“Being sober creates confidence and assuredness that wouldn’t have been present otherwise.” This series showcases personal stories of addiction recovery and sobriety. Today’s edition is by Mike Sprouse, a personal development coach, writer, and father of three kids (ages 10, 9, and 2) living in West Michigan. Mike is a former world-ranked professional tennis player, the…
For a long time, my story was one of “mutating-ism,” a constant shape-shifting of substances and behaviors that filled whatever void I was feeling. My drug of choice evolved over the years, but marijuana—seemingly benign—was what ultimately brought me to my knees. Growing up, my father often warned us: “When you start using, your brain…
Being queer is hard enough. Being a sober queer used to feel like I was a walking oxymoron. When I first got sober, I went through a grieving period realizing that most of my communal queer spaces were bars. Similar to when I first came out, the Rejection Monster growled and snarled, and all I…
I learned to fear God and my sexuality in church basements. In recovery, everything changed. By Timothy Schraeder Rodriguez Most of the most profound moments of my life have happened in church basements. In my early formative years in the musty, fluorescent-lit rooms beneath the sanctuary of my childhood church in the Midwest, I first…
It’s about transforming your relationship with yourself. Thirteen years ago, I stayed sober for five years. I eventually relapsed for one reason: I failed to evolve. Sobriety is not a one-time event but, rather, a continual process of growth and development. This requires more than abstinence; it’s a complete change in identity and lifestyle. The…
On quality of life and socializing sober Friday, an early get-together before the actual get-together. I know no one. But unreserved hugs all around, and laughter. The most beautiful summer afternoon has slipped into this space of early autumn. It is the kind of day that makes Norwegians split open at their tightly sewn seams….
All the quit lit I read during my first two years of sobriety The first few months and years of sobriety can feel like an expanse of empty time. Because we aren’t hobbling out of a bar or having that third mimosa with Sunday brunch, space is freed up for other things. This leaves many…
Without ruin, there’s no space for restoration and growth. For me, nature is poetry. Similar to the words that rhythmically flow off a page evoking deep emotions, the natural world can have such a profound impact on me. Both allow me to view the human experience through a different lens. When I read a poem…
When a frightening truth becomes a beautiful promise I remind myself it took me twelve years to get sober. Alcohol first laid its claim on my mind at age fourteen, as I was smiling drunkenly at myself in the bathroom mirror at a house party. Drugs arrived at seventeen, when alcohol became more enemy than…
Perfectionism and people pleasing can be perilous to sobriety. “She’s so amazing.” “I don’t know how she does it!” “What a rock star!” I have known a lot of amazing women. I bet you have, too. I bet you may even be one of those amazing women. In a previous version of myself, I was a stay-at-home…