Send us a text Eric found him self on the kitchen floor, drunk and getting sick. It was a low place for him and took another two weeks before he found his way to a rehab. He ended up in the hospital with blood clots and was lucky to be alive. Looking around, he realized they saw him as just another drunk and he accepted it too. He was just another drunk. Against all odds, Eric found a way to stay sober through the help of his 12 step program. In this episode: Eric talked about his faith, the rol...
Apr 12, 2022•46 min•Ep. 71
Send us a text Howard’s MO early in AA was to come late, leave early and if anyone said anything he didn’t like, he’d just get up and leave. Howard’s soulful belief was that AA did not work and he was going to prove it. Just when Howard was about to give up and drink, the fellowship grabbed him and as he headed out the door, asked, “Have you thought of trying it our way?” That day changed everything for Howard and has has not had a drink since. Howard L has been sober since January 1, 1988. In t...
Apr 05, 2022•1 hr•Ep. 70
Send us a text Mr Know it all It's a common refrain for not only the active alcoholic, but for some of us in recovery. We overcompensate for our insecurities by puffing out our chests so you won't see our insides. There are lots of people who are egomaniacs. We in recovery are fortunate enough to have a program of action that walks us through how to get this under control. It's one of the reasons we have a higher power in our lives, to remind us we are not God and that the more normal and averag...
Mar 29, 2022•33 min•Ep. 69
Send us a text Resentments are a killer of alcoholics. When we have a resentment, we are replaying an old memory that may or may not be accurate. Getting sober means finding a way to work through those emotions and the faulty way we used to perceive them. In recovery, we have to find a way to handle the bad stuff that comes our way and do it in a way that is healthy and does not cause us to drink. You can’t be a victim to your circumstances. https://www.amazon.com/Never-Enough-Neuroscience-Exper...
Mar 22, 2022•36 min•Ep. 68
Send us a text Everything I ever wanted to know when I got in my 12 program, I learned from my sponsor. The greatest gift to your own sobriety you could ever give yourself, is reaching out the helping hand to someone else sick and suffering. They may not stay sober, but you sure will. In this episode, John, Matt and Steve talk about Sponsorship. That first meeting can be scary and you can be paralyzed with fear. Where do I sit? What do I say to the other people at the meeting? I'm new. Am I allo...
Mar 08, 2022•35 min•Ep. 67
Send us a text When Mike C was drinking, he always told himself, if it got that bad, he’d be able to stop. When it did get that bad, Mike found he could not. On the surface, Mike's life was what you’d normally would say was the envy of everyone, but he felt was dead inside. Mike was fortunate to have someone come into his life and told him he did not have to feel this way and there was a life beyond drinking. Mike stayed connected to the program, shared the message with others and had good sobri...
Mar 01, 2022•43 min•Ep. 66
Send us a text Mark S from the Recovered Cast Podcast at https://recoveredcast.com/ is the sponsor of this episode. Mark bought us a coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberfriendspod . Matt used this episode to ask for help from his Sober Friends John I and Steve C. Matt has a few things going on in his life: Burnout Struggles with his higher power Through the episode, Matt discovered, these issues go together, along with the character defect of perfectionism. He felt everyone else has a st...
Feb 22, 2022•35 min•Ep. 65
Send us a text Step 12 says, having had a spiritual awaking as a result of these steps, we carried the message to the alcoholic still suffering and practice these principles in all of our affairs. Wait, I thought this was about stopping drinking? So I have to use these principles in my life outside of drinking? I'm not sure I signed up for that. What we've learned through the steps is our daily living. Drinking was the solution to the root cause. Applying the principles we found in recovery is n...
Feb 15, 2022•32 min•Ep. 64
Send us a text I'm not drinking anymore! I'm sober! Well, not so fast. John, Steve and Matt tell their own tales of what sobriety means to them and how it differs from just being, "dry." For us, the feeling of being dry, is just the removal of alcohol with no treatment in place to become sober. Dry means that our behaviors have not changed. We continue to have the same character defects that caused drinking in the first place. We become a drunk that's just dry. Being sober is something totally d...
Feb 08, 2022•33 min•Ep. 63
Send us a text At 7 years old, Tanya's mum gave her a small glass of wine and told her to sip it. Of course, this little girl gave it a chug. Tanya's grand mother said, "this one is going to be a drinker." Little did Grandma know that Tanya would attend her first AA meeting at the age of 18. Tanya has been sober since January 11, 2008. Tanya's first meeting was in a cathedral in Liverpool, England. She was 18 years old, petrified and in desperate need of a shower. In this episode, Tanya discusse...
Feb 01, 2022•46 min•Ep. 62
Send us a text Gill Tietz picked up her first drink later than most. Bullied in school, she avoided social gatherings and focused on academics. But after starting Graduate School, she decided to live a little, experiencing love at first sight with alcohol. A Biologist by trade, Gill talks about getting bullied as a kid and isolating from others through the end of college. Gill got into drinking in Graduate School and her affair with the bottle took off. Though she mentioned that biologists and c...
Jan 25, 2022•41 min•Ep. 61
Send us a text How is Dry January going for you? With us getting closer to the end of the month, it's time to take stock. Have you made it this far? Or did you have a drink. If so, did you get back on the wagon? These three alcoholics are just really hearing about Dry January and we dug in to learn more. Matt downloaded the app and took the alcohol use quiz. Based on his days drinking, how did he score? From our perspective, we talked about other tools to make Dry January a success How technolog...
Jan 18, 2022•35 min•Ep. 60
Send us a text Keeping up your physical health by exercising and eating right is difficult under the best of circumstances. Just the act of stopping drinking or drugging and addressing root causes of substance abuse can be overwhelming, let alone starting the process of getting physically fit. Last week, we discussed how important maintaining your physical health was important. This week, we show you how to do it, with the help of our guest. We went to an expert to help us make this task managea...
Jan 11, 2022•38 min•Ep. 59
Send us a text Your physical and mental health take a beating during active addiction. Recovery is a three legged stool of mental, spiritual and physical recovery. Eating healthy, exercising and seeing a physician on a regular basis is part of staying sober and can easily be neglected. Though we find recovery, we always have an alcoholic mind and that "obsession," can come out in other ways, like an addiction to working out and a compulsion to only eat the right foods. Unchecked and without bala...
Jan 04, 2022•33 min•Ep. 58
Send us a text Support the show 📫 Get more honest conversations about sobriety delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to The Sober Friends Dispatch , our weekly newsletter where we go beyond the podcast to share real strategies for alcohol-free living. Join our community by clicking here....
Jan 04, 2022•1 min
Send us a text Jeff was the good brother, so his sibling took the blame. Jeff got caught drinking by his wife, so now he could drink in the open Jeff's story changed when he was stopped, drunk at a DUI checkpoint, talking himself out of trouble by saying he was going to a meeting and being given directions by the officer. He's been sober since. Jeff recently celebrated 10 years of sobriety and he talks to Steve and Matt about his path to alcoholism and is journey to recovery. In this episode, Je...
Dec 28, 2021•58 min•Ep. 57
Send us a text Gabe got sober 24 years old but lived through a nightmare to get there. Gabe shares growing up in an alcoholic family with an abusive family and he fell into addiction too. He then shares how a "Founder's Day" in Akron, Ohio changed everything and got him out of his shell. Gabe shares how he's sponsored scores of alcoholics and after once turning his back on God, talks about how he received his ordination license to marry one of his sponsees. Text or leave a comment for the show a...
Dec 21, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 56
Send us a text This is one of the most powerful conversations about spirituality we've ever had. Buddy chats with Matt J and Steve C about Taoism, his long path to sobriety, Eastern Spirituality, and overcoming personal tragedy and remaining sober. He is the author of the book, Powerless But Not Helpless: A Meditation Book of 81 Verses from the Tao Te Ching that can help you live an alcohol free life and find freedom from any addictive behavior. You can purchase Buddy's book on Amazon or at http...
Dec 14, 2021•1 hr•Ep. 55
Send us a text Sobriety during the holidays, especially when new can be overwhelming. "How can I get sober with Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years coming? I'll miss all the fun!" "How can I be sober at a work party? Everyone will pester me!" There are some simple answers to these questions and John and Matt discuss everything from what to say when you are not drinking to making a quick escape if you need to, Leave a comment for the show at (860) 281-2303. Please help support the show by givin...
Dec 07, 2021•45 min•Ep. 54
Send us a text Kelly of East Coast Sober Squad is the guest on this week's show. She talks her party girl life of drinking and how it masked the real her. Kelly then discussed getting sober, how she's helped others in the Instagram Sober Community and the humble beginnings of East Coast Sober Squad, a woman's virtual group using Slack and Zoom to connect and stay sober. You can find East Coast Sober Squad at https://eastcoastsobersquad.com/ Find Kelly on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/ke...
Nov 30, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 53
Send us a text Emily B Part 2 We complete our interview of Emily B this week. On this episode, Emily talks about the challenges of women in sobriety, her view of spirituality and a new creative product she's doing with her daughter. Leave a comment for the show at (860) 281-2303. Please help support the show by giving it a review and rating in Apple Podcasts. Find Recovery Links, access to social media and email at https://notalonerecovery.com/ Please share with friends and family. Photo, courte...
Nov 23, 2021•34 min•Ep. 52
Send us a text You Are Not Alone - A Recovery Podcast is 1 Year Old! Thank you for your support! Emily B is a woman in long term sobriety. Emily got sober in 1985 at the age of 18 when she was faced with a choice of going to AA or going to jail. In part one of two, she talks about her relationship with previous guest Tim G, how she got sober and what she had done to stay sober. Leave a comment for the show at (860) 281-2303. Please help support the show by giving it a review and rating in Apple ...
Nov 16, 2021•37 min•Ep. 51
Send us a text November is gratitude month in 12 step groups. It can be easy to think about resentments and guilt over past actions, but it's so important to be grateful for all you have and all that's changed in life because you put down the bottle. John I and Steve C join the show to talk about their gratitude lists. Please help support the show by giving it a review and rating in Apple Podcasts. Find Recovery Links, access to social media and email at https://notalonerecovery.com/ Please shar...
Nov 09, 2021•56 min•Ep. 50
Send us a text hu·mil·i·ty /(h)yo͞oˈmilədē/ noun a modest or low view of one's own importance; humbleness. "he needs the humility to accept that their way may be better" John I wanted this episode because he felt he was being a bit too pompous and arrogant in his new job, but in doing some self inventory, Steve C and Matt J also needed this one too. In this podcast, we talk about humility, what being humble means, the dangers of arrogance and self and the defects of this character defect that ca...
Nov 02, 2021•59 min•Ep. 49
Send us a text Getting sober doesn't mean you won't face challenges in your life. Getting sober means you don't have to drink when you have these challenges. The challenges faced in this podcast, are admittedly Cadillac ones. Both Steve C and Matt J were given career opportunities. With both, it involved a lot more money and responsibility. Just because someone gets more money and a better title, does not mean it is the right fit. Steve, Matt and John I talk about making big decisions when in re...
Oct 26, 2021•59 min•Ep. 48
Send us a text The 12 Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous are the framework for how the groups work. According to the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, "The '12 Traditions' of Alcoholics Anonymous are, we A.A.'s believe, the best answers to that our experience has yet given to those ever-urgent questions, 'How can A.A. best function?' and, 'How can A.A. best stay whole and so survive?'" As alcoholics, our person ambition and "good intentions," could turn this fellowship away from it's primary pur...
Oct 19, 2021•58 min•Ep. 47
Send us a text The 12 Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous are the framework for how the groups work. According to the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, "The '12 Traditions' of Alcoholics Anonymous are, we A.A.'s believe, the best answers to that our experience has yet given to those ever-urgent questions, 'How can A.A. best function?' and, 'How can A.A. best stay whole and so survive?'" As alcoholics, our person ambition and "good intentions," could turn this fellowship away from it's primary pur...
Oct 12, 2021•59 min•Ep. 46
Send us a text Kelly Giannuzzi is a mom of three boys who "seemed" to have it all together. Great husband, beautiful house and amazing kids. She was the the picture of the American Dream. What you didn't see was that she was silently battling postpartum depression, crippled by anxiety and relied far too heavily on "mommy juice." In January 2021, she reached her bottom and decided to stop drinking. She has not picked up since. Kelly's path to sobriety might be different than yours. She did not fi...
Oct 05, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 45
Send us a text Part 2 of our conversation with Tim G. Like almost everything Tim has done, it's happened kicking and screaming. That includes his outdoor meeting, painting and gardening. But once he's done it, he felt better. We all can identify. Please help support the show by giving it a review and rating in Apple Podcasts. Find Recovery Links, access to social media and email at https://notalonerecovery.com/ Please share with friends and family. Cover artwork courtesy of Tim G. Support the sh...
Sep 28, 2021•43 min•Ep. 44
Send us a text John I, Steve C and I have talked about our friend in recovery Tim G from time to time on this show. Tim has been resistant to come on, but we wore him down. Lots of things in his program has worn Tim down and we talk about the long list of things Tim never wanted to do and then when he did them, how his program got better. In the first of two parts, Tim shares his story, how he first got sober, his relapse and his second chance at recovery. Please help support the show by giving ...
Sep 21, 2021•40 min•Ep. 43
