Less than 10 years ago, battling addiction after addiction, Belinda Elisson believed her life was over. And it almost was.

"I was dual diagnosed, but also I had gotten endocarditis. It's a heart infection that stems from addiction, and I almost died,” said Ellison.

At her breaking point well into her addiction, Ellison found the YWCA in Binghamton, a shelter for women and children, when it seemed like she had nothing else.

"I was scared. I was nervous. I was in the lobby shaking," said Ellison.

Thanks to help from staff at the shelter, she was able to enter recovery, and years later, her life changed again.

September is National Recovery Month, arriving at a time when overdoes fatalities are at an all-time high across New York, according to the state comptroller's office. Ellison is one of those celebrating. She went from resident to employee, and now, as the case manager of emergency housing, helping women in need, many who are in the same situation she once was.

“When I tell the tenants in the shelter my story, when I say their mouth drops, their mouth drops, it really does, and I tell them, ‘if I can do it, you can do it, too. It takes blood, sweat, tears, but you will get there,’ ” said Ellison.

The YWCA helps hundreds of families each year, and the Binghamton shelter is almost always at full capacity.

“In the dark, everything comes to light. You just have to see it and want to be there,” said Ellison.