Self Inflicted Recovery, Redemption, and Life (a podcast on addiction and recovery)

In this episode I discuss how my emotions and sobriety intertwined... and how eventually my emotions (and what I perceived as happiness) was determined by my use...

A big part of recovery for me was learning to deal with my emotions...

I also cover my perspective on my emotions now... and my strategy for acquiring and maintaining my happiness.

In this episode I have a discussion with Anthony. He struggled with Marijuana, Alcohol, and other drugs throughout the years.

We get into things like early sobriety, what life was like before he got clean, the turning point for him, how he started down the path, and how things have changed with his personal life and social interactions.

He also reflects on the new friendships he has made and old friendships from his previous life that he continues to be a part of.

Today he has been clean for over 3 years. He is happier and more productive (doing the things that matter to him) than he has ever been.

I used to get in trouble with the law... but that stopped in my early to mid 20's...

When I started on the path to sobriety... I saw a lot of people whose compelling event was legal trouble...

For a moment... internal rationalization process tried to tell me I was different... really though... I was the same... and just had a bunch of rules I lived life by to stay out o legal trouble.

This episode explores those rules... and my realizations after reflecting on these.

This is the exciting conclusion of Paul's story...

Part 1 ended at 21-22 years old, with Paul telling his school if he went back to his apartment he might kill himself.

The second half picks up from 21-22 years old and takes him through to his sobriety.

How did he get clean? Take a listen and see how it compares to your story and others'.

-Louie

In Part 1 of Paul's story... he covers how his love /hate relationship with marijuana began around 6th grade... and he discusses in his own voice how things progressed until he was 21-22 years old and in college.

This is a story of fortitude and perseverance... definitely worth a listen...

You can hear in his voice the emotions he feels as he recalls these events.

Thank you for your service, Paul.

I knew growing up that addiction ran in the family.

What I didn't know though was that it was something more dangerous for me than normies.

Would have been good to have that warning.

This episode deals with how I discuss addiction with my children... how I arm them with knowledge with the hope they avoid devastating consequences.

In the end though... it will be up to them.

In this episode I discuss how my emotions influenced my addiction... and how that played a role in my recovery...

Specifically... recovery is difficult due to physical withdrawal where it applies... but also due to the fact that for many of us our emotional muscles have atrophied due to our addictive behavior.

I also discuss my theory on why we have emotions, and how resentments and working the steps freed me in some ways.

In this episode Louie reflects on how hard he worked to maintain his desired level of inebriation over his 17ish years using.

Post sobriety, he realizes how much effort and meticulous planning managing his addiction (and feeding it) really took up.

It was a colossal effort in terms of mental and emotional energy.

He discusses many of the insane things he used to do... and discusses how it feels realizing these things now, and how being free of them feels.

In this episode, Louie discusses how his tendency to develop and cultivate relationships and connection with others has evolved since becoming sober.

Part of this discussion covers how these relationships benefit me, and also how they benefit others...

Additionally, I tie this into the concept of "what might have been" by giving a synopsis of Ray Bradbury's "The Sound of Thunder" (a sci-fi short story).

Take a listen, shoot me an email, and let me know your thoughts at: ([email protected]).

In this episode I discuss motivation, how it relates to relapse, and methods for staying motivated (ways to replenish it).

Also touch on being desperate enough... honesty about the results of going back to the old way of doing things... honesty about consequences... and the addictive voice.