A child caught in the depravity of alcohol and drug addiction; a mother helplessly standing by unable to save her. The Lost Years is the real life story of just such a mother and child, each giving their first-hand accounts of the years lost to addiction and despair.

Kristina, the second of four children, tells how she turns to alcohol for comfort when she is 13. She gives a brutally honest description of her descent into addiction, prostitution, burglary and violent rape until her near death on the floor of a homeless shelter completely alone at the age of 21. Adding a heart-wrenching counterpart to the story, Kristina's mother, Constance, tells of her powerlessness to help her addicted daughter, the break-up of her unhappy marriage and how she comes to terms with her own co-dependency. She is also faced with the worst choice a mother has to make, to close the door on Kristina, sending her onto the streets in order to save herself and protect her other children.

Then follows the remarkable story of Kristina's recovery and the years of acclimating herself to living a normal life. Ultimately, she reclaims herself, her place in her family and a new and loving relationship with her mother. Both mother and daughter have since become a force for good in this world.

Constance and Kristina will be sharing their personal experiences of drug and alcohol addiction and their remarkable story of recovery.