In Part Two, we dig beneath the anger and reactivity that so many addicts identify as their “core issue” and uncover the deeper truth: anger is often the smoke, not the fire. We explore how rage, irritation, and a short fuse act as emotional armor, protecting us from the feelings we’re terrified to experience.

This episode looks at why so many people in recovery can understand their healing intellectually but stay emotionally numb, and how this disconnect keeps their partners from feeling safe or connected. We talk about what it means to actually feel again, the discomfort of letting go of emotional avoidance, and the work required to rebuild emotional presence in relationships.

If you’ve felt stuck at the intellectual level of recovery, or if you’re trying to understand the real role of anger, numbness, and emotional avoidance in addiction, this episode will help you finally see what’s underneath the rage, and what healing looks like when it reaches the heart, not just the mind.