Richard Ratcliffe (@the.recovery.club - 100k+ followers) joins the Willpower Podcast for a raw, heartfelt talk on his 9-year sober journey. From childhood shame and "wearing masks" to fit in, to daily 2 liters of vodka leading to seizures, an induced coma at 24, and doctors warning "you won't make 25" - Richard opens up about waking up angry to be alive, true surrender, turning grief into purpose through vulnerability and his "12 Steps to Freedom" blueprint.

Real wisdom on shame as a "backpack of boulders," early sobriety agony, codependency, and carrying your "shadow self" with kindness. If you're in recovery or loving someone who is, this is gold.

Trigger Warning: Discusses coma, seizures, grief, suicide ideation, addiction rock bottoms. If struggling:

US Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988

Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741

SAMHSA Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)

Canada Suicide Prevention: 988 (or 1-833-456-4566)

Timestamps:

00:00 - Intro & Childhood Shame

05:09 - Alcohol as "Medicine"

10:09 - Daily Vodka & Internal Battle

13:24 - Induced Coma Rock Bottom

18:31 - Shame Lives in Silence

26:20 - Surrender & New Way of Life

33:28 - Early Sobriety Agony

37:17 - Deeper Wounds: Abandonment & Codependency

42:07 - Speed Round: Addiction Lies & Myths

47:44 - Grief, Purpose & Why We Share

Follow Richard: @the.recovery.club (DM "freedom" for his blueprint)

His book: 12 Steps to Freedom (link in comments)

Support the podcast ❤️

Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/willpowerpodcast (active - every coffee keeps these stories coming!)

Sober Mentoring:

https://calendly.com/thewillpowerpodcast/30min

Subscribe, like, share if this moved you. More real recovery ahead.

Chester Alarie, a 34-year-old musician from Montreal, opens up about his 17-year battle with drugs and alcohol that led to depression, multiple rock bottoms, a near-fatal overdose, and alcohol withdrawal in January 2024.

FULL DISCLOSURE> YOU WILL ABSOLUTELY WANT TO LISTEN TO THE END. THIS EPISODE IS AS ENTERTAINING AS A RECOVERY PODCAST CAN GET!

After rehab, relapses, and finally working the 12 steps, Chester is now 9 months sober, happier than ever, and making music full-time. This conversation is raw, honest, and full of hope – from the darkest moments to finding joy sober on stage.

Trigger Warning: This episode discusses overdose, withdrawal, suicide attempts, and other heavy topics. If you're struggling, please reach out for help.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (US): 988

Crisis Text Line (US): Text HOME to 741741

Canada Suicide Prevention Service: 988 (or 1-833-456-4566)

SAMHSA National Helpline (US): 1-800-662-HELP (4357)

Timestamps:

00:00 – Near Fatal Overdose & Withdrawal

02:46 – Early Struggles & Depression

07:55 – Rock Bottoms Begin

17:21 – Loss & Grief

24:16 – The OD That Changed Everything

38:54 – Relapses & Moderation Lies

49:18 – Happiest Sober Moment (Crying on Stage)

1:01:11 – Comparison is the Thief of Joy

Connect with Chester: Instagram: @chester_alarie

Connect with Will: https://www.instagram.com/thewillpowerpodcast

Support the podcast (if you feel called): Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/willpowerpodcast (active & appreciated ❤️)

Need someone to talk to? My 1-on-1 mentoring → https://calendly.com/thewillpowerpodcast/30min

🧥 RCVR Apparel → Rock recovery-inspired gear with pride. Save 10% with code WILLPOWER10 at https://rcvrbrand.com

💊 LiverMedic Supplements → Feel your best with natural liver support. Use code WILL10 for 10% off at https://liverlifesupplements.com

🎤 AMPLIFY Sober Voices (Jan 15, 2026) → Join sober creators at Podfest 2026. Get $20 off with code WILLPOWER20 at https://amplify.soberliferocks.com

📚 Shortform (reading made easy) → Dig deeper into recovery books! Sign up at https://shortform.com/twpp and get a FREE TRIAL + $50 OFF your annual subscription.

If this episode helped you or someone you know, hit subscribe and share it. More real stories coming soon.

Thank you for being part of this community.

And a VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR! I believe 2026 will be OUR BEST yet! Thanks for being apart of this community! It means the world ✊

#Sobriety #RecoveryStory #AlcoholAddiction #OverdoseSurvival #SoberMusician #12Steps #RockBottom #SoberLife #AddictionRecovery #MentalHealth #WillpowerPodcast #Sober2026 #RelapseToRecovery #SoberJourney

What's up everyone, Will Gordon here from The Willpower Podcast. This one's a banger – sat down with Quebec country rocker Rick Duff @Duff.yeehaw, who's 6 months sober and absolutely crushing it with his debut album Forever Reckless.

Rick lays it all out: going from bricklayer to Canada's got talent show finale overnight, the wild party days in his 20s, those "loser birds" chirping after all-nighters, getting hammered through five straight shows and knowing he was letting fans down... that was his wake-up call to quit booze and drugs for good.

We get deep on the guilt, the crossroads moment,surprising confidence from stacking sober days, sober hacks for touring, and turning massive pain – including losing his best friend Matthew to addiction – into therapy on tracks. Album's dedicated to him, man. Songs like "Reckless" and "Ford Ranger" hit hard.

If you're grinding through quitting drinking, battling addiction, or just need some real talk on mental health and showing up better – this is the one. Rick's proof you can flip the script and give your best self to the people who believe in you.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Cold open hook + Quebec weather banter

02:26 - Fame explosion from TV show

03:44 - Rock bottom: 5 wasted nights on stage

07:07 - The moment booze was stealing his voice

10:02 - Loser birds & choosing sobriety

17:21 - Losing Matthew & the album dedication

26:07 - Sober touring hacks 28:23 - Motivation from other artists/books

30:13 - What's next for Rick

34:25 - Rick's final words

Stream Forever Reckless everywhere and follow Rick:

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4MNUaMf0Yl05yY6x342xBH
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rickduffmusic/
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rickduffmusic
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Duff.yeehaw
• Website: https://rickduffmusic.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DUFFOFFICIEL/

Hit subscribe if these stories fire you up – we're building a community of people stacking wins and getting after it sober. Drop a comment if Rick's story hit home.

If you're getting value from the show and want to help me keep grinding these episodes full-time (editing two a day sometimes takes all day!), a coffee on BuyMeACoffee means the world: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/willpowerpodcast

Other ways to support (keeps the lights on while I chase this dream):

• RCVR gear: https://rcvrbrand.com/
• LiverMedic supplements: https://livermedic.com/
• AMPLIFY Sober events: https://amplify.soberliferocks.com/

Thanks for being here, fam. Let's keep the willpower rolling.

Dr. Sarah Michaud spent 30 years as a clinical psychologist helping addicts and codependents climb out of hell… only to wake up one day and realize she was living in the exact same hell.

From people-pleasing therapist to full-blown addict and codependent, she hit rock bottom, got sober, wrote the raw book Co-Crazy, and now co-hosts the hit podcast Leaving Crazy Land.

This conversation is different. If you grew up trying to keep everyone happy, if you still don’t know what YOU actually want, or if sobriety feels like it’s missing something… this one will hit different.

Watch now.

Connect with Dr. Sarah Website → https://drsarahmichaud.com Podcast (Leaving Crazy Land) → Search “Leaving Crazy Land” on your platform Book Co-Crazy → Available everywhere

Need someone to talk to? My 1-on-1 mentoring → https://calendly.com/thewillpowerpodcast/30min

Support the show : 🤝 If you believe in the mission of spreading hope and healing through real recovery stories, please consider donating to the podcast. Every dollar helps keep this content going and reaching the people who need it most → https://buymeacoffee.com/thewillpowerpodcast

🧥 RCVR Apparel → Rock recovery-inspired gear with pride. Save 10% with code WILLPOWER10 at https://rcvrbrand.com

💊 LiverMedic Supplements → Feel your best with natural liver support. Use code WILL10 for 10% off at https://liverlifesupplements.com

🎤 AMPLIFY Sober Voices (Jan 15, 2026) → Join sober creators at Podfest 2026. Get $20 off with code WILLPOWER20 at https://amplify.soberliferocks.com

📚 Shortform (reading made easy) → Dig deeper into recovery books. Sign up at https://shortform.com/twpp and get a FREE TRIAL + $50 OFF your annual subscription.

• Timestamps 00:00 Therapist becomes the patient 00:54 First drink at 16 – “It was the solution”
• 04:25 Bank robbery to pay a coke dealer
• 09:15 Growing up in alcoholism & feeling “different”
• 13:37 Why year 2-3 of sobriety is the hardest
• 21:22 What codependency really is (and why it’s deadly) 29:43 The fear that drives people-pleasing
• 33:27 “Put down the drink for 30 days and see”
• 42:37 Best advice for anyone realizing they drink too much

Drop a ❤️ if this hit home. Subscribe Please – new episode every week.

#Codependency #PeoplePleaser #Sober #QuitDrinking #Recovery

Philippa and I were both handed death sentences from alcohol.

I needed a liver transplant and barely survived.

Philippa was told the exact same thing… but she completely reversed end-stage cirrhosis – no transplant, no miracle pills, no BS.

999 days to get her liver enzymes normal. A resident doctor cried when he saw her alive two years later.

This is the rawest, most hopeful liver-failure recovery story you will ever hear. I'm not just saying that...

If you’re hiding bottles, lying to yourself, or telling yourself “it’s not that bad yet” – watch/listen before it’s too late.

Philippa answers every DM → https://www.instagram.com/pippaamelia9

Need 1-on-1 help? My sober mentoring → https://calendly.com/thewillpowerpodcast/30min

🙏 If you believe in the mission of spreading hope and healing through real recovery stories, please consider donating to the podcast. Every dollar helps keep this content going and reaching the people who need it most. → https://buymeacoffee.com/thewillpowerpodcast

📅 Book a 1:1 Sober Mentoring Session Today—LINK BELOW https://calendly.com/thewillpowerpodcast/30min

🧥 RCVR Apparel: Rock recovery-inspired gear with pride. Save 10% with code thewillpowerpodcast at rcvrbrand.com/thewillpowerpodcast

💊 Liver Medic Supplements: Feel your best with natural liver support. Use code THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off for 10% off at livermedic.com/discount/THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off

🎤 AMPLIFY Sober Voices (Jan 15, 2026): Join sober creators at Podfest 2026. Get $20 off with code WILL at amplify.soberliferocks.com

• Buy me a coffee (keeps episodes free) → https://buymeacoffee.com/thewillpowerpodcast

Timestamps

00:00 Cold open – hiding bottles & lies

01:09 “Doctors gave me weeks… they gave her weeks” 02:54 She turned completely yellow + last drink story

25:18 “999 days to normal liver enzymes”

29:07 “You have 2 months to live”

36:58 The resident doctor started crying

43:00 Life now – 3.5 years sober & thriving

Drop a ❤️ if this hit home. Subscribe – new episode every week.

#AlcoholismRecovery #LiverFailure #EndStageCirrhosis #Sobriety #QuitDrinking #SoberLife #AddictionRecovery #LiverTransplant #Jaundice #SoberCurious #RecoveryIsPossible #AlcoholicLiverDisease #SoberMotivation #DryJanuaryForever #TheWillpowerPodcast

Aaron Starbuck just got the green light. His liver transplant is officially approved and could happen any day… maybe even tonight.

His first reaction wasn’t relief.

It was terror.

I know exactly how he's feeling and I talk openly about my OWN experience. Imagine being able to talk to someone whose on the other side of it? Well Aaron gets that opportunity.

“I knew it was coming… but I’m repulsed by the idea of being cut open. It’s a blessing… but it’s also scary.”

I felt him here.

In this emergency raw live episode we talk:

• - The exact moment the transplant team called
• Why he’s having cold feet even though he’s dying without it
• The financial nightmare of transplant life
• Paracentesis, lactulose, HE, and rock-bottom truth
• What the other side actually feels like (I LIVED it)

If Aaron’s story moves you, help him with medical bills, housing, and recovery costs right now:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/aaron-needs-a-liver-transplant-to-thrive

🤝 If you believe in spreading real recovery stories, please consider supporting the show. Every dollar keeps this content coming → https://buymeacoffee.com/thewillpowerpodcast

One of the most powerful conversations we’ve ever recorded.

If you’re in recovery, on a transplant list, or love someone who is — this one’s for you.

New episodes every week.

Leave a review and share if this hit home.

#LiverTransplant #Sobriety #AddictionRecovery #TransplantWarrior

🤝From a second-story fall that started a decade of panic attacks, to blackouts I’m still ashamed of, to not believing I’d see 30 — Mitch Webb somehow found a way out.

Today he’s an integrative somatic coach helping people speak their body’s language and heal from the inside. In this episode, Mitch gets real about:

- The head injury that changed everything

- Fraternity life and the “no off switch” drinking

- Childhood trauma he didn’t even know he had

- Sitting with the fire (the moment that felt like a magic trick) - Pee Pee McGee shame

- Lyme pain and mold hell

- Why Western medicine failed him

- A 60-second practice that melted anxiety live on the podcast

- Coming out of survival mode and finally seeing the sky as blue again

This is one of the most honest conversations I’ve had. If you’re carrying the same weight, this one’s for you.

🤝 If you believe in spreading real recovery stories, please consider supporting the show. Every dollar keeps this content coming → https://buymeacoffee.com/thewillpowerpodcast

Connect with Mitch: Free nervous system quiz + coaching → https://mitchweb.com Instagram → https://instagram.com/kmitchwebb

The Willpower Podcast with Will Gordon New episodes every week → subscribe if this helped

#Sobriety #QuitDrinking #TraumaHealing #SomaticHealing #Anxiety #AddictionRecovery #SoberLife #MentalHealth #RecoveryPodcast

After two suicide attempts, losing her baby son to a terminal illness, a marriage that ended in scandal, and then — 4+ years sober — getting the call that her ex-husband overdosed on fentanyl… Ashley Jo somehow kept going.

Today she’s a sober mom, bonus mom, author, and speaker who’s been alcohol-free since August 14, 2020. On the exact release day of her gut-wrenching new memoir Tides of Grief, Waves of Grace, Ashley gets REAL about:

- Hiding 40+ beers a day while everyone thought she “had it together”

- The garage suicide attempt that miraculously failed

- What sober grief actually feels like when the worst keeps happening

- Writing two eulogies in treatment that changed everything

- Why God never left even when faith almost did

- And the letter to her ex she never got to say out loud 💔

This is one of the heaviest, most hopeful conversations we’ve ever had on the show.

If this episode hits home, drop a comment and let us know. And PLEASE—smash that subscribe button so we can keep these powerful convos coming. 🙏

If you believe in the mission of spreading hope and healing through real recovery stories, please consider donating to the podcast. Every dollar helps keep this content going and reaching the people who need it most → https://buymeacoffee.com/thewillpowerpodcast

🧥 RCVR Apparel: Rock recovery-inspired gear with pride. Save 10% with code thewillpowerpodcast at rcvrbrand.com/thewillpowerpodcast

💊 Liver Medic Supplements: Feel your best with natural liver support. Use code THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off for 10% off at livermedic.com/discount/THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off

🎤 AMPLIFY Sober Voices (Jan 15, 2026): Join sober creators at Podfest 2026. Get $20 off with code WILL at amplify.soberliferocks.com

📚 Grab Ashley’s book Tides of Grief, Waves of Grace today: https://www.thisisashleyjo.com (or Amazon, Barnes & Noble, everywhere books are sold)

Connect with Ashley:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/thisisashleyjo

Website: https://thisisashleyjo.com

Shortform affiliate (reading made easy):

Sign up at https://shortform.com/twpp and get a FREE TRIAL + $50 OFF your annual subscription. Perfect for digging deeper into recovery books!

#Sobriety #AddictionRecovery #GriefAndHealing #SoberMom #ChildLoss #FentanylAwareness #ChristianRecovery #SoberPodcast

He hit rock bottom after a DUI. Now, Chaplain Sy Ali is 5 years sober, and helping others transform their lives. From elite protection agent to homeless veteran, this is the powerful true story of recovery, redemption, and rediscovering purpose through faith and service.

In this episode of the Will Power Podcast, Sy shares how PTSD, loss, and addiction nearly destroyed him—and how reading the Bible, becoming a chaplain, and working with at-risk youth and fellow veterans changed everything. We dive into his journey from alcohol dependence to spiritual leadership, and how he now uses his story to heal others.

🎧 What you’ll hear:

• Why Sy surrendered after a life-altering DUI

• The hidden toll of PTSD and emotional suppression

• What it really feels like to be homeless

• How he rebuilt his life at 60 with zero money

• His advice for anyone struggling with addiction or doubt

✨ Whether you're battling personal demons or just seeking hope, this is a story you don’t want to miss.

📚 Read Sy Ali’s memoir Out of the Storm

🌐 Learn more about his youth work at Alivio Learning

📢 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more unfiltered stories of human willpower.

👉 Book a 1:1 Sober Mentoring Session Today—LINK BELOW

https://calendly.com/thewillpowerpodcast/30min

🙏 If this episode hits home, drop a comment and let us know. And PLEASE—smash that subscribe button so we can keep these powerful convos coming.

🧥 RCVR Apparel: Rock recovery-inspired gear with pride.

Save 10% with code thewillpowerpodcast at rcvrbrand.com/thewillpowerpodcast

💊 Liver Medic Supplements: Feel your best with natural liver support.

Use code THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off for 10% off at livermedic.com/discount/THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off

🎤 AMPLIFY Sober Voices (Jan 15, 2026): Join sober creators at Podfest 2026.

Get $20 off with code WILL at amplify.soberliferocks.com

Can you really rebuild your entire life after 30 years lost to alcohol? In this raw and powerful episode of the Will Power Podcast, Ian Fee shares his unfiltered alcohol recovery journey — from being a high-functioning alcoholic who spent over $1 million on booze, to becoming a present father, dropping 80 pounds, and living 8 years fully sober.

Ian opens up about:

- The shocking truth behind his rehab experience

- How aversion therapy rewired his brain

- The moment that changed everything on Day 3

- Losing two marriages — and regaining self-worth

- The daily habits that keep him sharp and sober

This isn’t just another sobriety story — it’s a transformation masterclass. If you’re struggling with addiction, self-sabotage, or wondering if it’s too late to turn it all around… this is for you.

👉 Book a 1:1 Sober Mentoring Session Today—LINK BELOW

https://calendly.com/thewillpowerpodcast/30min

🙏 If this episode hits home, drop a comment and let us know. And PLEASE—smash that subscribe button so we can keep these powerful convos coming.

🧥 RCVR Apparel: Rock recovery-inspired gear with pride.

Save 10% with code thewillpowerpodcast at rcvrbrand.com/thewillpowerpodcast

💊 Liver Medic Supplements: Feel your best with natural liver support.

Use code THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off for 10% off at livermedic.com/discount/THEWILLPOWERPODCAST10off

🎤 AMPLIFY Sober Voices (Jan 15, 2026): Join sober creators at Podfest 2026.

Get $20 off with code WILL at amplify.soberliferocks.com