Recovery Daily Podcast

It’s live action on the Recovery Daily Podcast today as Autumn jumps over my shoulder mid-sentence! Both Autumn, the Weimaraner, and Boris, the English Bulldog, play brilliant roles as the ultimate distractions while recording. Sticking to my commitment of never re-recording or cutting the raw footage, you get to see some cuddly cameos.   Coincidentally, and no I didn’t plan this, today’s episode...

I took a public speaking class in college. I have to dig deep to not regret that experience. I had such tremendous anxiety that my voice and my face would shake. It was absolutely humiliating. Fast forward to a reorg presentation at the company I worked for in my late 20’s and early 30’s. The executive displayed a presentation that showed Rachel Miller had been reassigned to the new internal train...

Do you stay up late because you don’t want to go to work tomorrow? Do you stay up late because you don’t want to face your same problems in the morning? I’ve done this over and over throughout the years. Not only does tomorrow come screaming out of the wee morning when we sabotage ourselves like this, but problems seem to appear even more difficult to surmount.  The consequences of lack of sleep c...

As often happens in sobriety, after a bad day, the next day is always worth getting up for. Today I crafted an adorable little surprise for my grown-up kids. It’s “Adopt A Ghost”! 👻 I KNOW! It’s totes adorbs! It’s my latest upcycling craft that uses a Maple syrup jar and some chunky yarn from a blanket that my Weimaraner destroyed. It’s going in the mail tomorrow to each of my kids and their part...

Today was hard, and I know that when I have a tough day, I need to tell someone. I told Farshad, and now I’m telling you. I recover out loud because it saves me from myself.  While frying those Persian meat patties that I shared with you earlier, I forgot my purpose—the thing that inspires me in recovery. I caught myself thinking, “How will I ever be great doing this?” Before I became medically re...

“When you point a finger at someone, there are three pointing back at you.” For many years I played the victim, blaming people, places, and things for what went wrong in my life. But through Step 4, I learned that I can't focus on what others did TO me. I must focu on my selfish pursuits, conduct, and the root cause of my problems. Pride was a huge obstacle and continues to challenge me. It drives...

I've been participating a lot over the past month in a blind and low vision community hosted by iBug Today. I’m taking a 12-week Mac VoiceOver training with iBug Today to learn how I can use my Mac without my eyes. The organization also provides virtual social events for blind and low vision folks, whether they’ve been blind since birth or experienced a vision impacting disability later in life li...

By the time I was 42, I couldn't manage what was going on inside of me and what was going on outside of me at the same time. I had debilitating anxiety that drove me to isolate and create wedges in my relationships. I was never telling the truth. I was afraid to go to the store, to the kid's bus stop, to work, home, etc. I never told anyone because I didn't think anyone would understand. I thought...

I woke up this morning feeling bad, and by 2:30pm I was so happy that I had to force myself to slow down and rest. (Seriously, you can hear it in my podcast episode.) When I woke up my head hurt which is normal. I thought 'ohh yeah, I had a stroke.' This is also my new normal. Then, I put my feet on the ground and got out of bed before I could think another thought. I turned off my "wanter" and di...

I hate to admit it, but if we had a conversation before April 28th, 2016, I was probably thinking more about alcohol than listening to you. It’s humiliating to say, but it's true. Before sobriety, I couldn’t be fully present unless I had a drink in my hand. Drinking controlled every thought, I didn’t want to admit it. But once I finally did, the weight of that constant secret obsession lifted. Tha...

What makes the best moments in our lives so special is that we don’t see them coming. Unfortunately, our worst moments can result from the same. This morning, I heard a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson: “The years teach much which the days never know.” There have been several times in my life when I felt like what was in front of me was more than I could handle. The thought of never drinking again see...

So, I was walking down the street in my neighborhood on the sidewalk and approaching me were three women walking side by side yapping with each other. As they got closer, I realized that they had no intension of making room for me to walk by. As a result, I stepped into the street to go around. How often does other people's behavior make absolutely no sense to you? That's what I talk about in toda...

You know that feeling when you're late, and there is absolutely nothing under your control that's going to get you there on time? You start panicking, sweating, and getting angry at whatever is blocking your path. You want life to move at your pace. In recovery, I'm learning how to move at life’s pace, rather than trying to move life at mine. In today's episode, I talk about how a trip to the DMV...

You know that person in your life who looks at their cell phone while you're trying to have a conversation with them? It drives me crazy! When you listen to someone talking, are you really listening or are you listening to respond? I had a long running joke with a friend (you know who you are 😘) where we agreed that while the other one of us was talking, we were thinking about how we were going t...

Remember what a dial tone sounds like? How 'bout a busy signal? Those classic sounds from the 80s seem to be long gone, and it all started with call waiting. Remember that?! Texting has become my excuse for not picking up the phone and making a call—using my voice. These days I’ll think, “they’re probably busy. I don’t wanna bother them.” But that’s just another excuse to not connect with people....

Today I’m reflecting on how my ambitions have evolved over the years, through my drunken delusions and into sobriety and stroke recovery. When I was drinking, I set these unrealistic goals for myself, fueled by the need for acceptance by others I admired and the desire to be great. I thought that success was being the best. Alcohol gave me the illusion that I was chasing my dreams, but I wasn’t mo...

I felt alone in a crowded room. Have you ever felt that way? I was thinking today of those memories I have of feeling lonely when I was in middle school, high school, and college. I had lots of friends growing up, but I never felt like I measured up, that I was as pretty, and that I fit in quite as well as everybody else seemed to. When I was introduced to alcohol, I became a continuously seeping...

Have you ever said, “I NEVER win in raffles?” After losing, did you stop to think about the good that came from someone else’s win? In today’s episode, I’m sharing how yesterday’s raffle filled me with joy, even though I walked away empty-handed. We often find ourselves looking at others' success with envy or frustration, wondering why our own hard work doesn't seem to pay off the same way. In rec...

In this episode, my daughter, Bailey, makes another cameo appearance as we recap our lovely experience at the Live4Lane Annual Memorial 5K to honor the life of Lane Burrows and spread recognition of mental health AS health. While I share my latest fall upcycle project, Bailey’s busy gutting her pumpkins to make roasted pumpkin seeds—bringing her usual humor and charm to the conversation. Join us f...

Dealing with insurance companies suck! Today I talk about the more-than-mildly-frustrating reality many of us face—how health insurance companies make recovery harder than it already is. Whether it's stroke recovery or overcoming alcoholism, our doctors know what we need, but insurance often gets in the way. I talk about my experience this week with a pre-authorization denial for a heart monitor L...

In today’s episode, I’m talking about a simple tool in recovery: eat and drink . It sounds pretty obvious, but choosing food over alcohol can help take the edge off those cravings. Choosing healthy food, can help reward your future self. Drawing from lessons in Living Sober , I explore how nourishing your body with good food—whether it’s a hamburger, fruit, or even something sweet—can make a real...

In today’s episode, I’m getting inspired FINALLY. I talk about those days when it feels easier to blame everything and everyone for being in a bad mood. Whether it’s the weather, new medication, or anything else, it’s tempting to point fingers instead of looking inward. But here’s the truth: blame doesn't serve us. Join me as I talk about the importance of spiritual growth on bad days, taking resp...

If you only ever listen to one episode of Recovery Daily Podcast, this should NOT be the episode. This episode is one last ditch effort to lift my mood today. I talk about the healing I get from my creative outlets and hobbies. I start off with a small, almost unnoticeable but necessary, bit of profanity to encourage us to SNAP OUT OF IT. I share with you some of my latest projects and where you c...

In today’s Reads and Recovery episode, I look at Sylvia Plath’s hauntingly classic novel, "The Bell Jar". Join me as I explore how this semi-autobiographical story of mental illness still resonates today and reflects the importance of mental health care. Plath’s portrayal of Esther Greenwood’s struggle with depression is in the 1960s serves as a reminder of how far we’ve come, yet how much further...

Love heals. That is a fact, and I have proof of it. Sobriety fellowship stroke support groups, and vestibular support groups that I am a part of have provided me with a deep, genuine love that is mutual and is built upon principles and the desire to see one another succeed. Sometimes a recovering alcoholic, stroke survivor, and others healing from a traumatic life event must try many different gro...