RAW Recovery Podcast

The Progression of Alcoholism

Alcoholism rarely looks dramatic in the beginning. It usually starts small, normal, social… even fun. Over time the line slowly moves. What once felt optional becomes routine. What once felt controlled becomes unpredictable. And before we know it, alcohol is no longer part of life — it’s running life.

In today’s stream we’re breaking down the real progression many of us experienced:

This isn’t about judgment — it’s about understanding the path so people can recognize it sooner and know recovery is possible at any stage.

Jump in the chat and be part of the conversation. 💬

No one trudges alone. 🙏

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Welcome back to Random Reading — the episode where we open the book, see where it lands, and talk about whatever shows up.

No planning. No script. Just real recovery, real life, and real conversation.

Sometimes the message we need most is the one we didn’t plan to hear. Today we’re letting the page decide the topic and seeing where the discussion takes us.

If you’ve ever opened the book and felt like it was written directly for you… this episode is for you.

No one trudges alone. 🙏

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Pride Walks In Before the Fall

Today Roger and I talk about Proverbs 11:2:

We explore how pride often shows up long before the consequences do, and how humility creates space for growth, connection, and better decisions. Most of the trouble we’ve experienced didn’t start with the outcome — it started with the moment we stopped listening.

Take what you need. Leave the rest.

No one trudges alone. 🙏

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In this episode of Two Sober Dudes, we talk about one of the most important skills in recovery and in life: meeting others where they are at.

We can’t force people to change. We can’t drag people into recovery. We can’t make others think, feel, or believe the way we do. But we can learn how to show up with patience, understanding, and compassion.

Today we’re diving into:

Whether it’s family, friends, newcomers, or people still struggling — this conversation is about learning to walk beside people instead of trying to pull them.

Because recovery works best when we remember: we were once exactly where they are now.

No one trudges alone. 🙏

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A Glorious Release

What happens when we finally stop fighting everything and everyone? What happens when we stop arguing with life, recovery, and God? According to today’s reflection, the real relief begins the moment we surrender.

Many of us lived in self-will run riot. We tried to control everything, fix everything, and carry the weight of the world alone. Step Two offers something radical: you don’t have to do this by yourself anymore.

In today’s episode of The Daily Trudge, we talk about:

If you’re tired of carrying everything on your own, this one is for you.

Recovery doesn’t mean life gets easy — it means you don’t have to face it alone.

No one trudges alone. 🙏

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Staying Honest Through the Fog

Some days don’t feel inspiring. Some days feel heavy, quiet, and hard to move through. Today is one of those days. And instead of pretending otherwise, we’re talking about what it looks like to stay honest in recovery when your mental health isn’t cooperating.

Recovery doesn’t require perfect moods or constant motivation. Many of us live with depression, anxiety, or other mental health struggles alongside sobriety. What keeps recovery moving forward isn’t feeling great — it’s the willingness to tell the truth about how we actually feel, even when that truth is uncomfortable.

This conversation is about honesty on hard days. About showing up when the energy isn’t there. About admitting you’re struggling without believing you’re failing. Being honest in the fog doesn’t make you weak; it keeps you connected, grounded, and moving forward one honest moment at a time.

If today feels heavy, you’re not alone. You don’t have to be cheerful to be recovering. You just have to stay honest.

No one trudges alone. 👣

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Joy Without Permission

At some point in recovery, something shifts. You realize you don’t have to earn joy, justify it, or wait for everything to be perfect before you allow yourself to feel good. Joy doesn’t need permission — it just needs presence.

Today on The Daily Trudge, we’re talking about what it looks like to experience joy freely. Not manic happiness. Not forced positivity. Just real, grounded joy that shows up when we stop policing ourselves with guilt, fear, or old rules about what we deserve.

This conversation is about letting yourself laugh, enjoy, rest, and feel light without immediately questioning it. About recognizing that joy isn’t a reward for suffering long enough — it’s part of healing. Recovery isn’t only about surviving life; it’s about learning how to live it fully, honestly, and openly.

If you’re in a good mood today and wondering if that’s okay — it is. You don’t have to explain it. You don’t have to downplay it. You don’t have to wait for the other shoe to drop.

Joy doesn’t need permission.

No one trudges alone. 👣

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Filling the God-Sized Hole

Long before most of us ever picked up a drink or a drug, there was a sense that something was missing. A restlessness. An emptiness. A hole we tried to fill with anything that promised relief — substances, people, approval, control, success. Nothing ever stayed filled for long.

Today on The Daily Trudge, we talk about what’s often called the God-sized hole. Not as a religious slogan, but as a lived experience. That constant ache that alcohol temporarily silenced, distractions briefly covered, and achievements never satisfied. Sobriety doesn’t magically fill that hole — it exposes it.

This conversation is about what happens when we stop trying to cram temporary solutions into a permanent space. When we stop demanding that people, routines, or substances do the work they were never meant to do. And when we begin to understand that connection, meaning, and something greater than ourselves may be the only things that actually fit.

Filling the God-sized hole isn’t about having perfect faith or the right words. It’s about willingness. About letting go of substitutes and allowing something deeper to take root over time. Slowly. Imperfectly. Honestly.

If you’ve ever felt full but still empty…

No one trudges alone. 👣

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It’s been a minute, and Dion is back on RAW Recovery—this time with a new friend, Lauren, who works at Mountain West. What starts with a very real “mom life” moment (yes… poop talk and toddlers crashing the podcast) turns into a powerful, honest conversation about what addiction actually looks like when you’re still “functioning.”

Lauren shares parts of her story to explain why she does what she does—postpartum struggles, ADHD, shame spirals, daily drinking, hiding vodka, and learning the hard way that you don’t have to look like “skid row” to be in trouble. She talks about depression, anxiety, identity loss, and how mindfulness and reframing thoughts helped interrupt the spiral—turning “I’m a piece of shit” into “I’m a new mom and I’m going to get through this.”

The episode also highlights the reality of detox and treatment—what it’s like walking into the wrong place, what it’s like finding the right place, and why environment, connection, and support matter so much. Lauren and Dion talk about the difference between a slip vs. relapse, the stigma that keeps people from coming back, and why recovery often means becoming someone new.

They also shine a light on what makes Mountain West different: peer navigation, sober living, IOP/PHP, clinical support, and a “client-first” approach—plus the integrity to refer people out when they’re not the right fit.

📞 Mountain West: (720) 288-0450

This one is equal parts laughter, truth, and hope—with a reminder that you’re more powerful than you think… and you’re worth the effort. Peace out, and keep on trudging.

Rescued by Surrendering

Everything in me believed surrender meant losing. Losing control, losing pride, losing myself. What I didn’t understand was that surrender wasn’t the end of me — it was the thing that finally pulled me out of the fight I was never going to win.

Today on The Daily Trudge, we talk about how surrender doesn’t weaken us — it rescues us. Not the dramatic, one-time kind, but the daily surrender of ego, control, and the belief that we can manage life on our own terms. Surrender is where resistance ends and help finally has room to work.

This conversation is about the moment we stop negotiating with reality. When we quit trying to outthink recovery, outwork pain, or control outcomes, and instead allow guidance, connection, and humility to do what force never could.

Surrender doesn’t mean giving up on life. It means giving up the fight that was killing us. For many of us, surrender wasn’t failure — it was relief.

If you’ve been exhausted from trying to hold everything together, this is your reminder: sometimes the thing that saves us is letting go.

No one trudges alone. 👣

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#addiction #recovery #mentalhealth #addictionrecovery #sobriety #sober #love #soberlife #recoveryispossible #mentalhealthawareness #depression #alcoholism #addictionawareness #soberliving #drugaddiction #wedorecover #anxiety #onedayatatime #soberaf #addict #drugs #alcoholicsanonymous #rehab #selfcare #motivation #healing #steps #alcoholfree #selflove #addictiontreatment