brain. It is that their brains are different to begin with and they choose to self-medicate to quell unrelenting anxiety.
It is so profound.
Here is the link to the article. It has links in it to the actual scientific papers.
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/06/a-landmark-study-in-the-origins-of-alcoholism/563372/
I absolutely LOVED Kristen telling Jeff Fuck you.” It was sooo honest! He comes up with the ridiculously cheesy line, “Will you let me love you?” and she says “No! Honestly? No! Cuz you’ll talk to some one, and they’ll talk to some one, and you ain’t gonna do shit for me.”
Sooo glad she saw that. That is one smart girl.
Lol yes I loved that too. Especially because Jeff always uses the same greeting. Hi ____, I’ve been here since yesterday and I’ve met these people that just love you like crazy.”
“We’re here to fight to get you back and we want you to join us in this fight”. Lol….😄. Or something like that.
Jeff’s opening line is so cringe.
That’s a sex worker for you! I loved that moment.
It has been at least 14 years since this episode aired. I would love to know how she and Sadie are today. Well, I fervently hope.
I don’t know if it’s true or not, but I read comments on YouTube that Kristen has passed away and her daughter Sadie is the one who found her dead. It was a family member and she said that intervention ruined Kristen’s life and kept her from ever getting clean. Don’t know how true it is but very sad if so:( it was under the video “intervention Kristen (heroin)” posted by win money forever, and the comments were posted in reply to someone saying “I don’t think it was a good idea to let her 5 year old daughter be at the intervention” this was just posted 5 days ago and she said Kristen died a few years ago. So tragic. If anyone can confirm this or knows her last name so we can verify it, that would be helpful
@brent- She’s not dead. That’s some troll trying to spread a rumor.
Kristen’s alive and well.
Sadie’s all grown up and gorgeous; look through the pictures.
https://m.facebook.com/kristen.prusaitis?fref=nf&pn_ref=story
She sure is! Even still sportin that same good tooth and all! Lol, naw but in all seriousness she does look great and healthy!
Kristen was specifically from Madison. My roommate grew up there and used to work for a cab company in his very late teens/early twenties. He recognized the massage parlor she got fired from. They also apparently attended the same high school, as well, but probably not at the same time. (We’re a couple years older than her.) Small world! Glad to see she’s doing well; hers was one of the ones that always stuck with me!
A small world indeed! I just checked her Facebook and we even went to the same high school. Tears came to my eyes. So many of us from that school have passed on. Many of us entered the sex industry. I actually had a friend who worked at a gas station with her as well. My prayers for her continued health and sobriety.
i really liked kristen so much, i hope she’s happy and healthy! she had some serious issues with men, i hope she’s dealt with them.
I’m so glad she is doing so well now. (Checked her FB page)
Her IG is: kristennicole80 and as of 2020 she looks to be doing good! Her daughter Sadie is all grown up and I think Kristen had a son too! I see her sister from the episode in some pics, looks like they’re on better terms! Happy to see her doing well!
According to Kristen’s Facebook, she seems clean, but one of her children’s fathers seems to be a deadbeat. She has posted frequently about how he’s too busy to even call and stuff like that. Just a couple days ago, she said “they say it takes a village to raise a child… well where’s the village?” and her sister replied and got offended. She (as in, the sister) definitely doesn’t give me good vibes lol but hey Kristen looks great and seems to be a great mother. And she has a great relationship with her mom now
This was the episode that completely broke my heart & I cried for her. I usually think about Kristen about once/twice a week & often say prayers for her. I totally understand where she is coming from when she asked WHY AREN’T THERE ANY MEN AT THE INTERVENTION. I hope her life is full of happiness, joy, confidence, beauty and love – lots & lots of love……
Not my favorite episode but definitely my #1 favorite intervention. She basically internal monologued while drunk and sick some of the most real stuff ever. Letting an audience see that is incredible. I’m glad she is doing well in recovery. <3
I hope she’s still doing well – her Facebook and Instagram posts stopped kind of abruptly the end of last year.
It gets so old when people criticize the family members (e.g. sister) of the addicted. we do not really know what these family members have already dealt with (i.e. put up with) the addicted. It gets really old when EVERYTHING is about the addict.
Kristen’s intervention was so hard to watch… Also her boyfriend beating her up was disturbing as well
I don’t think I’ve ever cried so hard for someone I don’t know. She appears such a deep feeling person who desperately didn’t want to feel. I hope shes healed or healing and that she has a life filled with happiness surrounded by people who love her.