The question, "How has getting sober affected your life?" brought about an incredible conversation about the benefits of a sober life. Join us as we chat with a few of our good friends (and Through the Glass regulars) - John, Antje, and Derrick - about how our lives have changed in recovery. The benefits are incredible - from the small changes and little wins, to life changing growth.

Some of the benefits of a sober life that you'll hear us talk about include:

• Learning emotional regulation, so our emotions don't run away this us anymore
• Healthy coping skills for stress management
• We're forced to learn new habits and new mindsets, and it's a gift
• Stopping to look back and appreciate the wins
• Letting go of self loathing and learning to love yourself
• Recovery is about a lot more than just not drinking
• Deeper, more meaningful relationships
• Finally being able to tell the truth, and being free from a life of lies
• Finding new, different friends that support our new lifestyle
• Learning to own mistakes and learn from failure
• Getting good at being bad at things; being okay with being a beginner
• How "One Day At A Time" applies to more than just not drinking
• Finally learning to be present in our lives
• Truly experiencing joy and gratitude
• Growing in courage and in confidence
• Gaining clarity about why we are the way we are
• Finding the strength to get through the hard times, from grief to depression, without drinking

--

Antje first discovered drinking as a way to “fix” her eating disorder. She thought that drinking was more acceptable than binging and purging all of her meals. When drinking grew more and more out of control, she reluctantly considered sobriety in January of 2022. Soon after, she found connection and support in an online sober community. She is so glad to that she took that first, scary step and gave sobriety a chance.

--

Derrick Deidel is 3 years sober. He has come from the depths of addiction, trauma, mental health , prison and homelessness to be a light in this world. He loves recovery and is a huge advocate for it and those seeking help. He works for Mile High Recovery Center managing the Residential treatment house, he is a peer recovery coach and personal trainer. He tries to be kind and gracious to everyone cause that same stuff changed his life.

--

Sign up for our newsletter at throughtheglassrecovery.com for sober tips, tools, and motivation, and get access to our free weekly sober support meetings.

Find us on:

Instagram Facebook Tiktok

It doesn’t matter if you’re a few days sober or ten years sober – cravings happen. At their best, they are annoying. At their worst, they sneak up on you when you least expect it and smack you upside the head and suddenly everything is spinning and you don’t know which way is up. By the end of this episode, you’ll have a whole new stack of tools to add to your sober toolbox, and you’ll realize that cravings aren’t actually something to fear or feel bad about at all.

Besides learning how to beat alcohol cravings, we help you work through:

• Coping with FOMO when it shows up as a trigger
• Creating and using a sober toolbox
• Surviving even the hardest cravings without giving in
• Breaking the habit of situational triggers
• Alcohol and social situations
• Giving yourself permission to put your sobriety first
• Cognitive dissonance – the argument inside your brain
• Finding the courage to talk about the hard things
• Recognizing the physical symptoms of triggers before it gets out of hand
• Romanticizing the old days
• Understanding that cravings aren’t a sign of a failing recovery

Katie talks about the toolbox that she uses to help her stay sober. Here’s her list of tools:

• Call my sponsor
• Call my husband
• Go to a meeting
• Take a walk with my dog
• Call/text sober support people
• Watch recovery Tiktok
• Write a prayer to put in my God box
• Set a 10 minute timer
• Meditate/breathing exercises
• Pray and let go of my will

---

Robbie started his sobriety journey due to being sick of the same old story he would put himself though. He found his cannabis and alcohol use getting worse as the years went on. He used them to cope with everything and anything. Robbie is now nine months sober, and couldn’t be happier with his decision to take on this new journey. Robbie co-hosts Golden Hour Adventures podcast and can be found on Instagram @runshills605.

---

Katie B is 42 years old from Dallas, Texas but currently lives in Everett, WA. She has a handsome husband of 7 years with 1 16 year old son, Jakob, and 2 bonus kids, Layla, 15 and Isaac, 20. For the last 2.5 years she’s worked at the same rehab facility where she got sober. Her sobriety date is March 16th, 2016 after 28 1/2 years of active addiction and alcoholism.

---

Matt is a 38 year old father of 2 from Burnt Hills, NY who works in State government. He’s an avid outdoorsman, and his favorite times are those he gets to spend with his children playing games, reading, and coaching his son’s sports teams. Matt has attempted both inpatient and outpatient treatment multiple times in the past 5 years,and last year had the opportunity to experience residential sober living at Release Recovery in Westchester County. He encourages people who are still struggling to reach out and know it’s ok to ask for help. You can find Matt on Instagram @shamman780

Watch Matt’s story on YouTube here.

---

throughtheglassrecovery@gmail.com

Visit our website at throughtheglassrecovery.com

Find us on: Instagram Facebook Tiktok