Alternatives to AA

Becoming sober is a life path with many challenges – but more importantly, it’s a life-long journey with many stages. In this week’s episode, Josh sits down with his good friend Brian once again to check in on his sobriety journey as well as compare insights from a newbie to that of a veteran.  On the episode, they also cover life after alcohol – it’s ups and downs, the culpability you have w...

In this week’s episode, Josh sits down with Sonia Kahlon, founder and CEO of EverBlume - an alternative to AA that places people into smaller groups that are more tailored to their specific sobriety struggles. Sonia discusses her own sobriety and how she struggled to get her life together, as well as what made her stop, routines, the EverBlume platform, and more! Episode Highlights: (0:00) - Intro...

Getting sober is such a personal journey - sometimes it can be easy to forget how it affects other people. In this week’s episode, the conversation between Monique and her brother Rick continues as he joins the show to share his experiences with Monique when she wasn’t sober. They dive into what’s changed, what it took for Monique to finally get sober and Rick even recalls some stories to give som...

Getting sober is such a personal journey - sometimes it can be easy to forget how it affects other people. In this week’s episode, Monique’s brother Rick joins the show to share his experiences with Monique when she wasn’t sober. They dive into what’s changed, what it took for Monique to finally get sober and Rick even recalls some stories to give some more background into Monique’s journey. Episo...

One of the most important pieces to sobriety is understanding what leads you to drinking, or using in general. Establishing boundaries around these triggers, whether they be habits or actual people, is crucial to your success. In this week’s episode, Josh and Monique talk about boundaries - not only setting them personally for yourself - but also setting them around other people. They’ll discuss w...

Leading a sober life is a daily challenge - it takes steady commitment, effort and support. This week, join Josh and Monique as they discuss some of their tips for staying sober in the long-term. With close to a decade of sobriety between them, they’ll let you in on some of the tools they utilize to keep their sobriety on track. Episode Highlights: 0:00 - Introduction 0:49 - Episode beginning 1:05...

When it comes to addiction, sometimes it can be very difficult to even notice you have a problem. My guest today struggled to come to that very realization before finally becoming sober one year and three months ago. AJ Mayer is a 25 year old carpenter and a fellow Hunterdon County native. Growing up in a drinking household, AJ was first introduced to alcohol at a very young age. Following his par...

When it comes to addiction, sometimes it can be very difficult to even notice you have a problem. My guest today struggled to come to that very realization before finally becoming sober one year and three months ago. AJ Mayer is a 25 year old carpenter and a fellow Hunterdon County native. Growing up in a drinking household, AJ was first introduced to alcohol at a very young age. Following his par...

Welcome back to part 2 of my conversation with my good friend, Brian Davis! In this second installment - Brian and I open up the discussion a little bit more. We talk about fatherhood, growing up, younger generations, lifting and more! Episode Highlights: (0:00) - Introduction (0:49) - Brian recounts his arm injuries (3:56) - Alcohol’s involvement in crime and injury (8:35) - Risk assessment and b...

It’s officially 2023 and you know what that means - resolutions. That one time of year where everyone endeavors to be a little (or a lot) better in one way or another. In the spirit of the new year, I invited my good friend Brian Davis back on to Alternatives to AA! Brian has a different relationship with drinking that we explored last time he was on - and I’m excited to build on that conversation...

Welcome back to another episode of Alternative to AA! We return to you with a special episode and a special announcement - Monique is pregnant! While this is exciting news, we all know that having a baby can be very taxing financially, physically and emotionally. But more importantly, for those of us in recovery, we can find ourselves in new situations that test our sobriety. Join us this week as...

Popularized by the Joe Rogan podcast, “Sober October” has grown into a yearly event that encourages people to abstain from drugs and alcohol for the whole month of October. Brian returns in part 2 to discuss how he began phasing alcohol out of his life through Sober October. In this follow-up episode we dive deeper into our discussion about drinking, substance abuse and living a sober lifestyle. W...

Popularized by the Joe Rogan podcast, “Sober October” has grown into a yearly event that encourages people to abstain from drugs and alcohol for the whole month of October. This week, Brian returns to the show to discuss how he began doing “Sober October” and how it set him on the path of living a more sober lifestyle. He covers the benefits he experienced from drinking less, as well as how his mi...

Sometimes, being in a relationship with another addict can be problematic. Other times, it can be a great source of strength to have someone that intimately understands what you’re going through. In part two of this interview, Josh and Monique continue to explore and discuss the drawbacks and benefits of their relationships with Roni and Samantha another married couple who got sober together. They...

Sometimes, being in a relationship with another addict can be problematic. Other times, it can be a great source of strength to have someone that intimately understands what you’re going through. In this week’s episode, Josh and Monique are joined by Roni and Samantha, a fellow sober couple. Together, they explore the drawbacks and benefits of their relationships - issues with trust and honesty, f...

ATAA Show Notes - Ep. 8 (Pt. 2) Although it can be difficult to negotiate, it’s important to understand the impact that your surroundings can have on your addiction. From going out to eat to seeing a movie, you need to be weary of your environment and any potential triggers. This can be made even more difficult by your friends, who can play a role in influencing what you do – or even unknowingly p...

In this episode of Alternatives to AA, Josh and Monique Robinson talk about maintaining friendships throughout the transition toward a sober lifestyle. As they are recovering from alcohol, one problem Josh and Monique saw is their friends being drinkers. The challenge was keeping those friendships intact but, at the same time, staying away from alcohol. They share some tips on how to do this.&nbsp...

In this episode of Alternatives to AA, Josh Robinson has his friend, Brian, join him on the show for the second part of his journey to sobriety. Brian has been sober for a month and a half. He recently competed in a USAPL meet in Philadelphia, where he hit a lifetime goal of squatting 500 lbs. Brian is well-traveled and can speak on various aspects of life, including athletics, training, travel, r...

In this episode of Alternatives to AA, Josh Robinson has his friend, Brian, join him on the show to talk about his journey to sobriety. Brian has been sober for a month and a half. He recently competed in a USAPL meet in Philadelphia, where he hit a lifetime goal of squatting 500 lbs. Brian is well-traveled and can speak on various aspects of life, including athletics, training, travel, relationsh...

In this episode of Alternatives to AA, Josh and Monique Robinson talk about how gratitude can help someone stay sober. Practicing the art of gratitude greatly reduces the chances of drinking. Josh and Monique discuss how to find the silver lining even amidst the curveballs that life throws.     The Power of Gratitude   No matter how hard life is, there is always something to be...

In this episode of Alternatives to AA, Josh and Monique Robinson gravitate their discussion around forgiveness towards the self and others. The first thing to do when it comes to sobriety is to forgive oneself and accept that it is okay not to be okay. Tune in as they share how they did it themselves so others can do the same.   Perfectionism, the Root of Them All Striving for perfection is a...

In this monumental first episode of Alternatives to AA, Josh and Monique Robinson break down one of the biggest factors in alcoholism and recovery: fear. There are many factors that contribute with fear, and apparently, people see one thing that is perceived as the only solution – alcohol. Listen more to discover these fears and how to confront them so you do not get tempted to drink.   Fear...

Welcome to Alternatives to AA. We're Josh and Monique. Combined we're over 5 years sober and we’re on a mission to make the difficult journey of sobriety easier to manage. We’re not against AA, but we realized we needed to know how to manage the other 23 hours of the day. From communication to relationships to self-care, we’re going to show you how to cope when your triggers try to take you down....