Recovery Elevator

Today we have Brittany. She is 44 years old, lives in New Braunfels, TX and she had her last drink on May 27, 2025. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – THE social app for sober people Bozeman 2026 – August 12-16, 2026 [02:07] Paul introduces Brittany: Brittany is 44 years old, is originally from Wisconsin, and lives in New Braunfels, TX with her husband of 18 years. Together they have four kids. For fun, Brittany enjoys sporting events and traveling with her family. Brittany shares she had a great childhood. Her parents were very supportive of her and her older brother. Her father was the child of alcoholics, so he chose not to drink so there was limited exposure to it while Brittany was growing up. Brittany's first drink was when she was 15 years old. She didn't drink much throughout her teens as she was more into sports that didn't leave much room for it. In Wisconsin, attending sporting events always included drinking. In college, Brittany enjoyed the party and playing drinking games and all of her friends drank like she did, so she didn't see it as a problem. After college, Brittany met her husband. He went into the Air Force which found them moving to San Antonio. They hung out with a lot of other young married couples, and they all partied a lot on the weekends. Her husband didn't like Brittany's drinking so she would begin hiding how much she drank, seeing it as him trying to control her. When their second daughter was born in 2014 with a rare genetic disorder, Brittany began to use alcohol as medication. Caring for a special needs child and also moving a lot as a military family was very stressful for Brittany. With her husband being deployed or on assignments, she was doing a lot of parenting alone which led her to self-medicate often. When COVID happened, Brittany's husband was able to be home more, but that led to her drinking increase. Brittany switched from wine to vodka, assuming it would be less noticeable to her husband. She began to hide her drinking more and started promising to drink less but it never happened. Memorial Day weekend of 2025 Brittany's husband left town for work, and she was getting the family settled into their new home with her parents. Brittany had vodka stashed and was drinking in secret throughout the day. That evening, she passed out at the dinner table. Since she had been lying to everyone about drinking, they were worried that something else might be wrong and her mother took her to the hospital. While she was there, both the nurse and the doctor could see what the issue was, but Brittany was still in denial. Brittany will never forget when the doctor told her, "You are not alone". At this point, the family knew and it felt like a weight was lifted. A family friend became a lifeline for Brittany, and she contacted him the next day. He is also in recovery and helped her feel less alone. She went to her first AA meeting that day. With the help of her parents since they were living in Wisconsin, Brittany was able to attend meetings, sometimes two, daily. Brittany says things changed for her very quickly. She started feeling better physically, was losing weight and began working out. The light was beginning to come back into her eyes. Parenting was hard, but she enjoys it much more now that she isn't drinking. Brittany's parting piece of guidance: You are not alone. Find a sober community and jump in with both feet. Recovery Elevator It all starts from the inside out. I love you guys. RE Instagram Sobriety Tracker iTunes RE YouTube Café RE

Today we are asking for your help from the drunkest county in America to keep this project going. Did you all know that the Recovery Elevator podcast is recorded and broadcasted to the world from the drunkest county in America? That would be Gallatin County, where I am sitting right now. https://www.givebiggv.org/organizations/cafe-re-inc That's right. According to a recent CDC study, 26.8% of people who live in Gallatin County drink excessively, making it the drunkest county in the U.S. When I first started the Recovery Elevator podcast in 2015, almost all of the top five drunkest counties in America were in Wisconsin. So step aside, Wisconsinites, because we've got the crown now. And it's more like a crown of thorns. I find it ironic — eerily coincidental — that one of the top sobriety podcasts that focuses on alcohol is broadcast to you from the drunkest county. And did you know there are 3,244 counties in America? If you're tuning in from the drunkest county in America, or really anywhere in the world, we've got your back, and you're not alone. I'm going to switch gears slightly. Recovery Elevator has a nonprofit called Café RE, and do you know how many times I've asked for donations on this podcast? That would be zero. Well, maybe the second or third time, but I rarely ask. In the drunkest county in America, there's an incredible event taking place today called Give Big, which is geared towards raising money for all the nonprofits in this county. We need your help to balance the scales in the drunkest county in America, and all your donations are fee-free if you donate today. There's a link in the show notes to make a donation — thank you, Robyn. You can also Google "Gallatin Valley Give Big" and search for Café RE. https://www.givebiggv.org/organizations/cafe-re-inc And if you're in the Bozeman area, Recovery Elevator is doing a live podcast recording today at 1 pm at 2000 N. 7th Street in Bozeman, at a place called Recovery Point. We've got a panel lined up, and that episode comes out Monday, May 11th. There's also going to be an open mic, a hot dog cart, and more. Come on out — we'd love to meet you. One more thing before we depart. Life is complicated, but it's also not at all. What are we doing here at Recovery Elevator? I heard a Toltec shaman once say there is nothing to learn, except how to unlearn. We are coming back together to find our people. To find our tribe. A Lakota chief once said the answer to all our problems can be found by looking towards nature. When bison — American buffalo — sense a blizzard coming, they don't run to the hills. They come together, shoulder to shoulder, and walk through the storm. We are doing the same thing. A drinking problem wants you alone, in a dark room, with liquid poison sloshing in a bottle. But as you already know, that's a one-way street to nowhere good. At first you tried to figure it out alone — that didn't work — and now you're returning to the pack, to the community, to the village. You're unlearning the idea that we have to be self-sufficient and have everything figured out on our own. So life is complicated, but again, it's not. You can't do life — or an alcohol-free life — alone. Can't be done, shouldn't be done, and it's no fun. Keep showing up, keep tuning in, keep listening, and share this podcast with a friend you think is struggling. Here I am, alone in my basement in the drunkest county in America, talking into a microphone — and somehow, you're on the other side of it. That's the miracle of the present day. Community doesn't always look like a meeting room or a church basement anymore. It looks like earbuds on a morning commute, a podcast player at 2 am when you can't sleep, a stranger's voice telling you it can be done. That's what we're building here. But we can't keep building it without you. If this podcast or Café RE has ever meant anything to you, today is the day to give back. The link is in the show notes — donate to Café RE through...

Today we have Chris. He is 55 years old, from Madison, WI, and he took his last drink of alcohol on April 7, 2015. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – THE social app for sober people Bozeman 2026 – August 12-16, 2026 [02:02] Thoughts from Paul: Paul recently gave an opening talk at a fundraising gala for Yellowstone Alliance Adventures. This is the venue where the annual Bozeman retreat is held. He shared with the guests that he holds an annual sober retreat there but initially hadn't rehearsed sharing that he was also sober. After a few moments of silence, mid-talk, Paul shared that he is also in recovery. Paul says he knows he didn't have to share that part, but when he did, it felt good to be up there in front of a crowd as his authentic self. In a world that can very fake and shallow, people are craving authenticity. Paul wants to go places where he can be himself. Listeners, where can you show up as yourself in your life? What curtains, walls, or barriers are you hiding behind where you think people don't want to see you? While it isn't easy to show up as your authentic self, you will be rewarded by doing so. We are here; we are whole. [07:03] Paul introduces Chris: Chris is 55 years old, works in IT by day, has three kids across two marriages and for fun he likes to make music, create games, and enjoys working on art. Chris' parents divorced when he was young due to his father's drinking. Because there was so much going on at home, Chris says he focused much of his attention on school, sports, drama and choir to remain out of the house. He shares that he only drank one time in high school and got caught and ended up with some consequences. Once in college, Chris had the freedom to drinking and other drugs pretty heavily right away. Early on, he got kicked out of a bar. During is freshman year, depression kicked in and he had a suicide attempt. Chris says drinking was never good for him. He never felt like it was solving any problems, but he was entranced by it. Chris never really saw his drinking as a problem and surrounded himself by people that drank like he did. He enjoyed playing in bands and going to bars. Over the next 15 years he began to get away from the drugs but found his alcohol use increasing to compensate. By his mid-30's, Chris says it was just him in his basement pretending to record music or write a book, but the reality was it was just him down there drinking. At this point in time, Chris knew he had to try and control his drinking but was unable to do so. His second marriage was to someone who drank more than he did, which he assumed meant she wouldn't hassle him about what he was doing. Chris says there wasn't a definitive moment that led him to quit, it was more a gradual decent. He lost his job because he wasn't very present, he got a DUI and then got a divorce, all within six months' time. He had court ordered sobriety and white knuckled it for a while but ultimately planned his relapse which led to him drinking all hours of the day and realizing alcohol wasn't working anymore. Chris reflects that this realization was a good thing. He tried a lot of different things in the beginning: AA, SMART recovery, podcasts, Quitlit – anything to fill the void he initially felt by not drinking. He was always willing to try different things and acknowledges that some things come and go. He joined Café RE for a songwriting course as he was approaching 10 years sober. Chris knows that staying strong in his recovery daily is what will keep him from relapsing. Chris is grateful for his sobriety as he has navigated some difficult things over the last several years. He is glad he no longer uses alcohol as a crutch to make it through life. When times are tough, he leans more into more meetings or talking to friends. Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down You got to take the stairs back up We can do this I love...

Today we have Aimee. She is 51 years old, from Minneapolis, MN and took her last drink on March 20, 2022. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – THE social app for sober people [02:39] Thoughts from Paul: AA has been the most popular and widely recognized program to treat alcohol addiction for more than 50 years. And that has pleased Big Alcohol because it has the word "anonymous" in it. Big Alcohol knows they are selling an addictive drug, and it is a gift to them that when people figure out that alcohol lies to them about their product, calming them down or enhancing their lives, they won't say anything. Paul isn't dogging AA but recognizes that the anonymous part had kept the stigma of addiction going. Paul shares and excerpt from As Bill Sees It from Bill W., the founder of AA. The way he reads it, he doesn't think that Bill W. ever intended the anonymity component to be a curtain of shame. It is just in reference to what is said in the meetings, stays in the meetings. Gone are the days of keeping it a secret. In the last four years Big Alcohol has lost $830 billion in revenue. We have to keep talking about this. As Bill W. says, it's a tragedy that drinking has been marketed as good for us, but we're starting to get it right. [08:16] Paul introduces Aimee: Aimee lives in Minneapolis, MN, works for a large medical device company, is married and has two adult children. For fun Aimee enjoys traveling now that she is in recovery and has been dabbling with art. . Aimee's father was in recovery from alcohol around the time that she was 12 and she remembers the impact seeing him there had on her. Her parents were divorced and she and her mom had a strained relationship. Aimee ended up moving to Minneapolis from Texas to live with her dad and had struggles with bullying in school. Drinking became a way to feel like she belonged in a group. When Aimee was in her early 20s, her father lost his mother and was very depressed. Aimee feels like she was parenting her dad at that time while she was also getting married and having her own kids. Their children were very active with sports and weekends while the kids were playing, the parents were partying. Aimee thinks her drinking became a problem around 2018. In 2019, her father passed away. Shortly after he passed, she thought she would quit drinking for a year in remembrance of him. Aimee wasn't sure she could do it, but if she could do it, it would prove to herself that she didn't have a problem. Without community or AA, Aimee stayed sober for about 15 months. She wasn't interested in AA and didn't have any other resources. Aimee started drinking again and would have multiple stops and starts until 2022 when her husband was about to have open heart surgery. Knowing the level of care she needed to provide after the surgery, Aimee began seeking other resources to assist with recovery. She hadn't told anyone about her quitting, not even her husband. But she found community and listening to others share helped her feel less alone. There were a lot of things happening within her family that could have made her want to throw in the towel, but being part of the Café RE community helped her. Aimee says the first year in recovery had her feeling the pink cloud a bit, but years two and three were a little more challenging. However, she is now going back to school since her kids are now adults, and planning travel. Two things she knows she wouldn't be able to do if she was still drinking. Aimee's parting piece of guidance: just don't quit quitting. You don't have to hold onto shame. Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down You got to take the stairs back up We can do this I love you guys RE Instagram Sobriety Tracker iTunes RE YouTube

Today we have Ron. He is 67 years old from Milwaukee, WI and he took his last drink of alcohol on February 19, 2026. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Sober Link sign up and claim your $100 enrollment bonus [02:57] Thoughts from Paul: The village, the community, the tribe, has been completely destroyed in the last couple hundred years, and this messes with us big time. Okay, the opposite of addiction is connection, but what exactly are we connecting to? The big one here is yourself. If you're disconnected within, everything in your outside world will be fractured also. The next big one is when you connect with others. But even after that, probably the biggest connection is the one with nature. There's no coincidence as our war against nature intensifies, so do ailments such as addictions, chronic pain, depression, and anxiety disorders. We are being called home, and it's a beautiful thing. So how do you build this connection with nature or the natural world? I've got good news for you. You are the natural world. So, this separation is false from the first place, and it's a mind-created fiction. So go outside, read a book outside, download the Merlin Bird app, and learn the birds that call your neighborhood home. [08:04] Paul introduces Ron: Ron is 67 and lives in Milwaukee, WI. He is the president of a large restaurant company. He has been married to his wife for 12 years, has two grown children, five grandchildren and two dogs. For fun Ron enjoys travelling, reading, golf and time with family. Ron says he first drank when he was a teenager, but it was very occasional. He says that most of his adult life, he did not have an unhealthy relationship with alcohol until he was around 52 years old. In 2010, Ron was going through a divorce and opened a sports bar. He spent a lot of time there buying and drinking shots while interacting with customers. Ron says going from a non-drinker to a daily drinker happened very quickly. Ron's drinking went unexamined. He was professional, he was doing well and it wasn't impacting his work. He was working out, running marathons, everything on the outside looked functional. Around 2012, Ron realized he was having too many hangovers and tried many forms of moderation for eight years. In 2020, Ron decided to quit and did it for 13 months. Although he was mindful during this time, Ron says he was a dry drunk and didn't have the layers of tools that he would need to maintain sobriety. Alcohol was continuously around and he became tired of being the only person who did not drink. It only took two weeks for Ron to end up right back where he was. Ron and his wife began golfing and drinking a lot during the pandemic. His wife went from being a moderate drinker to being a heavy drinker. In 2024, Ron began to notice she was having a challenging relationship with alcohol too. Ron's wife's drinking habits were different than his, but they began having some issues communicating and connecting. He started talking to her about moderation, but those efforts didn't work for her. She decided to check into a 30-day inpatient program and within three days, Ron says he saw his wife come back spiritually. It was then that Ron knew he had to quit with her. Ron's last drink was the day before his wife got home from rehab. This time he is using more resources and has additional accountability with his wife. He began reading and listening to podcasts and by the time she got home he was ready. Ron and his wife have started going to counseling and are doing the work together and individually. Included in their recovery is attending AA, SMART recovery and Café RE. Ron realizes how important community is on the recovery journey. Ron's parting piece of guidance: lean into people. Recovery Elevator We took the elevator down, We got to take the stairs back up. We can do this. RE Instagram Sobriety Tracker iTunes RE YouTube Café...

Today we have Lidia. She is 41 years old from Seattle, WA and she took her last drink of alcohol on August 31, 2025. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help [01:40] Thoughts from Paul: Some of you may have seen the title of today's episode which is The Best Way to Feel Better. And that's why you're tuning in – to feel better. Maybe you're in early sobriety and you're not feeling good. Paul shares with us how the best way of feeling better has taken place in his life. It comes when he may be having a bad day but has an interview with a new guest scheduled. There have been a few times where he was hoping that they wouldn't show but has discovered that within the first few minutes of talking with them – he feels better. The best way to feel better is to talk to another human being. Talk to someone you trust, maybe make an unplanned visit to a friend's house. There is a reason they call it the 10,000-pound phone. Because the mind (or addiction) wants you alone. Just knowing this makes it easier to pick up the phone. [06:09] Paul introduces Lidia: Lidia is 41 years old, and lives outside of Seattle with her husband, their daughter and their dog. For fun, Lidia enjoys hiking, puppy yoga, her daughter's Girl Scouts and the local community theater. Lidia was born in Warsaw, Poland to young parents and says alcohol was a big part of the culture. She recalls having her first drink to celebrate her second or third birthday. When she was six, she and her mom immigrated to the US. Her mother worked a lot, which left Lidia to fend for herself a good bit. During her teen years, Lidia would attend summer camps where it was easy to find older kids to buy her alcohol. The closest relationship she had was with Throughout the teen years and college, Lidia says she was good at drinking and wore it as a badge of honor. After reaching adulthood, the drinking was a daily occurrence finding any excuse to drink whether at home or out with friends. Alcohol was correlated with fun at this time in her life. Lidia met her husband when she was 27. They were both members of a rock-climbing community and became climbing partners. It wasn't long after meeting that they ended up married and having their daughter. This was the first time that her relationship with alcohol was threatened because she felt they needed to be more responsible with a child. Lidia used alcohol to cope with postpartum depression. The first red flag first showed when she realized she was drinking and driving with her daughter. Lidia didn't know much about recovery or how to support herself through it, so she was full of shame and guilt. Eventually she told her husband and ended up enrolling in an IOP, attending AA and got sober for four years. Because Lidia had quit for her daughter and not herself, she began to have resentments and felt like she wasn't having any fun. Since she related fun with alcohol, she went back to drinking. It was then that others were watching her and she assured them she was fine. Lidia began trying to hide her drinking because she didn't want to feel the judgment. Last summer, Lidia was told by her husband that she would lose her family if she continued drinking like she was. They chose a quit date of September 1 and for motivation, Lidia registered for an RE trip to Costa Rica which was five months away. The first 30 days went well for Lidia. The pink cloud arrived and she started feeling better physically. Month two found her crashing a bit and she began learning how to slow down. Going forward, Lidia is looking forward to spending more time with her daughter and the Girl Scout troop, getting involved in the local community theater and celebrating all of her wins, big and small. Recovery Elevator We took the elevator down; we've got to take the stairs back up. We can do this. I love you guys. RE Instagram Sobriety Tracker iTunes RE YouTube Café RE

Today we have Harvey. He is 71 years old, lives in Fort Myers, FL and took his last drink on January 18, 2026. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – THE social app for sober people Registration for our annual Bozeman retreat begins on Wednesday April 1. This event takes place August 12-16th. This retreat is all about fun, laughter, smiles and silent disco. We didn't quit drinking to not have fun! Musical guest Uprise will be back and it's going to be another awesome year. [03:54] Thoughts from Paul: Paul shares with us and excerpt from Shannon Alder regarding sensitive people. See if this rings true for you: "Sensitive people are the most genuine and honest people you will ever meet. There is nothing they won't tell you about themselves if they trust your kindness. However, the moment you betray them, reject them or devalue them, they will end the friendship. They live with guilt and constant pain over unresolved situations and misunderstandings. They are tortured souls that are not able to live with hatred or being hated. This type of person needs the most love anyone can give them because their soul has been constantly bruised by others. However, despite the tragedy of what they have to go through in life, they remain the most compassionate people worth knowing and the ones that often become activists for the broken-hearted, forgotten and the misunderstood. They are angels with broken wings that only fly when loved." Would you consider yourself a sensitive person? It isn't a bad thing at all, because you feel. And look out, it's the sober, sensitive person through their healing that heals others. That's the work we are doing here. [08:01] Paul introduces Harvey: Harvey is originally from Brooklyn but has lived many other places and currently spends his time between Virginia Beach and Fort Myers, FL. Harvey met his wife in 1980, and they have been married over 40 years. He works part time for CNN audio and just celebrated his 71 birthday. Harvey took his first drink when he was 16 and says it wasn't the "a-ha" moment that many others have had. In college, weed was Harvey's drug of choice until it stopped working for him. He was able to quit easily but alcohol proved to be different. In 1987 after a move to LA, Harvey and his wife got into the wine culture. It wasn't until two years later that he began to question his drinking and realizing he often woke up not feeling well. This began a tradition of Dry January where Harvey and his wife would quit drinking to let their bodies heal but never because they thought they were alcoholics. In 2011 Harvey had his first turning point in his drinking. He was apparently hiding his drinking from his wife. When she confronted him with the empties he was hiding, he decided to go to an addiction counselor. They recommended AA and Harvey attended daily until he attempted to work the steps. The Higher Power aspect soured him. Harvey went back out for more field research. Over time his wife was growing tired of his drinking and he eventually decided in 2024 to get back into recovery and discovered Recovery Elevator and Café RE when seeking alternatives to AA. He says he jumped right into the community and hasn't left. Going forward Harvey is doing this for him and not just for his family. There have been a few difficult bouts of field research, but Harvey is committed to continuing his recovery. He acknowledges that he is coming to the acceptance phase of his grieving of alcohol. Harvey is exploring new hobbies, specifically music. He intends to continue going to Café RE chats, walking and being open to more opportunities to have fun. Harvey's parting piece of guidance: don't put it off till next month or to Monday. If you've made the decision that you want to quit, do it immediately. Recovery Elevator We took the elevator down; we've got to take the stairs back up. We can do this. I love you...

Today we have Butch. He is 49 years old and is from Indianapolis, IN and took his last drink on November 1, 2025. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help [02:33] Thoughts from Paul: Paul shares and excerpt from an interview with Steve-O, who has 17 years of sobriety. Steve-O said the worst thing would be to kinda have alcoholism. To kinda have a drinking problem. Because kinda is where people live for 20 years. Kinda is how you blow your 40s. Kinda is how you show up halfway to everything that matters. For your kids, your marriage, your job, your actual life. And then wonder why nothing ever feels real. And while you're busy deciding whether it's really that bad, the years are passing by. The other side of what Steve-O is saying – he isn't just describing a trap, he's describing a clear escape plan. By being here, you have already made the call. Maybe it's still messy and maybe it's still early and maybe some days you're not sure what you're doing. But you are here fully. We are done with "kinda". You've made a decision, now don't question that decision. The years that are left are yours, listeners. Now you can show up for them. [07:31] Paul introduces Butch: Butch is 49 and lives in Indianapolis with his wife and their cat named Ezra. For fun he is learning to play the bass guitar and recently started blogging. Butch says he had his first drink in high school and found it helped him cut loose, relax, be funny and he really enjoyed it. His drinking was mostly off and on until he and his girlfriend were out on their own in his early 20s and nobody other than his wife knew he was drinking so much. He had responsibilities but struggled to hold down a job. After about a year and a half, Butch was able to reel it in to just binge drinking on weekends. Over time Butch was spending more and more time drinking by himself in his basement and not having the energy to do much the next day. He would then try and tell himself it would only be one or two drinks, but that never happened. It wasn't until his early 40s that he started to question if he had a problem. His wife at the time wasn't very supportive of him when he asked for support with his attempt to take a break from alcohol, so he continued to drink. Soon after this marriage ended, Butch got remarried in 2022. A few weeks later he quit drinking for seven months and says he felt great physically and mentally. It was a trip to Vegas on his birthday that he found himself drinking again. Butch says he moderated while on the trip, but after coming back he found himself slowly drinking more and more even though his wife wouldn't allow him to isolate like before. Eventually Butch started feeling the anxiety coming back and just wasn't feeling good about his drinking. He is approaching 50 years old, has anxiety and physical pain and was just ready to stop. Around his recent sobriety date, Butch burned the ships with his family and friends. They have all been very supportive of him. He woke up the morning of November 1 and was ready to give it another try. Within the first few weeks he started exercising and eating better, he and his wife would go for walks and go to bed early. He was feeling great again. Butch never spend much time at church before being married to his current wife so they have been going regularly. Prayer and AA has been helpful to Butch. He has no plans of drinking again but knows it's "one day at a time". Some of the resource and recovery tools that Butch uses are podcasts, books and has recently started blogging in the health and wellness space but there is a lot of crossovers with his recovery. Butch is off of anti-anxiety medications, looks forward to travelling more, learning to play his bass guitar and hopes to get a car to work on soon to keep himself busy. Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down; you've got to take the stairs back up. We can do this. Café RE RE...

Today we have Jan. She is 75 years old from Winchester, VA and took her last drink on February 1, 2021. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – THE social app for sober people Recovery Elevator is compiling a list of recovery stories and we're going to put them in a book called This is How We Quit. If you want to be part of this book, and submit your story, we'd love to have you. There is no sobriety time requirement so if your saying to yourself, well, I've only been sober 30 days, I can't submit my story, then nonsense. Send an email to info@recoveryelevator.com and you'll get a google form to fill out and submit your story. **TRIGGER WARNING** this episode references firearms and sexual assault [02:48] Thoughts from Paul: A common phrase in the recovery space is "protect your energy". Paul feels it is a solid idea and tries to practice it as well. His goal in life had always been to bring people together and it has been a major pain point for him to see the current administration purposely trying to separate or divide Americans. Paul tries to focus on what he can control and turn everything else – especially the news. He shares a story about a recent visit to his parents' house where the news was on and he couldn't find the remote to turn it off. Paull mentions all of this to remind us of what RE stands for, which is community, connection, inclusivity and love. Many of the things going on in our country go completely against our mission so we have to protect our energy and turn that stuff off, and you should too. [07:49] Paul introduces Jan: Jan currently lives in Winchester, VA, she is divorced, has one adult son named Sam and a 14-year-old Pekingese. For fun Jan enjoys walking, hiking, being outside and dancing. Jan started drinking when she was 19 and attending school in Europe. She reflects that she spent time with the wildest group where they did a lot of drugs and drank. When she returned to the US, she attended the University of Arizona and did a lot of traveling back in forth to Mexico and eventually ended up in Puerto Vallarta. Jan says she always gravitated to the people she shouldn't have. Bad things began happening to Jan due to her drug and alcohol use. She found herself in a lot of scary situations that eventually led to her depression and desire to move back to the US. Jan began to attend AA and was able to maintain four years of sobriety about fifteen years ago but started drinking again. There was no rock-bottom moment leading up Jan's quit date in 2021, but she was tired of the mental obsession with alcohol. She tried naltrexone and The Sinclair Method, Antabuse and discovered Café RE after a friend of her son suggested it. She quit drinking right around the same time she joined. Over the years prior to quitting drinking, Jan had been misdiagnosed with different mental health disorders. Since she has quit, she no longer needs the meds they believed she did. Jan says she sees things more clearly and enjoys photography now. Her love of nature has increased. The connection piece in recovery has also been very important to Jan, and she enjoys hosting some of the chats within Café RE. She stresses that we can't do this alone and having community is vital to recovery. One of Jan's favorite recovery quotes is that it's a lot easier to stay sober than to get sober. Some of her advice for those new in recovery is to get involved with community, listen to podcasts, read quit lit and attend meetups. Recovery Elevator Go big because eventually we'll all go home. Love thy neighbor. I love you guys. RE Instagram Sobriety Tracker iTunes RE YouTube

Today we have Kendra. She is 38 years old from Central Minnesota and took her last drink on March 22, 2024. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – THE social app for sober people Recovery Elevator is compiling a list of recovery stories and we're going to put them in a book called This is How We Quit. If you want to be part of this book, and submit your story, we'd love to have you. There is no sobriety time requirement so if your saying to yourself, well, I've only been sober 30 days, I can't submit my story, then nonsense. Send an email to info@recoveryelevator.com and you'll get a google form to fill out and submit your story. Recovery Elevator's first ever Sober Ukelele Retreat will be November 7-14, 2026. Registration opens May 1. [03:42] Thoughts from Paul: Today Paul unwraps the reason that we drink. It isn't because alcohol is the most addictive drug on the planet or because you like the taste of wood, hops or earthy floral notes. For millions of years, humans evolved with the expectation of a loving and accepting community to be surrounding us at all times. In the modern world we are ripped away from this and are expected to be okay by ourselves. The opposite of addiction is connection, and we've never been more disconnected as a species. Be kind to yourself, this is not your fault. The pain that something was missing landed in your biology likely before you said your first word. This is why we all carry so much shame when something is missing or wrong we internalize it as if we are the problem and we are bad. Again, this is not your fault. But it is tasked to you, us, we to course correct – and we are. [08:25] Paul introduces Kendra: Kendra was previously interviewed on episode 501. She is 38 years old and has one 19-year-old daughter. She is a nephrology practice nurse and for fun she likes to cook, walk, bike, cycle and rollerblade. Kendra never drank in high school and was an overachiever. She had great grades and played hockey. Kendra had her daughter when she was 19 so was unable to further her hockey career into college. Her daughter was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at six days old and Kendra says that forced her to grow up quickly. Kendra had her first drink at age 21 and while she got very sick, she loved the relief that it gave her. Drinking helped her cope with the "what the hell am I doing in life" feelings and was an outlet for her stress of raising her daughter. In 2008, Kendra got into a relationship and they drank regularly. He was able to moderate whereas Kendra was not. It was a balancing act keeping up with her party girl persona, raising her daughter and going to school to establish a career for herself. After her divorce in 2018, she wasn't around alcohol as much but still struggled with the off switch. When the hangovers started affecting her day-to-day life, she realized she had an issue. Kendra says she was capable of managing her drinking for a time as she was building a successful life for herself but would still binge drink on weekends when she had the opportunity. In 2023, while attempting moderation, Kendra concluded that alcohol wasn't fostering any positivity in her life. She knew she needed to quit. She had already been tracking her sobriety streaks and would get upset with herself when she broke them. She found the app I Am Sober helpful to keep track her streaks and feel like she was making progress. Having already been reading quit lit and listening the RE podcast, she was priming herself to finally move on from alcohol. After her last drink, Kendra began focusing on rest, meditation, breathwork and doing a lot of walking and listening to podcasts about recovery, health and longevity. Since quitting, Kendra has found mental clarity, less anxiety and her meditation practice helps keep her centered. Recovery Elevator This isn't a no to alcohol But a yes to a better life RE...

Today we have Tom. He is 40 years old from New Canaan, CT and took his last drink on July 12, 2024. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Soberlink – sign up and claim your $100 enrollment bonus Happy March! The Café RE theme this month is Mindfulness and Awareness. This key topic helps us build awareness and space, which ultimately gives us the freedom to make different choices beyond drinking. Café RE will feature chats focused on mindfulness. It has been said that the most powerful medicine can't match the power of awareness. Recovery Elevator is compiling a list of recovery stories and we're going to put them in a book called This is How We Quit. If you want to be part of this book, and submit your story, we'd love to have you. There is no sobriety time requirement so if your saying to yourself, well, I've only been sober 30 days, I can't submit my story, then nonsense. Send an email to info@recoveryelevator.com and you'll get a google form to fill out and submit your story. [03:56] Thoughts from Paul: Paul shares with us a quote from author Brianna Wiest. "Your new life is going to cost you your old one. It's going to cost you your comfort zone and your sense of direction. It's going to cost you relationships and friends. It's going to cost you being liked and understood. It doesn't matter. The people who are meant for you are going to meet you on the other side. You're going to build a new comfort zone around the things that actually move you forward. Instead of being liked, you're going to be loved. Instead of being understood, you're going to be seen. All you're going to lose is what was built for a person you no longer are." [06:25] Paul introduces Tom: Tom is 40 years old and lives in New Canaan, CT. He is a construction superintendent, is married and they have 5-year-old twins. For fun, Tom enjoys gold, skiing and spending time with his kids. Tom first drank at age 14 and says he frequently blacked out when he drank going forward. There were multiple legal consequences throughout his late teens and early twenties as his binge drinking continued through college. Around age 21, Tom began using cocaine which enabled him to drink more with less blackouts. After college, Tom and his friends mainly drank on the weekend. Fast forward a few years and he found himself drinking alone during the week while his friends did not. As time progressed, he would wake up daily and trash talk himself for not being able to stop at just one or two. He felt like Jekyll and Hyde and struggled with that throughout his 30's. In 2020, Tom's twins were born. He struggled to juggle his drinking life and his family life. His wife was growing frustrated, and Tom wasn't the parent that he had hoped he would be. In spite of this, he never really thought about quitting drinking, but quickly realized moderation didn't work. He knew he would need to quit drinking for himself and not just for his family. His wife was growing frustrated, and Tom knew he would lose everything if he didn't quit. On June 12, 2024, Tom was going to start a new job and looked at it as a clean slate. He says quitting was awkward and he began to talk to an alcohol counselor that helped him a lot. Within the first few months Tom felt better physically and able to establish a workout routine which helped him start the day in a better headspace. He started listening to the RE podcast and relating to others' stories. Exercise has become a hobby for Tom. Woodworking is a hobby that has come back for Tom as well, he takes pride in the projects he completes now. Tom's parting piece of guidance: If you can make it through the first couple of days, and start to see the benefit, it'll get better every day. There'll be bad moments and challenging moments, but don't give up. Recovery Elevator Remember this is an inside job. It all starts from the inside out. I love you guys. RE...

Today we have Greg. He is 57 years old and from Midlothian, VA. He took his last drink on December 8, 2025. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – the social app for sober people Recovery Elevator is compiling a list of recovery stories and we're going to put them in a book called This is How We Quit. If you want to be part of this book, please submit your story. There is no sobriety time requirement. Send an email to info@recoveryelevator.com and you'll get a google form to fill out and submit your story. If you have been thinking about joining Café RE, now is the time. The monthly price is increasing to $29 per month on March 1. If you're already a member, your price will not increase, this is only for new membership. Keep in mind that $29 per month is most likely a fraction of what you may have spent on alcohol per month. [03:55] Thoughts from Paul: Paul shares with us a beautifully written piece someone shared with him a few months ago. In summary, they didn't quit drinking after a dramatic rock bottom, but after a quiet realization. Alcohol had become an automatic habit used to avoid feelings, slowly eroding sleep , mood, health, clarity, and self-respect. "Functioning" wasn't truly living. When they stopped lying to themselves about its cost and stopped romanticizing it, drinking felt pointless—and they simply chose honesty over pretending. [10:12] Paul introduces Greg: Greg is 57 years old from Midlothian, VA. For work, Greg is self-employed and does lawn, landscape and maintenance work. He has been married for 24 years, and he has four adult children, one grandchild, two dogs and a cat. For fun, Greg enjoys going to yard sales, is a big sports fan and enjoys music of all kinds. Greg rarely drank in high school but began drinking regularly in college, which hurt his grades. After his GPA fell below 2.0, his father refused to keep paying for school unless he transferred to a Christian university. Greg initially moved out and continued partying while working a minimum-wage job but eventually accepted his father's offer. Despite strict no-drinking rules at the new school, he found ways to keep partying. With his first child on the way after graduation, Greg got a position working in retail management. A few years later he shifted to working in the restaurant business, which found him drinking every evening after work and staying at the bar through all hours. After his sister's sudden death, Greg's drinking intensified and shifted from social partying to drinking alone as a way to cope. He didn't see himself as an alcoholic - it just felt normal to him. When his relationship with the mother of his first two children ended, his drinking continued to worsen. Within a few years, Greg and his current wife married and had two kids together. Greg continued to drink daily and over the years, his wife's tolerance decreased. She tried everything she could to help him stop, but eventually she began talking about divorce and separation, but he didn't believe she would do it. In March 2025, his wife moved out. Greg had made a statement that this was just who he was, and he was done trying to quit drinking and he now believes that was the straw that broke the camel's back. He still had no interest in quitting drinking until August 2025 when he heard a voice telling him to start going back to church. This was the catalyst Greg needed, and he surrendered control of his life to Jesus Christ and became active in his church community. He starts his mornings with reading the bible, journalling and reviewing his thoughts and feelings. He is currently starting a recovery group at his church. Greg and his wife are working on reconciliation. Now 45 days away from alcohol at the time of recording, Greg feels like a completely different person. Recovery Elevator This isn't a no to alcohol, But a hell yes to a better life I love you guys, RE...

Today we have Kerri. She is 51 years old from Maine and took her last drink on June 7, 2025. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Soberlink – sign up and claim your $100 enrollment bonus If you have been thinking about joining Café RE, now is the time. The monthly price is increasing to $29 per month on March 1. If you're already a member, your price will not increase, this is only for new membership. Keep in mind that $29 per month is most likely a fraction of what you may have spent on alcohol per month. [04:09] Thoughts from Paul: Last week we talked about patience and how preparation is sacred work. This week, we are talking about building your expedition team a.k.a., your sobriety team. First, there is this podcast. Paul and the RE production team are part of your team. All interviewees are part of your team. Then you need community. This can be in-person or online with other sober people. You need people who get it, who've been where you are, and who can remind you why you are doing this. There is also no shame in seeking professional help or a therapist. And don't forget God, or a higher power, or the universe, or whatever you want to call that thing bigger than yourself. Because when you're in the wilderness and the map runs out. This week, ask yourself: who's on my team? And if the answer is "nobody yet" then your mission is to find at least one person. Because you can't do this alone. You weren't meant to do this alone. Lean in. [08:14] Paul introduces Kerri: Kerri is 51 and lives in Maine. She is a registered nurse, divorced and has two older teenagers. For fun she loves live music, yoga, sauna, kayak, writing and spending time with her kids. Kerri first tried alcohol when she was 12. She grew up in a townhouse community with lots of other kids and limited supervision. Kerri went to college in Boston where she says she partied like the guys did and was the girl that was let in. Her 20's were pretty healthy and she doesn't feel her drinking was a problem at that point. Kerri has a sister in recovery. She says their alcoholism was more overt and people would comment on it, but Kerri kept drinking privately and faked control over it. When she got married, she and her husband were drinking partners and would drink daily. Over time she says she felt a switch flip and began to try and control her drinking with little luck. When she got divorced, Kerri says she was undone. Alcohol became her coping mechanism, but she kept it concealed and remained functional. She tried to quit after her first DUI, but it lasted nine months and then she began to test the water again every few months afterwards. Kerri feels that moderation is a lie, from her experience. Last June, Kerri lost her job as a school nurse and says she hit an emotional rock bottom. She no longer cared about herself, drank a box of wine and then drove leading to another DUI. Prior to this event, her drinking had been ramping up to the point her kids were noticing it. Her kids reaction to her DUI led Kerri to decide she needed to quit. Utilizing her sister as a resource and attending AA, Kerri was determined to work on her recovery. Her life was crashing down around her, and her sister asked her what she was going to do differently. Kerri found herself on her knees surrendering and asking for help, which is something that has never been easy for her. Podcasts have been a great tool for Kerri because she lives in a rural area and it's hard to get to meetings. Other tools she uses are journaling, sauna, yoga and she is committed to attending AA once a week. Kerri's message to those that are still struggling: "your life will get better. It is so incredibly worth it. It could be the most challenging thing you're ever going to go through but imagine being clear and present for your own life". Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down You've got to take the stairs back...

Today we have Lewis. He is 39 years old from Burlington, VT and he took his last rink of alcohol on June 12, 2025. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help August 12 – 16: Get ready to elevate your alcohol-free life in Big Sky Country. Join RE in Bozeman, Montana for our annual sober summer retreat. Registration opens April 1. This isn't your typical retreat. We're talking adventure, laughter and deep bonds with people who get it. This retreat will remind you why choosing freedom over booze was the best decision you ever made. [01:52] Thoughts from Paul: This week, Paul talks about something that doesn't get discussed enough in recovery: patience and preparation. Getting sober takes time. Preparing for your new life takes time. Some people are able to spontaneously quit drinking and never look back, but most have to slowly build momentum before trust falling into an alcohol-free life. Some of you may have been listening to this podcast for years and feeling guilty for still drinking – DON'T. Maybe you think you are failing because you haven't quit yet. You're NOT. You are in preparation mode and intentional preparation is sacred work. Every time you question whether alcohol is worth it, you're gathering intelligence. Every moment you imagine life without drinking; you're building the mental map you'll need for the actual journey. This week, give yourself permission to be exactly where you are. If you're still drinking and listening, you're right where you need to be. It doesn't matter if you quit yesterday, last month or several years ago, you're right where you need to be. [06:46] Paul introduces Lewis: Lewis is 39 years old and grew up in Australia but now lives in Burlington, VT. He runs a business. For fun, Lewis likes run and being outdoors snowboarding, surfing, eat good food and hang out with friends. Lewis grew up with two brothers, who he is still close with, and says they had a great childhood living in a remote area in Western Australia. He tried alcohol for the first time when he was 14 and loved it immediately. Lewis' drinking took off while attending university in Perth where the social life mainly revolved around alcohol. He didn't realize at the time that he was drinking more than others. He completed his studies in Canada where his drinking escalated because he was away from family and responsibilities. The drinking became a daily habit when he began his career as a bartender while in Greece. Lewis moved back to Australia and began working in a brewery. He enjoyed that fact that there were less people there judging him. He knew his drinking was problematic when more and more negative things started happening, but he wasn't ready to confront it. There were many attempts to moderate, and he was able to take breaks, but never got it completely under control. In 2020, Lewis realized he was powerless over alcohol but wasn't ready to accept it. Moderation attempts continued and Lewis moved to Vermont hoping the geographical cure would help him. He was a binge drinker, so daily drinking wasn't a concern for him, but he began having falls and missing work due to his binges. On his last binge, it finally occurred to him that if he kept going, he was going to lose everything or die. He woke up last June and made the decision to finally stop drinking. Lewis joined AA and found a great community within it. He started out going to at least five meetings a week and found a sponsor in a friend he had previously met at the gym while he was still drinking. Lewis is very open about his recovery and has found that most people have been very supportive. Tools that are helpful to Lewis include podcasts, quit-lit, The Phoenix (sober workout community), his higher power and AA. Lewis is learning he can make plans, have goals and follow through with them. Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down You gotta take the stairs back up. We can...

Today we have Jack. He is 45 years old and from Los Angeles, CA. He took his last drink of alcohol on December 31, 2024. This episode is brought to you by: Café RE – THE social app for sober people. Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help [02:47] Thoughts from Paul: Last week Paul talked about the intentional phase of sobriety: choosing what you want to explore next and how you are going to fill the void left by alcohol. Looking at Lewis and Clark, we know that no expedition goes according to plan. So this week we will talk about setbacks because they're part of life. Maybe it's relapse (or Field Research as we refer to it in RE). Maybe it's an injury that sidelines your new running routine or an illness that drains your energy for weeks. Or it may just be life being life. The thing about setbacks – they don't erase your progress; they're just part of the terrain. If you drink again, you have not gone back to zero. You've gathered data. You know more now than you did before – about triggers, patterns, what works and what doesn't. The goal here is not perfection, it's persistence. If you are facing a setback – big or small – ask yourself: what's the adjusted route? Not "should I give up?" but "how do I keep moving forward from here?" [7:46] Paul introduces Jack: Jack grew up in New Jersey but now lives in LA. He is a runner and currently training for a marathon. He loves movies and video games, and he is currently taking a fragrance development course and plans to build his own brand and launch his own fragrance in the future. Growing up, Jack was always sensitive and shy kid. His parents drank and alcohol was just a regular part of life with wine at dinner and craft beer always around. As a teenager, Jack drank to fit in at parties. Jack is gay and used alcohol to cancel out his anxiety and the awkwardness he felt socially. He says he didn't drink all the time and there were no real consequences, just teenage experimentation, Jack drank on the weekends through college and enjoyed going out to gay clubs. After transferring from Savannah back to NYC, he finished school and got a job as a graphic designer. Drinking became a daily activity on his commutes and on weekends. Jack also began moonlighting as a DJ hosting parties in Manhattan and Brooklyn, something he always dreamed of doing when he was a teenager. This opened up a new world of nightlife for Jack. Jack would drink all night while DJ'ing and go to work a few hours later. He had his first panic attack at work and while he knew that it was the hangover that triggered it but found that alcohol gave him instant relief. Blackouts began to happen regularly, and it dawned on Jack that he wasn't sure he was going to be able to stop drinking. Jack became sober-curious in 2016. He started reading books and taking time off from drinking. Soon after this started his partner had an opportunity to go to grad school in Boston and Jack felt like this could be a clean slate. After a few years alcohol-free, Jack felt like he could handle alcohol again. He planned to drink on his birthday. This opened the door for regression and within 6 months, the pandemic found Jack drinking just like he was before. Jack's anxiety and panic attacks caused by his alcohol abuse were getting the best of him. After a rough weekend in Vegas, he drank through that holiday and knew that he couldn't continue to drink. He had heard about RE's Dry January course and burned the ships with his partner. Jack said the course was exactly what he needed at the time and he knew within the first week that this is how he wants to live his life. He felt the pink cloud and euphoria from making the daily decision to be sober. He is an active member in Café RE, enjoys running, hiking, meditation and finding connections with community. Jack says he has gone from Passive Sobriety to Active Recovery. Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down You got to take the stairs...

Today we have Veronica. She is 52 years old, lives in Alabama and she had her last drink on May 1, 2000. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Soberlink – claim your $100 enrollment bonus Upcoming Events with Recovery Elevator February 21 – 28 we are traveling to Costa Rica. The event is full, but you can email info@recoveryelevator.com to get on the waiting list. August 12 – 16 we will be having our annual Bozeman retreat. Registration opens on April 1 at 9am Eastern Time. October 17 – 24 we will host our Sober Ukelele Retreat in Costa Rica [03:07] Thoughts from Paul: Paul wants to talk about the exploration he mentioned at the end of last week's intro. When you first quit drinking, things kind of happen to you – sleep improves, your head clears and maybe a hobby resurfaces on it's own. It's passive. But at some point, you realize that your not just not drinking anymore. You're actually living. And you get to decide what that looks like. This is the intentional phase where you stop wandering and start exploring with purpose. Now is the time to think about some things that you may have wanted to do but didn't have the space for because alcohol consumed it all. Now you have the bandwidth to explore what you want to make space for in your life. This week, Paul wants you to ask yourself, "what's one thing I've been curious about that I haven't made time for?" Just one small piece of unexplored territory. Next week we will talk about what happens when you start building momentum but for now, just pick your direction. The expedition starts with a single step – now take it. [7:40] Paul introduces Veronica: Veronica is British but has lived in the US for about 15 years. She is married and has two sons. Veronica has worked as a psychotherapist and sobriety coach for many years, has written three books and has a strong online presence in the recovery space with Soberful (also the name of her most recent book). Veronica started drinking when she was around age 13. She felt like it fixed the issues she had with being uncomfortable in her own skin. She says she was a binge drinker and began to use hallucinogenic drugs which impacted her negatively and triggered major anxiety for which she used alcohol to control. Veronica was always looking for help for her anxiety and depression but never considered alcohol was contributing. When she moved to Florida, she met someone sober and it changed her outlook. Additionally, she was taking college courses in addiction counseling and after brief time of accidental sobriety, she began attending 12 step meetings to learn more about the people she planned to help. Initially she didn't identify with anyone at the meetings until someone spoke about fear. Veronica says this was her moment of clarity. Veronica feels that fear is the engine of an alcohol problem and it manifests anxiety and panic attacks in a lot of people. Veronica went all in with getting a sponsor and doing the steps, becoming a therapist and began to work in a rehab. At 3 years sober, she hit an emotional rock bottom and discovered the work of emotional sobriety. She has discovered that this is 90% of the work of getting sober. Veronica acknowledges that working on emotional sobriety is a lifelong journey and changing our perceptions of things to overcome resentment is an important part of it. Veronica Valli Soberful Veronica's Instagram Recovery Elevator It all starts from the inside out. I love you guys. We can do this. Café RE Sobriety Tracker iTunes RE YouTube

Today we have Savanna. She's 32 years old from Minneapolis, MN and took her last drink on May 4, 2023. This episode is brought to you by: Sign up and get 10% off: Better Help Café RE – THE social app for sober people Every Sunday on Instagram, we post a roll call graphic and then you guys put your day count on there. It's a space for members to be loud and proud about their recovery as well as being there to support others. [02:30] Thoughts from Paul: Last week, Paul talked about how we want to end our relationship with alcohol. This week, he addresses the question "what do I do with all this space where alcohol used to be?". Boredom can set into the empty space where alcohol used to be. This can trip a lot of folks up in early sobriety when they thought that quitting drinking was supposed to feel like some immediate transformation. Paul reminds us to think of the first gift of sobriety to be not having to negotiate anymore. Additional mental bandwidth is no longer wasted on alcohol where you asked yourself a lot of questions to determine if you should drink today or not. When we make the decision to quit, we have the freedom to do anything else with our time. Quitting drinking is not self-deprivation or sacrifice. It's you clearing space for a fruitful life. Your mission is to explore. [07:04] Paul introduces Savanna: Savanna is 32 years old, lives in Minneapolis, MN and is a marketing manager. For fun, Savanna enjoys going camping, traveling, playing guitar, walking in the woods and spending time with her family and friends. Savanna started out as the kid that said, "I don't need alcohol to have fun". She reflects that part of that was fear part of it was that she was a good kid. Alcohol became more accessible after she went to college and by her sophomore year she was working at a bar and drinking is what she and her friends would do at the end of the night. The theme didn't change much as Savanna was in her 20's. She was in a relationship where she says the only bond they really had was the booze and it kept them together longer than it should have. The relationship ended shortly before the pandemic and that's when Savanna found herself living along and her days consisted of Zoom meetings and gin. The drinking gradually started earlier and earlier in the day. For the next few years, Savanna was making more excuses for her drinking. She couldn't go on vacation or visit family without planning ahead to ensure she had access to alcohol to avoid withdrawals. Eventually drinking began to affect her performance at work and she was fired for the first time. This sent Savanna into a spiral of isolation and drinking every day. Savanna accepted an invitation to a Cinco de Mayo party that her friends were having. Upon arrival, her long-time friend Maddie said "the light has left your eyes. You are not ok. What's going on?" and that was enough to crack Savanna open and she accepted Maddie's help. Savanna's family got involved and helped her detox while waiting for a bed at Hazelden. Savanna says that she had a great experience there and getting sober with others was beneficial for her. She knew if she kept drinking, she was going to die and that knowledge has made it easy for her to stay away from alcohol. Savanna reflects that the physical healing happened quickly. Mentally she was concerned about what life was going to look like after rehab. Once she was able to get back to work, she was motivated to do well and within two years was leading a department at her new job. When Savanna is asked what it is like on the other side of the addiction, the word she goes back to is "limitless". She feels like she can do anything because she is no longer chained to the alcohol. The brain space she has now leaves room for the Savanna that is motivated and has ambitions. She is excited to create the next chapter of her life. Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down You got to take the...

Today we have Sean. He is 33 years old and lives in Phoenix, AZ. He took his last drink on January 22, 2022. This episode is brought to you by: Café RE – THE social app for sober people Better Help – 10% off of your first month #sponsored There is one spot left on our sober travel trip to Costa Rica. This journey is scheduled for February 21 – 28. Email info@recoveryelevator.com if you would like to join us. Join us on January 10th for the start of our AF Ukelele Course. This course is sponsored by Kala brand ukelele and if you register, you get a code for 10% off an instrument. [03:00] Thoughts from Paul: "Want to change your relationship with alcohol?" is a common question asked in the recovery space. When somebody says they want to change their relationship with something, it usually implies there's a goal of improvement. Changing a relationship with exercise may look like hitting the gym more. Maybe changing a relationship with your mother-in-law means you're going to try harder at Thanksgiving to keep your mouth shut. Or it's like saying you want to change your relationship with a narcissistic ex who stole your credit card, crashed your car and told everyone at the party that you wet the bed in third grade. Some relationships don't need to change; they need to end. So, maybe we don't want to moderate our relationship with a substance that literally erodes our livers. We don't want to set boundaries with something that crosses every boundary we've ever set. And we certainly don't want to work on things with a liquid that has never once worked on itself. Paul shares that the only relationship change with alcohol that he's interested in is the one where they are in no relationship at all. [06:57] Paul introduces Sean: Sean is married and they have an eight-year-old daughter together. For fun he enjoys fishing, going to concerts, playing music and being outside as much as he can. Sean had his first drink when he was 17. He says every moment after that, he felt like he was trying to chase that feeling again. He recognizes now that he was drinking to escape a rough home life. The drinking didn't become daily until his early 20's when he began working at a bar. Sean was drinking 20-25 drinks a day and excused it by the environment he was in. Sean though he was using alcohol to help his anxiety, but over time started realizing his drinking was causing it. Since Sean was able to work, provide for his family and help raise his daughter, he didn't see the problem. Soon he needed to drink before work to avoid withdrawal symptoms and over time he was drinking throughout the day. The drinking began to cause issues for Sean and depression started to set in. Sean was in denial that it was the alcohol causing it but soon realized that he was powerless over his drinking and that scared him. The thoughts that his family would be better off without him, and audible hallucinations were consuming his mind. He finally decided to try and taper his drinking in an effort to quit but struggled with it. Sean eventually was able to quit cold turkey after tapering and says the first few nights were the worst. He googled his symptoms and found a YouTube video by Paul about Post-Acute Withdrawal Symptoms. This helped him recognize that this wouldn't last forever and that his body was in the process of healing. It took about six months for Sean to begin feeling better and he started to go to Celebrate Recovery and found community. He gained a lot of hope seeing others that had years of sobriety. Sean credits gratitude as being a big help to keep him out of anxiety and depression now. He allows himself to feel his emotions instead of letting them define him. Sean says his spirituality and relationship with God is what has made this possible for him. He enjoys helping others trying to have a connection with God and/or sobriety. Recovery Elevator We took the elevator down Let's take the stairs back...

Today we have Sarah. She is 49 years old and lives in San Diego, CA. Sarah took her last drink on August 6, 2025. This episode is brought to you by: Better Help – 10% off of your first month #sponsored Pick up your copy of Paul's newest book Dolce Vita. You can get it on Amazon, listen to it on Audible or order it at your favorite bookstore today. Join us on January 10th for the start of our AF Ukelele Course. This course is sponsored by Kala brand ukelele and if you register, you get a code for 10% off an instrument. [02:00] Thoughts from Paul: This is the first podcast of the new year and maybe you are a new listener. Paul wants to cover some basics and let you know what we are about. Recovery Elevator is about quitting drinking. The goal isn't cutting back, moderation or putting the beast back in the cage. It's full send on zero alcohol consumed. Recovery Elevator is also about embracing that there is no right or wrong way to ditch the booze, just don't do it alone. No explanation needed her, we get it. What you'll find here and in Café RE is there is no judgment. We all know where you are and have been there ourselves. Recovery Elevator is the podcast, courses, Dry January, sober travel, merch, Instagram and more. Café RE is the non-profit alcohol-free community – it's the social app for sober people. We've got 25+ chats each week, Accountability Partner pairings, in-house AA meetings, book club, movie club, etc. [06:27] Paul introduces Sarah: Sarah is a painter and lives in San Diego with her partner and two daughters, 17 and 19. For fun, she enjoys surfing with her partner, backpacking with her older daughter and loves living on the beach. Sarah says she grew up in an idyllic childhood. Her parents drank but not to excess. She recalls that she was a worried child with a tendency towards overthinking and had a addictive personality to many things. Drinking wasn't part of her story while in school. She was on the cross-country team from seventh grade until she was a sophomore in college. After an injury took her out of the sport, she began to participate in parties more. She quickly recognized that drinking took away some insecurities and inhibitions and enjoyed that aspect but realized she couldn't moderate. Sarah developed a "take it or leave it" attitude towards alcohol but developed an eating disorder. Food became the replacement for alcohol when it came to self-medicating. After a divorce, Sarah made a new friend that was going through the same things. She confided in him about her eating disorder and he helped her find treatment for it. While in the process of recovering from the ED, she started using alcohol again and would replace meals with beer. Sarah began asking God, "why are we having me have another problem?" She knew she was meant for better things but was having a hard time stopping the addictions. Sarah used prayer to try and find the help she was after. She began going to AA, listening to podcasts and working herself to try and gain the tools to decide the addiction wasn't an option anymore. She was able to gain some traction but relapsed after several months of sobriety. In spite of being upset about being back at day one, Sarah learned to just keep showing up for herself and others and stopped beating herself up. Sarah has removed food and alcohol as options for coping. When she needs to get away, she utilizes the beach and the ocean. She enjoys the studio space with her art to help her get out of her head. Sarah O'Connor Art Sarah's Instagram Recovery Elevator You took the elevator down We gotta take the stairs back up We can do this. Café RE RE on Instagram Sobriety Tracker iTunes RE YouTube

Today we have Jenn. She is 52 years old, from Washington, DC and she took their last drink on September 3, 2023. This episode is brought to you by: Café RE – the social app for sober people Join us for our Dry January course Restore at 8pm eastern time on January 1. This is the first of 13 sessions throughout the month, and this course is all about accountability and connection. [01:13] Thoughts from Paul: Today Paul talks about the origin of the title to his new book Dolce Vita which will be released on January 1. What he has learned over the years in his own recovery and while interviewing hundreds of people on the RE podcast is that the addiction is trying to get us to the true Dolce Vita – the true good life. Of course, not the Dolce Vita at the bottom of a wine bottle because if you're listening now, you've already realized that it doesn't deliver. The true Dolce Vita is seeing through the "I'll be happy when…" trap. It is stepping away from the me-me-me voice inside the head and leading a life where you walk others home after you find your own footing. It is recognizing oneness in a world of duality. Paul's message before we enter the new year is yes, do the work, plan for the future. Put the bottle down but don't ignore the timeless part of you that is trying to land more and more into the true Dolce Vita. You're already there. [06:51] Paul introduces Jenn: Jenn is 52 and lives in the DC area with her two children. For work, Jenn is a civil engineer and for fun she enjoys traveling, camping, hiking, attending concerts and is a gourmet cook. Jenn first drank in middle school and loved untouchable feeling she got from it. She never blacked out, but it helped her make friends and feel at ease. She was just drinking to have fun and that continued through high school and college. After graduation, Jenn moved to Richmond VA where there were bars on every corner. Drinking became part of her routine until Jenn's boss warned her that she could lose her job if she continued. She would begin to put boundaries on her drinking when anything would happen and says she soon painted herself into a corner where the only safe place to drink was at home. Jenn got married and they moved to Philadelphia. Both times her wife was pregnant, Jenn chose not to drink in solidarity with them but would go right back after the kids were born. Jenn traveled a lot for work and being in a high-pressure job, drinking was a way for her to ease the stress. It was during COVID that Jenn would drink alone in the basement often and realized how miserable she was. Her kids were scared of her, she was not living up to her potential and suicide felt like the only option. While watching a classic movie about a transgender person, Jenn found herself having an existential crisis and didn't know who she was anymore. This contributed to her drinking and created complications with her diverticulitis which required surgery. She had recently began taking Ativan in addition to her drinking to help with her stress and insomnia. After her mother died, she began to abuse the drug. On Labor Day weekend in 2023, Jenn decided to quit the drug and had terrible withdrawals. She decided to check into detox for a week and while there realized that she needed to quit both the Ativan and the drinking. She started working the 12 steps and got a sponsor which also led to her going to gender counseling to help deal with her transition. Life changed for Jenn when she began to live an authentic life. Her marriage didn't survive, but she and her ex-wife are still great friends and coparents. A job change has allowed her to spend more time with family and her recovery community. She supplements her recovery with podcasts, books, exercise and counseling. Her higher power gets her outside of herself and she has the goal to help others by sharing her experience. Recovery Elevator It all starts from the inside out. I love you guys. We...