Annie began to see the cracks in her family at 7 years old. She and her 4 siblings lived a happy life in a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, but she could feel something happening. It wouldn’t be fully understood until years later when her mother revealed she was pregnant with the child of an influential man in town who was not her father. 

Everyone turned on her mother and she was forced to leave the family, taking Annie’s sister with her when she went. Annie was left with an immense wound. She’d done everything she was supposed to. She was the good girl and still her mother left. 

At 25 she began a career in the wine industry. It was the perfect place to hide what would become an all-encompassing addiction that ruined her life. The alcohol took hold of everything in her life. In the later years of her addiction, she was left with panic attacks that left her unable to even hold a teacup.

Today, she’s recently celebrated her 3,000th day of sobriety and helps others on a journey of healing through her work with her organization Powerfully Sober where she helps people re-create and re-imagine their one extraordinary life.

Episode Resources

Connect with Annie

• Powerfully Sober | powerfullysober.com

Connect with The Courage to Change

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