In this first episode in a two-part series about the impact of alcohol and the holidays, Sheri and Matt tell stories of Matt’s active addiction, and the trauma, chaos, and nervous system dysregulation alcohol caused. Is there a story that hits home for you?

If the alcohol consumption of your partner created chaos, trauma, or nervous-system dysregulation, please take our one-minute survey to find out if you belong in Echoes of Recovery.

It is widely believed that we are harder on ourselves than anyone else will ever be on us. How did we get this way? Is the societal conditioning different for women than for men? How does alcohol impact our self doubt? Most importantly, how can we break our negative cycles?

If the alcohol consumption of your partner created chaos, trauma, or nervous-system dysregulation, please take our one-minute survey to find out if you belong in Echoes of Recovery.

Addiction is a spectrum disorder, and the overwhelming abundance of access to dopamine in our culture means awareness is our only hope. Listen to help you determine where you are on the spectrum with your addictions (hint: if you don’t think you have any addictions, but you do have habits, patterns, and routines, you should probably give this a listen). The tsunami isn’t coming. It’s here.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

When relationships deteriorate, as frequently happens in an alcoholic marriage, partners often stay together clinging to the romantic fairytale or because of binding dysfunction that makes leaving feel impossible. In this episode, Sheri and Matt highlight 11 common examples.

Click here to take our survey on attraction and relationships.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Sex in a committed partnership should never be considered obligatory. Sex should be earned, and on this episode, Sheri and Matt discuss the sequence of events that leads to mutually satisfying sex. If there is drinking in your relationship that is blamed on the lack of sex, this episode is for you.

Click here to take our survey on attraction and relationships.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Lundy Bancroft is the author of the world’s best selling book on domestic violence titled, “Why Does He Do That?” He has spent the last three decades counseling men who abuse and consulting with their victims. On this episode, Lundy explains that, “An active alcoholic will never deal with his abusiveness,” and about a million other fascinating aspects of all kinds of abuse. We bet you’ll be surprised by some of the control and manipulation tactics defined as physical abuse.

Click here to take our survey on attraction and relationships.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

There is comfort in assigning the blame for relationship dysfunction and emotional abuse on the alcohol or the addiction. But what if we could make a cultural shift to prevent the need for blame and  shame? Sheri and Matt discuss what would happen if we added emotional abuse to the list of behaviors that cross a clear red line.

Click here to take our survey on attraction and relationships.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Even when done with loving intent, restriction and control does not lead to the desired results of obedience and conformity: restriction leads to rebellion. Just ask anyone ever who has tried to control someone else’s drinking.

Click here to take our survey on attraction and relationships.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Sheri answers listener questions about everything from her rock-bottom moments that resulted from Matt’s alcoholism, to what she would do differently if she had the chance to do it all over again. Many answers are emotional because learning and surviving are both painful. Matt lightens things up by starting the episode with a riddle, and an analysis of why people feel unconditional love for their pets.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

If you would like to support the Untoxicated Podcast with an monthly tax deductible $10 donation, please go to SupportUntoxicated.org.

Evolutionary Psychologist Dr. Menelaos Apostolou does research around this unfortunate historical fact: Until sometime in the past 100 years, men had all the sexual power in most cultures around the world. The traditional power dynamic will come as no surprise to our listeners. However, on this episode, Sheri and Matt discuss some disturbing theoretical evolutionary impacts of that inequity that will plague us humans well into the future. We bet you’ve never considered this stuff, stuff exacerbated by alcoholism. And after listening, you won’t be able to ignore it.

If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

If you would like to support the Untoxicated Podcast with an monthly tax deductible $10 donation, please go to SupportUntoxicated.org.