In part 3 of Hana's miraculous addiction recovery story, she breaks down the step-by-step reality of going from homelessness to rehab, sober living, and long-term stability. She shares how she managed triggers, avoided relapse during chaotic jobs, and stayed sober while building her business and buying a home. All the while, she follows her intuition through every growth phase, confronts the reality of being a felon, and unlearns the shame society projected onto her. This episode explores setting boundaries with family, including the painful decision to cut off her mother, and what it actually takes to protect sobriety in real life.

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Connect with Hana @pickle_de_chip

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

Let's take a deep dive into a neurodivergent, radical perspective on surviving the holidays with practical addiction recovery skills. We discuss tools that foster empowerment, nonviolent communication, healthy boundaries, and harm reduction that are specific to the unwanted pressure society puts on us this time of year. Family dynamics can cause added stress that fuels cravings. We talk about addressing and sitting with our loneliness without shame. You'll learn how having somatic awareness of your own nervous system can save you from getting overwhelmed. If you've been looking for an off-the-beaten-path view on holiday survival, you're in the right place.

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In today's episode, we hear Brittany's addiction recovery/sober curious story. She grew up with parents in active addiction and experienced abandonment and trauma in early childhood. When she had her first drink, fireworks started going off, and she knew that this was the key to feeling better... for now. As she became an adult her drinking got out of control, although she wasn't able to view it that way at the time. She experienced tragedy after tragedy, and as she did, she spiraled further and further with alcohol. No one called her out on it at the time because it's normal in our society to self-medicate grief with booze. As time went on, the death around her never stopped, and neither did the drinking. She reached a breaking point when she had a realization that her drinking was pushing people away, and she decided to change her life. She's currently in the place of trying to quit drinking but not always succeeding. This part of the process is relatable, challenging, and not often talked about.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

In order to rewire our brains, we must feed them new information. Or bathe them in a soup of new information. Today, Early recommends a few books and podcasts to support addiction recovery. They also start the conversation about accountability for harm caused during addiction.

Books:

How to Eat to Change How You Drink by Brooke Scheller, DCN, CNS

Dry by Augusten Burroughs

The Places That Scare You by Pema Chodron

Podcasts:

How We Handle Harm by Punch Up Kick Down Distro (click here)

Love in a Fucked Up World by Deane Spade

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Today we hear Emily's addiction story and about how she became sober curious. Emily's childhood involved having one parent in severe addiction, and the other parent covering for them. She discusses the complexity of loving someone who is abusing you, and using sex as a young person to seek the approval she wasn't getting at home. She began drinking and smoking pot, and soon began using both quite heavily. Emily reflects on how her upbringing affects her relationships in adulthood. Today she is wondering: what are all these substances really doing for me?

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

In today's episode, Early discusses the two pivotal mental shifts they made in their life that turned recovery from feeling impossible to being possible. Once they made these mental shifts, they were no longer "trying to quit drinking." Instead, they finally just quit.

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Today we hear Bill's addiction recovery story. Bill first saw the destructive powers of alcohol when his dad started drinking a lot after his parents got divorced. His own experimentation with binge drinking led to blackouts early on. In high school, he recognized that his drinking and weed smoking had started messing up his life and he decided to move in with his grandmother. After moving out and going to college, the lack of oversight led to an acceleration in his drinking and he flunked out of college. Working in the restaurant industry normalized this level of drinking and added cocaine to the mix. Multiple DUIs and waking up hungover still laying on his back porch pushed him to get sober during the pandemic, and he has never looked back.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

Today we explore more secular addiction recovery resources for sober curious people. What works for you is what works for you! Try everything and see what sticks. Maybe understanding your shadow self will help. Perhaps reading about someone else who has been on a crack bender will make you feel less alone. Maybe the practical tools of Buddhism will soothe your anxious mind. Everything is connected, and perhaps if we can destroy our inner queerphobia/transphobia and start to love the gender diversity inside us, we can create a stronger foundation for recovery!

Books:

Existential Kink by Carolyn Elliott, PhD

Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man by Bill Clegg

When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron

Podcasts:

Gender Spiral by Ally Beardsley and Babette Thomas

Gender Reveal by Tuck Woodstock

Translash Podcast by Imara Jones (RD is featured in S5 Ep147!)

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Today we hear Jonny's addiction recovery story as a neurodivergent veteran. Jonny grew up with a father who drank quite a bit. He made it to the age of 19 without ever drinking or using drugs, and then after signing up for the navy, he started to party. Drinking felt like a better version of himself - at first. After leaving the military he started working at a bar on Dickson Street. The drinking culture of bartenders gave him a free pass to take shots whenever, and to be drunk at work. Eventually things spiraled out of control, and a series of drunken decisions had him kicked out of his favorite bar, lose his car, his glasses, and kicked out of his house. Amazingly, he was able to get sober while continuing to work at that same bar on Dickson Street, where he is still working today.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

In this week's episode, Early shares a bit about addictive cravings and how to survive them for sober curious people or folks in addiction recovery. They also share a few resources of things that have been helpful for them along the way. However, what's most important is to find what works for you. Do you like running? Music so loud your ears bleed? Yoga videos? Do you like calling your mom? Make a list of things that you like, and that you know make you feel better when you're done doing them. Then pull out the list any time you get a craving, do something for twenty minutes, and see if the fleeting feeling has passed you by. This isn't about supressing the feeling, it's about transforming it and surviving!

Things Early likes:

Alternate Nostril Breathing

Sudarshan Kriya Yoga

Vagus Nerve Reset

Only in Dreams

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In today's episode, Early speaks with Hope about their addiction recovery story as a queer and neurodivergent person. They were raised by their grandparents due to their parents being in active addiction. Hope was determined to not be like their parents, but things didn't turn out the way their kid self had planned. They began by smoking weed to alleviate cramps, and later started stealing beer from their grandparent's fridge. Skipping school became the norm, and after getting their GED they started drinking more and more. They watched their friend have a near death experience while using inhalants, went through a xanax phase, and drank often and to excess. The sudden death of their sister propelled them into extreme alcohol addiction, bed rotting, and a state of listlessness. The same grief later propelled them into sobriety, and they have never looked back.

We explore the topic of using weed as harm reduction in this episode!

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

Let us continue to bathe our brains in a soup of new information. This month's list contains two addiction memoirs and a book on attachment theory, as well as three single-episode recommendations for podcasts on attachment theory. 

Addiction recovery stories help us feel less alone, and understanding attachment theory can help us lead a healthier sober or sober curious life!

Books:

I'm Black and I'm Sober by Chaney Allen

Pill Head, The Secret Life of a Painkiller Addict by Joshua Lyon

Attachment Theory By Thais Gibson

Podcasts (single episodes):

Mahon McCann - #63, Attachment Adam, How to Fix Your Attachment Issues

DharmaPunxNYC - #454, Safe Enough to Love: A Journey From Insecure to Secure Attachment

Two Dudes Talkin' Therapy - Healing Anxious Attachment

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In this episode, Hana shares her raw and unflinching story of addiction, trauma, and survival. We dive into Part 2 of her story with a harrowing tale of being held at gunpoint by a drug dealer, followed by stories of a near-amputation, sex work, and homelessness in Seattle. She was in and out of jail and treatment. One day she heard another addict tell their story of addiction and recovery, and had a lightbulb moment. Recovery was possible for her. She found her path to sobriety and has been off drugs for 8 years. She now owns her own home and business, and gives special credit to her cat, Smash, the unsung hero of her story.

This episode is for anyone seeking hope for their own addiction recovery, trauma recovery and healing, harm-reduction approaches, or alternative recovery paths. Hana's miraculous story is a testament to resilience, radical honesty, and the possibility of building a life worth living.

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Obsidian returns to discuss their ongoing addiction recovery story as a queer and neurodivergent person! In today's episode, we discuss the complexity of using again after a period of abstinence. Our healing work doesn't just disappear, and it can inform our experience when we use again. Picking back up again can be very different, end quickly, and be a reminder of why we quit in the first place. The danger lives within our perspective, and whether we view ourselves as inherently "bad" for using again. Do we believe that using again means we are a failure, or unintelligent, or a fuck up? Or do we believe that this experience is an opportunity to learn more about ourselves, including perhaps that using still feels like shit? We also discuss the Addicted Voice, how to recognize it, and where it comes from! We uplift harm reduction along the way!

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Today we hear Randy's addiction recovery story. Randy's life started with tragedy and abandonment trauma; he was the sole survivor of a car wreck that killed his mother and two brothers when he was only 9 months old. Growing up he was always the odd one out until he found drugs and bad kids. He managed to keep his life together for a long time while drinking and using a variety of drugs. Eventually, crack became his downfall. Years of hard drug use landed him in a scientology based rehab, then later, drug court. He decided to go "all-in" and move into a men's sober living facility. Little did he know, he would later revamp, expand, and run Modern Recovery.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

In today's episode Early goes over our inherent need for both community and alone time, why your social anxiety makes you normal, how alcohol advertising targets our "wound of existence", anti-individualism, why normal things don't feel good anymore, and the ultimate question to ask while socializing:

"Why am I here??"

Follow along with the slideshow: Click here!

Johan Hari's Ted Talk: Click here!

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In today's episode, Early talks with their friend Elise about her addiction recovery story. Elise suffered sports concussions as a kid and had to stop playing soccer, which at that time was a huge part of her identity. A resulting change in her body and self-image led to an eating disorder as a teen. During high school she experimented with alcohol with her friends. As an adult she entered into relationships with men who had addictions, and this led to her also drinking more. A relationship with someone who abused her led her to self-medicate to numb the pain. She was able to piece her life back together after that, and is now living a life she no longer needs to escape from. We explore using weed and controlled alcohol use as harm reduction in this episode.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably ever heard of.

Today Early discusses a few more books & podcasts to supplement your recovery, along with a speech from their soapbox and for some reason - a lot of cussing. They discuss a practical book about methods to expore while quitting drinking, an addiction memoir, tracing addiction back to childhood trauma with Gabor Mate, imposter syndrome and how to overcome it, a podcast for wine moms, and a podcast about the first few months of being sober. Enjoy.

Books:

Not Drinking Tonight by Amanda E. White, LPC

Karamo by Karamo Brown

In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts by Gabor Mate

Podcasts:

Sort of Sure by Samar Kargbo

Feel Lit by Ruby Williams and Susan Larkin

F*cking Sober by Anita Drake

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Today we hear Andie's addiction recovery story and how they got into harm reduction. Andie's life started in a family with everyone in various degrees of neurodivergence and addiction. They began as many of us do, with stealing beer out of a friend's parent's garage fridge. Soon they got in legal trouble from bringing alcohol to school. They and their brother both proceeded to escalate their drug and alcohol use, although things went of the deep end much more quickly for their brother. After high school they found traveling community and started riding trains and hitchhiking. When Andie was 18 their brother died from an overdose and they chose to self-medicate their grief by learning to use IV drugs. Selling drugs allowed them to have a constant supply. When things with their mental health got out of control, they decided to ask for help, and the therapist suggested inpatient treatment. They thrived in this environment, and after a couple of hiccups, found lasting recovery. Andie has been hosting an online punk/harm reduction/recovery group for the past 3 years.

Check out Andie's support group! email recovery.punks@gmail.com for the link

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

This is a replay of Early's interview with Samar Kargbo on his podcast "Sort of Sure" - a podcast about imposter syndrome. Early talks about their time in EMS, a bit about their addiction recovery story, starting a nonprofit, and how they overcome seemingly insurmountable tasks.

Check out Samar's work - https://samarthinks.com

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Today we hear Sophia's addiction recovery story. Sophia grew up in a house where both parents drank. She took her first drink when she was 12 and was smoking meth by age 14, and began rebelling in every way possible. She met some older friends, began selling meth and weed, and remarks on how her relationships felt transactional. Later she went to prison several times, once where she was subjected to a prison boot camp, and another time she was pregnant while in prison. A persistent discomfort with sitting still and being alone caused her to go back out several times. She found lasting recovery after she recieved treatment and the help she needed (as opposed to punishment), and spent two years in a women's transitional living house. Sophia is now passionately working to help others get their needs met on their paths to recovery!

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

Another curated list of recovery resources to help you on your journey! It is time to reprogram our brains and bathe them in a soup of new information. We hear about a book discussing sober sex and dating, addiction recovery stories, and a book about addressing burnout and neurodivergence under capitalism.

Books:

Dry Humping by Tawny Lara

Girl Walks Out of a Bar by Lisa Smith

Laziness Does Not Exist by Dr. Devon Price

Podcasts:

Recovery Rocks by Tawny Lara and Lisa Smith

Chasing Heroine by Jeanine Coulter

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Today we hear from Misha about their addiction recovery story as a LGBT and neurodivergent person. He describes his childhood as both boring and traumatic, having grown up queer in a strict religious household. His brothers introduced him to the liquor cabinet, and after they moved away, it became all his. A sexual assault in college sent him spinning out of control and he shortly found himself in the psych ward, which proved to be less than healing. He found recovery through a series of steps in harm reduction, coupled with healthy accountability and remembering the things that used to bring him joy.

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Hana's miraculous addiction recovery story begins with growing up with an alcoholic mother who created an extremely chaotic living environment. Hana was forced to caregive and be a "friend" to their mother, a phenomenon known as parentification -- when a child is forced to be in an adult role. She got into meth and alcohol as a teen in order to make friends and be away from her home life. Hana's substance use and rebellious behavior managed to get them kicked out of everywhere, including school. As an adult, alcohol and substance use quickly spiraled out of control, and stayed out of control. Hana's story is an astonishing example of just how far we can dig ourselves into a hole, the resilience of the human spirit, and how no one is too far gone to find lasting recovery.

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Today we hear Clay's addiction recovery story as a neurodivergent person. His life began with both parents having problems with addiction, and having to leave with his mother and sister on the run from their father. This created a foundation of deep fear that characterized much of his life. Struggling in school as a neurodivergent person added additional stress. Smoking weed allowed him to have the social connection he yearned for as a young person, then opiates soon came into the picture, as did alcohol. Things spiraled out of control, and Clay found himself homeless and in multiple rehabs. He found lasting recovery through community with other sober people, emotional freedom, healthy coping skills, and learning how to face his fears.

Study showing 75% of people recover!

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As we continue to bathe our brains in a soup of new information, we grow, and we become stronger and more resilient. Learning new things helps to rewire our brains! Make your addiction a thing of the past. We discuss becoming sober curious, a book on the neuroscience of addiction, indigenous storytelling, sober black girls club, a podcast on women in recovery, and more!

Books:

Sober Curious by Ruby Warrington

The Biology of Desire: Why Addiction is Not a Disease by Marc Lewis

Crazywater by Brian Maracle

Podcasts:

The One You Feed by Eric Zimmer

Sober Black Girls Club by Khadi Oluwatoyin and J. Nicole https://www.soberblackgirlsclub.org/

She Recovers by Lisa Wall https://sherecovers.org/

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In today's episode, Obsidian tells their addiction recovery story. Their life begins with a mix of emotions, with their loved ones both caring for them in some ways and also being emotionally abusive in others. They mostly abstained from substances even though their friends were imbibing-it just didn't feel safe enough to experiment at the time. Their first experiences with alcohol and weed were both unexpected. In adulthood, they had a major friend group fracture, followed by a serendipitous encounter with the person who would become their wife. Obsidian decided they finally felt safe enough to experiment with drugs with their wife, and at first their use began innocently. After some time, they began to put rules in place, and eventually remembered some very sage advice: "If it's still easy, that's a good time to quit." They discuss dating someone with a drug addiction and how they navigated the challenges with love and compassion.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

People are always asking how/why Recovery Demystified got started! In today's episode, Early discusses why they started Recovery Demystified as a non-profit instead of a for-profit business. They also give a reader's digest version of their story with addiction and recovery as a queer and neurodivergent person, including bits and pieces of why AA/NA caused more harm than good. Recovery Demystified supports people who may not identify as alcoholics or addicts who are looking for options outside of the twelve step framework. RD also serves people who fully identify with drug addiction or alcohol addiction. We are queer friendly, disability friendly, mostly neurodivergent, and welcome harm reduction approaches. Recovery for the rest of us!

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In today's episode, Karrie tells her addiction recovery story. Her life began as a victim of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy -  her stepmother created fake health problems on her behalf which resulted in unnecessary medications and surgeries. Much of the time she was locked in her room. She later went to juvie, a shelter, and the foster care system. When she found alcohol, she experienced a "hallelujah moment," and began drinking as fast and as much as she could. Soon, she burned through all her friend's couches and was homeless while living in her car in a parking lot. Eventually her drinking spiraled her mental health so far out of control that she attempted suicide and was put on an involuntary psychiatric hold. After that, she decided to try something different. She jumped into recovery with both feet and has never looked back.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

Click here to follow along with the slideshow!

Today, Early discusses how thoughts originate, and how addictive processes can hijack our thoughts. They then present three concrete methods to address difficult thoughts. We explore the HALT method, the RAIN method, and the kitchen table method for responding to challenging emotions. Addiction recovery opens us up to experiencing everything we had previously been numbing, and learning healthy mental coping skills is essential for growth and healing. Understanding our emotions in their complexity, including how to navigate addictive cravings, is a practice that takes time. Looking for addiction recovery support? You're in the right place.

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In today's episode, Kailey tells her addictionr recovery story with alcohol and vaping. Her parents were divorced and as the oldest child she took on much of the role of parenting her siblings. Soon, she started with average teenage experimentation and college binge drinking. She reflects on how "no one teaches us how to drink" and how this led to her binge drinking and vaping to the max. She began to create rules around her drinking to rein it in. Ultimately, her supressed emotions began bubbling out in unexpected ways, such as high anxiety and a panic attack. She then realized, "If drinking gives me anxiety, and I choose to drink, then I am choosing this anxiety." She now drinks moderately and on rare occasions, and is in more of a sober-curious mindset. She discusses how she reckons with nicotine addiction and vaping addiction.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of. Addiction recovery support... incoming!

Let us continue to bathe our brains in a soup of new information. Knowledge is power, after all, so how about picking up a new book or listening to a new podcast? Addiction recovery resources can come in many shapes and sizes. Learning how to communicate with ourselves and others, as well as understanding the science of addiction, can be helpful tools as we grow and heal. Looking for addiction recovery support? You're in the right place!

Books:

A Piece of Cake by Cupcake Brown

Rational Recovery by Jack Trimpey

Nonviolent Communication by Marshall B. Rosenburg, PhD.

Podcasts:

Secular Buddhism by Noah Rasheta

Single Episode: The Huberman Lab - What Alcohol Does to The Brain, Body, and Health

Single Epidsode: The Mel Robbins Podcast - What Alcohol Does to Your Body: Harvard's Dr. Sarah Wakeman With the Medical Facts You Need to Know

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n today's episode we hear Robert's addiction recovery story. Robert's life began in a pretty rough way: with childhood neglect, abuse in the family, and having his dad give him beers because he thought it was funny. Robert's childhood consisted of misbehavior, escalating drug and alcohol use, and being repeatedly kicked out of different schools. In adulthood he followed his intuition to seek more in life by traveling, though his addiction and arrest record tagged along with him. He couldn't keep a job for very long, and managed to stay drunk (and arrested) via theft. A series of unhealthy relationships with partners and his dad created a framework primed for increasing addiction. Later, he was able to find lasting recovery from alcohol by having his first healthy partnership, where they both quit drinking together and held each other accountable. Robert also dove into Taoism and other internal spiritual practices and found a sense of fulfillment that bolstered his recovery.

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In today's episode we hear JT's addiction recovery story. JT's story began with a traumatic childhood and being medicated for ADHD (which may have just been symptoms of trauma.) Later, her self-medication of unresolved trauma blossomed into binge drinking and multiple drug concoctions. After some broken bones, benders, and embarassment, she realized something needed to change. It took a few attempts, but she ultimately found freedom through immersion in self-education via books, podcasts, exercise, and a litany of other coping skills.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

In today's episode, Early and Amber Hollingsworth of popular YouTube channel Put the Shovel Down discuss data-informed methods of how to help our loved ones escape their addiction. Most people accidentally put themselves in the "villian" role in their addicted family member's life, even though their actions are rooted in love. Why is this? What can we do better? How can we use compassionate understanding to help them escape from alcoholism and drug addiction? We also discuss dual diagnosis, and how folks often recieve false bipolar disorder diagnosis and other mental health problems due to exacerbation of their addictions. If you want to know the best way to help an alcoholic or drug addicted loved one, this is the episode for you!

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of. Addiction recovery community support... incoming!

It is time yet again to bathe our brain in a soup of new information. The learning never ends, and as we keep trying new things, our recovery grows and becomes more secure. Looking for addiction recovery community support? You're in the right place!

March Reading and Podcast List:

The Red Road to Wellbriety in the Native American Way (book) by White Bison Inc.

First in the Family (book) by Jessica Hoppe

The Anonymous Eskimo (podcast) by Ralph Sara

The Body Keeps the Score (book) by Bessel Van der Kolk

Sober Powered: The Neuroscience of Being Sober (podcast) by Gillian Tietz

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In today's episode we hear Natalie's addiction recovery story. Natalie tells the story of her childhood growing up with a severely addicted parent, and how it affected her as a kid and into adulthood. She demonstrates the need to communicate effectively with children at an age appropriate level- because if we don't communicate to them, they create their own answers, and they often know much more than we realize. Natalie goes on to dabble with substances as she enters her teen years, and quickly sees the writing on the wall. Before things got too out of hand she decided to return back to controlled use. This is possible for folks who are in the pre-addiction phase, but once someone enters moderate or severe alcohol or substance use disorder, unfortunately returning to moderate use is most often impractical or impossible. She is currently a moderate drinker who is sober curious.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of. Addiction recovery community support... incoming!

Many people have struggled or dabbled with inhalants, yet we very rarely hear it discussed. In today's episode Early discusses their own personal use of inhalants as well as their experience as an EMT treating patients who use inhalants. Inhalant addiction is more common than we think, primarily because of the shame and stigma that keep inhalant addicts in the shadows. Looking for addiction recovery community support? You're in the right place!

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In today's episode Jakob tells his addiction recovery story. Jakob's story begins with supressing deep traumatic grief with the use of substances- something he saw demonstrated by adults in his life. His story moves through dabbling and being addicted to a variety of hard drugs, alcohol, and weed. Kratom and cocaine ultimately landed him in a not very classy rehab, which he left after three days, and then returned to. He spent a while being Cali-Sober (only using weed products) until that landed him in the emergency room, with a near death experience. He tested the waters on weed again, resulting in a second round of Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome. After that he decided to leave it all behind, raw dogging the shit out of life, and he has never looked back.

In today's episode we also discuss the ultimate question: How DO you pronounce "kratom"?????

Connect with Jakob: @amerijake

Black Legacy Project: https://www.theblacklegacyproject.org/

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In today's episode we hear EK's addiction recovery story. They describe seeing their family use alcohol and cigarettes while they were a kid. EK's drinking and use stopped being fun at a very young age, as they navigated survival through abusive relationships. They describe self medicating after reaching out for help with the pain of experiencing sexual assault and depression. After a close encounter with the law, they had an epiphany, and received some really good advice from friends, and started a journey towards sobriety.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of. Addiction recovery community support... incoming!

Early discusses their book and podcast list for February, 2025! It is time to bathe your brain in a soup of new information! Searching for addiction recovery community support? You're in the right place

Stash: My Life in Hiding - book by Laura Cathcart Robbins

The Only One in the Room - podcast by Laura Cathcart Robbins

DharmapunxNYC - podcast by Josh Korda

Recovery Happy Hour - podcast by Tricia Lewis

Rewired: A Bold New Approach to Addiction and Recovery - book by Erica Spiegelman

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In today's episode we hear Alison's addiction recovery story. Alison grew up with addiction on both sides of the family. Her mother was not very present in her childhood and her dad was a single parent most of the time. She describes meeting alcohol and becoming "thick as thieves immediately." At the age of 27, and dabbling in her third Dry January, she wonders if there's more to life than this. She discusses trying the drug Naltrexone to deter cravings, which inspired Early to discuss medication based treatements for Alcohol Use Disorder in the introduction.

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In today's episode we hear TK's addiction recovery story. TK spent their high school years as a sober person, then began drinking at the age of 19, and rolled their car by the age of 21. After drunkenly signing up for the army, their partner became pregnant, and their whole world started to change. TK demonstrates that for most of us the path of recovery is not linear. It consists of trials, fuck-its, taking time to let new knowledge sink in, and peeling back the layers of the onion. If we can get down to that middle layer and figure out the wound(s) that we have been covering up with substances, and reconcile that wound, our lives can improve drastically. For TK that wound was a lack of real community, and when they found it, so many things started to fall into place.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of. Addiction recovery community support... incoming!

Disclaimer: Recovery Demystified is intentionally and explicitly non-religious. This episode mentions that practices of mindfulness and meditation can be traced historically back to several Eastern spiritual traditions. The episode also uses the word "spiritual." It is important to note that there is also a wealth of modern, scientific data to back these practices. Whether you believe in science, spirituality, both, neither, or something else entirely- we support you. You are in charge of your own recovery toolkit. We invite you to foster a mindset of curiousity, while remembering that instead of something being "either/or," it can often be "both/and." In the end- take what works for you and leave the rest. May you be happy and free. Looking for addiction recovery community support? You're in the right place!

In today's episode Early discusses one of their lowest points in addiction. From that low point they discovered two simple, free practices that helped heal their mind and propel forward and closer to their goals. These practices are gratitude and mindfulness. In less than five minutes a day, you can rewrite neural pathways in your brain in order to become a more grateful and content person at baseline. This isn't to say we should foster an attitude of toxic positivity- it is still normal and healthy to honor and experience difficult emotions as they arise. The purpose of these practices is to alter our baseline attitudes to be calm, appreciative, and content.

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In this episode we hear Sara's addiction recovery story. Her life starts with being raised in a party environment, picking up cigarette butts at the age of 7, and using alcohol and every drug under the sun before graduating high school. After a series of awful relationships and worsening addiction to drugs and alcohol, Sara's life imploded and she ended up stuck in the psych ward. After she got out she decided she wanted to "try something different"- and moved on forever.

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of.

Today Early discusses more addiction recovery resources for people in recovery, sober curious folks, and anyone else on a healing journey with their relationship to drugs and/or alcohol. They discuss a book from White Bison Inc about the hundreds of years old Indigenous resistance to alcoholism, and the decolonization movements that heal Native American communities. Next is a book outlining the principals of a unique trauma therapy modality called Internal Family Systems. They also discuss the controversial Dr. Nicole LePera and her book How to Do the Work. They then go over the (also controversial) podcast by Luis Mojica, which covers topics like how we can heal trauma with nutrition and somatics. Last, we've got next week's podcast guest: Amber Hollingsworth of the popular YouTube channel, Put the Shovel Down, and how she teaches family members to support their loved ones with addiction.

Books:

Alcohol Problems in Native America by Don L. Coyhis and William L. White

No Bad Parts by Richard C. Schwartz, PhD

How to Do the Work by Dr. Nicole LePera

Podcast:

The Holistic Life Navigation Podcast by Luis Mojica

YouTube Channel:

Put the Shovel Down by Amber Hollingsworth

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Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of. Addiction recovery community support... incoming!

Dry January is HERE! It is time to unbrainwash yourself, or, rebrainwash yourself? It is time to bathe your brain in a soup of new information! In this episode Early shares their Dry January reading and podcast list for 2025 and a couple tips to find success in your goals this month. Lookiing for addiction recovery community support? You're in the right place!

This Naked Mind (podcast and book) by Annie Grace

In Recovery (podcast), Un-Addiction (book and podcast) by Dr. Nzinga Harrison

Quit Like a Woman (book) by Holly Whitaker

Recovery Elevator (podcast) and Alcohol is Shit (book) by Paul Churchill

Happy reading and listening, y'all!

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In the first ever Recovery Demystified interview, we hear Logan's miraculous addiction recovery story. He is a welder and musician who has been sober for 4 1/2 years. Logan's journey starts as experimentation with alcohol and weed in his teens and evolves to using anything and everything to squelch anxiety and depression. He got sober during covid and has never looked back.

Recovery Resources that actually help, build your own recovery with secret resources you probably never heard of. Addiction recovery community support... incoming!

If you ever want to experience the full complexity of what life has to offer, it is time to let go of the car door handle and walk into the house. You will experience discomfort but you will also experience a greater joy and depth than you could ever imagine! Looking for addiction recovery community support? You're in the right place!

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Welcome to Recovery Demystified! You are in the right place! RD is self help and addiction recovery for the rest of us. If you have ever felt alone, left behind, or pushed to the fringes of society, we love you and you belong here. RD is non-religious and adaptive to you and your own unique inner wisdom and needs. RD is LGBTQ+ friendly, disability friendly, and neurodivergent friendly. We believe in harm reduction. We welcome those who are sober curious or questioning their relationship to substances in any context. We welcome those looking for an alternative to AA.