TRIGGER WARNING: This episode includes candid discussion of addiction and suicidal ideation. Please listen with care.

In this powerful conversation, host Angela Dunn-Cartledge sits down with author and speaker Daryl Dittmer to unpack the long, honest work of recovery and resilience. Daryl shares how a downward spiral through his teens ended with a life-or-death crossroads on New Year’s Eve 1984—and how treatment began his second act. From the mentor line that changed everything—“When you stop fighting, the fighting stops”—to Step 11, gratitude, and daily practices, Daryl offers a practical, compassionate roadmap for anyone ready to put the shovel down and climb out of the pit.

You’ll hear about

• The moment Darrell chose to live—and why “attempting to try” is enough to start

• “Clearing the wreckage”: responsibility without self-hatred
• Step 11’s role (prayer & meditation) in day-to-day sanity
• The routines: breathwork, meditation, gratitude, movement
• How writing/journaling helps you see patterns and track progress
• Forgiveness vs. forgetting: letting go without minimizing the past
• “First things first—and the rest shall be added on”

Find the author:

• Books by Daryl Dittmer: ⁠When I Stop Fighting⁠; ⁠When You Stop Fighting⁠ (audiobooks in his voice!) on Amazon
• Journals on his ⁠shop⁠: Rewrite Your Life Story; Stop Stopping Yourself; Stop Fighting, Start Living
• ⁠www.daryldittmer.com