I very sheepishly asked if this was the AA meeting. He turned towards me and said, “I would know that voice and face anywhere.” This series showcases personal stories of addiction recovery and sobriety. Today’s edition features Sue McWilliams, a mother, grandmother, wife, nurse of over 40 years, runner, writer, and soon-to-be-retired clinical professor. She’s currently…
Learning how to speak again 1988. I am living in Deerfield, New Hampshire, in a one-story ranch on an acre lot in the woods, where I’ve landed in the process of hitting bottom, living with my best friend. Her dog hugs my doorway, staring at me while I read on my quilt-covered futon on the…
The story I told myself and the one my kids saw The meeting topic that night was simple. “What’s your new ‘thing’?” Anyone who’s been sober for a while knows what that question means. When alcohol leaves the building, your brain doesn’t just sit politely in a chair and behave itself. It goes looking for…
Real stories of getting and staying alcohol free Since Sober App Substack launched over two years ago, we’ve been publishing twice weekly posts reflecting diverse stories of getting and staying alcohol free. As our readership and community continues to grow, we want to make sure you’re aware of the full collection of resources available on our website. You…
In celebration of this beautiful, diverse community, I wanted to ask… One of the things I love most about this space is that we welcome and celebrate all paths to getting and staying alcohol free. What that means in practice is that no two experiences look exactly the same. What supports one person might not…
“I was either going to continue and let it kill me slowly, or I was going to decide to live.” This series showcases personal stories of addiction recovery and sobriety. Today’s edition features Jessica Dueñas, an educator, sober life coach, and TEDx speaker who writes about self-worth, the cost of success, and recovery. Her work explores…
How surrender saved my life I am eleven. I am beaten up every day in gym class because I am weird and poor and one of only two white kids in the whole school. At home, I am my stepfather’s emotional punching bag. On the weekends, my hippie dad who I adored my whole life…
“I never knew what it was like to get to the other side of anything without drinking over it.” This series showcases personal stories of addiction recovery and sobriety. Today’s edition features Vince Puzick. Over the course of his 42 years of sobriety, Vince has been an English teacher, a fly fishing guide, a single father,…
Physical, emotional, and spiritual strategies that made the difference Towards the end of my drinking, I was putting together two and three months of sobriety at a time. And I was reaping the benefits of my work: I wasn’t hungover, my face was less puffy, I was feeling—dare I say it—closer to comfortable in my skin. My…
How I redefined sobriety and rebuilt my life After two unsuccessful short-term stints in alcohol and drug addiction treatment centers, an 11-month residential program gave me the support and time I needed to “do the work” and find sobriety. This time around was different. After three years in and out of the AA program, living…