Recovery Elevator

Today we have Mitchell. He is 30 years old, lives in Missouri, and he took his last drink on April 6th, 2025.
 
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Next Monday, August 31st, we are celebrating the launch of the compilation book This Is How We Quit with a live event via Zoom. Everyone who registers for this free event will receive one free month of membership in Café RE.
 
Coming in September, Café RE will be hosting Ditching the Booze: Emotions. It is a four-week live course, every Wednesday in September at 8pm Eastern
 
[01:50] Thoughts from Paul:
 
Paul shares a YouTube video from Seth Capehart MD about The World's Most Encouraged Drug.
 
He gives a brief history of alcohol, that we have been consuming it for thousands of years as humans. It used to serve a vital purpose then, because fermented beverages with a low alcohol content were safer to drink than water. Eventually engineers figured out to provide clean drinking water, but the alcohol consumption stuck around.
 
The doctor shares what alcohol does to our bodies. It taxes the liver and wrecks our hormones. The doctor says if you were trying to create a hormonal environment that would make you fat, weak, and tired, alcohol would be perfect that. He says it's the most invisible, yet visible problem he's encountered in medicine.
 
The next time you find yourself romanticizing a drink, remember the statistics and how terribly it affects our body.   
 
Alcohol was the most encouraged drug, but that's changing and you are part of it.
 
[08:35] Paul introduces Mitchell:
 
Mitchell is 30 years old, and lives in Missouri with his wife and three cats. For work, Mitchell is an RN and for fun he enjoys fitness, various types of gaming and is competing in his first triathlon.
 
Mitchell says that growing up, both of his parents were problem drinkers. He hated seeing his parents drunk and by the time he was 10 or 11, he swore he was never going to drink.
 
During a bout of depression when he was 18, Mitchell decided to try alcohol to numb the discomfort. He would drink in his room by himself and knew from the start it wasn't normal behavior.
 
When Mitchell went to college in 2015, he says his mental health had improved and the change in environment and meeting new people helped. His drinking looked different than his friends' and he chose to ignore the voice inside telling him he might have an issue. He was sober curious at times but wasn't ready to quit.
 
After graduating, Mitchell's work as a nurse enabled him to have a schedule for when he could drink. He got married in 2023 and Mitchell says it was clear that this wasn't a cycle he should continue now that there is another person in his life. She is a normal drinker and didn't understand Mitchell's desire to keep going after she was drinking after she was ready to stop. This created conflict for them.
 
Mitchell began to sneak drinks so that his wife wouldn't know that amount he was drinking and he was always ready to downplay the drinking when she brought it up.
 
When his brother-in-law announced that he was quitting after a rough night out, Mitchell decided to speak up and say he would join him. He didn't put a timeline on it, but by saying it out loud, Mitchell knew he would be able to stop for a little while. Having the accountability buddy was helpful and then his wife joined in to support them both.
 
On day nine, his father passed away from an alcohol-related illness. This solidified Mitchell's intention to stay sober, and he started looking for resources. He began listening to the RE podcast and reading quit lit. Not long after he began attending AA and got a sponsor to work the steps with. Mitchell feels fortunate to have a great support system both in and out of AA.
 
Mitchell's parting piece of guidance: Don't suffer in silence.
 
Recovery Elevator
You took the elevator down.
You got to take the stairs back up.
We can do this.
 
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Today we have Dan. He is 44 years old from Denver, CO, and he took his last drink of alcohol in February of 2025.
 
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Over the last six months, we have been working on a book called This is How We Quit. It is a compilation of 24 sobriety stories that will be released on August 31st, 2026. To coincide with the release, Recovery Elevator is doing a free online event to celebrate the launch. More details on that event are coming soon!
 
[03:15] Thoughts from Paul:
 
Paul shares with us his history with the guest today. They were close friends in high school; they played football together and drank plenty of beers at parties together. They lost communication over the years, but by happenstance and a lost wallet, they reconnected last year. Since then, they went on a trip to Sonora, Mexico to find reptiles and also went to their high school reunion together.
 
[05:49] Paul introduces Dan:
 
Dan is 44 years old, lives in Westminster, CO and took his last drink in February 2025. He was born and raised in Vail to wonderful parents and was close with his siblings. He is currently engaged and works in commercial construction sales. Dan enjoys spending time outside mountaineering, trail running and enjoying the arts. He recently rediscovered his love of reptiles and amphibians.
 
Dan says he was very shy and reserved growing up. He had his first drink right before freshman year of high school. He felt a sense of ease and that he could talk to people. He recalls thinking that this was the solution and how normal people must feel all the time. Through high school, Dan's drinking was minimal and he doesn't feel he ever was loss in control.
 
In college, Dan says his alcohol consumption went through the roof. Frequently drinking beers with friends at the dorms or at keg parties, Dan remembers the hangovers were pretty tough. He would focus on school during the week just waiting for Friday night. He felt the drinking was something he could control.
 
After graduating college, Dan went into the sales industry. He moved back to Vail and had a girlfriend and two roommates that he enjoyed drinking with. In the mid-2000's, Dan says the secrecy of his alcoholism began to rear its head. He was being told he drank too much. The signs were showing in his behavior, his hangovers were getting worse, he was missing work and other obligations.
In 2007, Dan began working in a resort community in Dominican Republic. A few years later he began using other drugs in addition to drinking daily. He continuously would try to hide how much he was using until a coworker pushed him into treatment.  
 
After a divorce, Dan moved to Denver and thought drinking might be different this time. He thought he should be able to have a pint with friends after work, but within a few weeks he was drinking in the mornings to avoid the shakes. After his first DUI, Dan was able to get and stay sober from 2019 until 2022.
 
Once again, he thought things would be different. Over the course of two years, Dan was in and out of mental health and rehab facilities. He struggled to keep a job and went through a second divorce.
 
In mid-February last year, Dan's neighbor called a friend to check on him. Dan was taken to the emergency room not knowing who his friend was or where he was. He was just trying to escape the hallucinations he was having; drinking was fun for him anymore.
 
Dan began going back to 12 step programs after this and started working hard on his recovery. Over the past year, he has found a great job, has a fiancé that doesn't drink but knows his history, has been able to help other friends with their addictions, spend more time in nature, and finally loves himself again.  Dan continues with his therapy and knows his story isn't over.
 
Recovery Elevator
We took the elevator down.
You got to take the stairs back up.
We can do this.
 
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Today we have Art. He is 46 years old, from Wheat Ridge, CO and he took his last drink on November 28th, 2023.
 
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[03:40] Thoughts from Paul:
 
Paul shares with us a post made in Café RE by a member named Brian. It explores the idea of romanticizing his drinking days and the transition to romanticizing NOT drinking.
 
It reminds us that the brain is powerful. It is a manifestation machine. Next time you become aware of the brain romanticizing the drink, flip it and start romanticizing your alcohol-free life. Sunsets, laughter, walks with your dog or a loved one at sunset, see it. Create that movie in your brain.
 
Romanticize the clarity, the still life, the clear head.
Romanticize the morning after.
Romanticize the real you.
Romanticize the quiet, the peace, the presence.
Romanticize staying in a hard moment without checking out.
Romanticize connections with people who get you.
 
[06:32] Paul introduces Art:
 
Art is a Colorado native and currently lives in Wheat Ridge. For work he is a re-entry specialist who helps individuals that get out of prison get back on their feet. For fun, Art enjoys helping others, taking walks, and meditating.
 
Art says he began drinking with friends when he was around 14 to 15 years old. The would have parties on Tuesday nights because his father was out of town. It became very normalized to drink regularly.
 
In his 30's, Art started to recognize that he had an issue. He began drinking his collection of liquor with his partner, but over time found himself drinking solo often. When his collection was dwindling, he began buying shooters at the liquor store. A few years after this, he started drinking shooters at work during the day instead of just drinking at night. Art was still functioning but wasn't feeling great. Some days he needed to drink just to feel better.
 
After a domestic dispute, Art found himself with a DUI and unable to return home to his wife and kids. He moved in with his mom and says he gave up and started drinking his life away. This continued for several months.
 
The turning point for Art was at an IHOP breakfast with his dad when he was shaking so badly, he couldn't hold a spoon. Art confessed that he needed help. His dad took him to an inpatient treatment center for a three-day detox. Art started IOP classes after detox and says he fell in love with it. Once that was over, it was hard being on his own.
 
Art says that speaking to his dad about needing help felt good because he was able to be honest. All of his previous attempts at quitting taught him that he could not do it alone. The first few months were really difficult, and Art consistently gave himself two choices – he was either going to drink or not drink, and he always chose not to drink.
 
Art turned a corner when he realized he was able to be honest with himself and others, without any regrets or worries about what they are going to say about him. Art says the version of himself that he is now is who he wanted to be for so long. He is passionate about sharing his story with others and has noticed positive changes in his relationships since getting sober.
 
Recovery Elevator
You took the elevator down.
You have got to take the stairs back up.
We can do this.
 
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Today we have Amy. She is 43 years old, lives in Santa Ynez, CA and took her last drink of alcohol on May 25th, 2026.
 
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[01:52] Thoughts from Paul:
 
Everyone struggles with something and for you that may be alcohol. Paul's message for today isn't how to lessen that struggle. Instead, he wants you to accept it, own it and embrace it.
 
Unlike many other ailments, where the ideal outcome is to get back where you were, an alcohol addiction allows us to blow past that. We can not only heal from it, but we can be catapulted into a much healthier way of living. This time can be an intense chapter of growth, where you'll emerge with more depth and understanding of yourself and others when you hit the other side.
 
Be patient, trust the process, own it and befriend it. Turn your struggle into your greatest strength. Not many get to do that with their problems.
 
 
[05:30] Paul introduces Amy:
 
Amy is 43 years old, lives in Santa Ynez, CA, has four children and a variety of pets. She was a nurse for many years, but now just stays home and loves hiking.
 
Amy grew up in a family with two addicted parents. Her mother went into treatment for a year when Amy was six years old. Amy and her brother spent a lot of time in NA and AA meetings as kids and said it was traumatizing to hear all the stories about people's addictions but was grateful for her mother's sobriety.
 
Amy was 14 years old when she started drinking. Her mother was sober for about 10 years and then began drinking again. There were a lot of toxic family things happening and Amy ended up getting kicked out of her home at 16.
 
After getting pregnant at 17, Amy decided she was going to be a parent, put herself through nursing school and prove to everyone that she was not going to turn out like her parents. Around this time, she became friends with a woman who drank wine and made it look sophisticated and cool. They would have play dates for their kids and drink wine together.
 
In spite of getting a DUI when she was 20, Amy did not think her drinking was a problem. She didn't believe she needed to quit drinking, she just needed to quit drinking and driving.
Amy met her husband and soon they moved to California and got married. Amy had two more kids back-to-back and this is when she realized that she looked forward to 5pm so that she could drink due to the stress of parenting.
 
After the birth of her fourth child, Amy and her husband hired an au pair to have some assistance with the kids while they both worked. Amy was friends with a group of people at work that she would go out with on Friday nights. Since she had an au pair, she was able to go out without accountability. At the same time, she had a friend with access to cocaine so Amy would use it in addition to drinking.
 
A close friend of Amy's was visiting and saw firsthand what she was doing. She offered to take Amy with her to Peru to participate in plant medicine. After coming home from this experience, Amy decided to put together some tools and chose to quit drinking for a year. When she started back and attempted moderation, it didn't go well and she realized it was easier to not have any drinks than to try and only have one.
 
Before quitting drinking again, Amy started doing meditation and practicing yoga. Eventually she started recognizing the incongruency of drinking heavily and doing healthy activities. Amy started playing the tape forward before social events and realized that she needed to quit for good.
 
Since quitting drinking this time, Amy has started listening to podcasts, has joined Reframe, meditates regularly, enjoys journalling and recently started The Artist's Way.
 
Amy's parting piece of guidance: stop drinking to make everyone else comfortable.
 
Recovery Elevator
You took the elevator down.
You have got to take the stairs back up.
We can do this.
 
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Today we have Shane. He is 45 years old, lives in Northern California, and he took his last drink on September 12th, 2013.
 
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It's not too late to join us in Bozeman, MT. The retreat is August 12th-16th. We have cabin and camping spots still available.
 
[01:08] Thoughts from Paul:
 
Paul shares that he is having trouble moving on after his loss of Ben. There is still a pile of poop in his yard that he is not going to pick up. He reflects that over time; he knows it will eventually disappear as life moves on and so will he eventually.
 
Moving on from alcohol is hard too. Yes, there were fun times, great memories, but it turned and it's no longer serving us. As a community, we are all moving on.
 
As Odette said in episode 282 – you can miss drinking even though you don't want to drink anymore. Don't sweep the pain of losing alcohol under a rug, it needs to be grieved as it is the loss of a major life companion. But…we are moving on. And you are invited to join us.
 
[04:17] Paul introduces Shane:
 
Shane is from Northern California, is married and they have two children. He works full time in podcasting and communications, and for fun he enjoys playing golf, chess and fitness.
 
Shane says he grew up in an alcoholic household, and his parents were very young when they had him. Growing up he had a lot of resentments and anger towards his parents which he feels led him down the path to use alcohol and other drugs to escape.
 
After a baseball injury, Shane started playing in bands with aspirations of making it in the music business. Along with this came a lot of partying, drugs and alcohol which ended up being a big part of his twenties. In the back of his mind he knew he didn't want to live that way, but he ignored it.
 
Once they had their daughter, Shane began to realize that he was becoming everything that he never wanted to be. The last three years of his drinking progressed so quickly, Shane says, and drinking was such a normalized part of life.
 
The day of his last drink found Shane talking to his wife and letting her know that he needed help to quit drinking. He says the weight lifted off of his shoulders but then he instantly was concerned about the fact that there was no turning back.
 
With the help of his wife and their close friend who got sober, Shane went to inpatient rehab and says it saved his life. When he returned to work, he found himself commuting a lot and a friend introduced him to podcasts. Recognizing that there weren't a lot of sobriety podcasts, Shane decided to start his own.
 
The point of creating the podcast for Shane was to give a space where people could openly share. Shane encourages anyone that may think they have an issue with alcohol to find someone they trust and just open up about it. He believes that conversation creates connection and addiction is the opposite of connection.
 
Shane shares that the biggest gift that sobriety has given him is presence and being conscious. It has given him the ability to grow into his authentic self.
 
Shane's parting piece of guidance: Go for it. Jump in. Don't wait. You're not alone.
 
You can find Shane and all of the offerings he has on his website: That Sober Guy.
 
 
 
Recovery Elevator
We took the elevator down.
We got to take the stairs back up.
We can do this.
 
Café RE
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Sobriety Tracker iTunes 
RE YouTube