Spirit of Recovery

Young people in recovery are making waves—of energy, optimism, and commitment to long-term sobriety. They are leading the way in building support for sustained high quality of life and constructive participation in society—and they express authentic spirituality. Guest Sarah Nerad, a young person in long-term recovery since 2007, a founding member of Young People in Recovery, and cofounder of PTR...

Creativity is a powerful spiritual connection. Tapping into our innate creative Source smoothes the changes faced in recovery, speaks of Higher Power’s Presence, and connects to life. Singer/songwriter Doe Marasa tells how she reclaimed her childhood love of music and uses it to build bridges into full living. She will share several of her songs, sure to touch the heart!  Learn more about your ad...

A sound track makes the recovery journey a little easier and a lot more joyful. Music by and for recovering people is a celebration and a road map. Guest Kathy Moser shares her passion for music and recovery and the gifts that come from creating your own songs. Kathy is a nationally touring songwriter, performer, teacher, and social artist, bringing positive change to the world through music. Her...

The Wellbriety Movement grounds recovery in the Native American values of family, community, unity across generations, spirituality, and ceremony. Bringing these values to bear in intergenerational healing creates powerful well-being in Native American communities. Don Coyhis, founder and president of White Bison, and member of the Mohican Nation, tells how a vision led him into a new depth of liv...

Animals can’t be fooled—they tune in at the nonverbal level. That makes animal-assisted therapy a powerful tool to help all kinds of people get out of their heads and into their hearts. Guest Carol Browne and her Golden Retriever Elbie are members of The Hairy Angel Foundation, Inc,™ a charitable foundation in Sedona, Arizona, that raises Golden Retrievers to be service dogs for autistic children....

The Christmas story, a celebration of spiritual birth, speaks in a special way to people in recovery. It is the story of the journey from darkness to light, from despair to hope, from bondage to freedom, and the joy of a whole new way of living. Special guest Allen Liles, Unity minister, shares the metaphysical spiritual interpretation of the Christmas story and the unique way it informs recovery....

Holidays are an emotionally charged time—old family tapes blare. Whether we’re celebrating the holidays alone, with friends, or with family, our expectations that we must have the “perfect” holiday can ambush us. But we have powerful recovery tools. Special guest Sherry Gaugler-Stewart, Family and Spiritual Development Coordinator at The Retreat Family Program, Wayzata, Minnesota, shares how plann...

Moral injury results from having to make difficult moral choices under extreme conditions, witnessing immoral acts, or behaving in ways that deeply challenge moral conscience and values. It calls for deep recovery of one’s sense of goodness and value. It calls for repairing the soul. Special guests Rita Nakashima Brock, Ph. D., and Col. Herman Keizer, retired army chaplain, codirectors of the Soul...

Peer to peer support, in addition to what is found in 12 Step fellowships, promotes high-level wellness, reduces relapse, and heals the soul. Getting connected with others living a recovery lifestyle creates a whole new world. Joe Powell, the executive director and a founding member of the Association of Persons Affected by Addiction, and a board member of Faces and Voices of Recovery, is a pionee...

Gratitude gets us focused on what is working well in our lives and in the world. Gratitude gets us out of fear and into love, out of the “if only’s” and into the “I can’s.” Gratitude energizes us—getting us off the sidelines and into life. With his characteristic wit and keen observations, Rev. Leo Booth shares his insights into the power of gratitude. Rev. Booth is a Unity minister and internatio...

Eating disorders have devastating consequences for health, relationships and even finances. Recovery opens the way to deep nourishment—to receiving spiritual food that brings life, health and a loving life. Guest Heidi Voet Smith shares how as a young woman she contended with a long-time eating disorder and overcame it through devotion to a 12-step program. She has an abundance of inspiration, hop...

Spirituality is about waking up to yourself at ever deeper levels—and discovering that you are connected to a loving, nurturing Power. Awakening means willingness to face and resolve the hurts and defenses that keep you asleep, so you can encourage your precious, creative self. Special guest Carol Browne shares what it takes to find and nurture your authentic self. Carol has been a substance abuse...

The New Recovery Advocacy Movement works to remove the cultural stigma attached to addiction and recovery. It opens doors for recovering people—those with the disease of addiction and family members—to share the gifts of wisdom, resilience and awareness with the larger community. Not only does this benefit the community, it brings those affected by addiction truly back home. Guest Bill White is a...

The word recover means to regain, reclaim, retrieve or revive something of value that has been lost. In active addiction or obsession, what is lost is our sense of self—of our own goodness and connection to our spiritual nature. Guest Doug Bottorff, author of Native Soul: Unlocking Your Life’s Potential shares how no matter what we have done, we cannot diminish our spiritual identity—it is whole a...

The 12-Step Program grew out of desperation—men and women were dying from their thirst for alcohol. Their “gift of despair” made them willing to search for a life-giving drink—a relationship with a Power Greater than themselves. Early AA’s were remarkable for their dedication to their direct relationship with Spirit. It was that which brought them sobriety and healing. Guest Dick B. is a recoverin...

Recovery requires venturing deep inside ourselves to find and touch our soul. Only then can our sense of self shift from fear-based survival to life-giving relationship with a loving Higher Power. Mystics from all spiritual paths have described this journey as an intense descent into death as the false self breaks apart. The journey is completed as the true self—the spiritual soul, is revealed and...

Pathological gambling has devastating effects on finances, families, communities and lives. It can be even more thoroughly destructive than substance addictions. Problem gambling often goes unrecognized and hides as “just recreation.” Guest Denise Quirk, LMFT, clinical director and CEO of the nonprofit Reno Problem Gambling Center, will share the difference between responsible and pathological gam...

We humans tend to go to extremes where sex is concerned—our culture has swung from Victorian prohibitions to overexposure and exploitation. Understanding sexuality as a God-given power that is good, not to be used lightly or selfishly, nor to be hidden from in shame or fear, is an essential aspect of full recovery. Special guest Dr. Robert Hemfelt, psychotherapist specializing in relationships, ad...

Everyone caught up in the tornado of addiction is living in dishonesty. Insides don’t match outsides; actions don’t match words. Even our interpretations of facts are unreliable. The spiritual life of recovery invites us into radical honesty. Guest Arthur Messenger, author of Living the 12 Steps of Recovery, shares about the importance of honesty and what he’s learned about it from the history of...

Teens with the disease of addiction need support and plenty of it. However, teens are not little adults. Twelve-Step programs, originally developed for adults, can be immensely helpful to teens—if they are adapted to the particular needs of adolescents. Supporting teens to see how recovery can empower them and connecting them with safe adult mentors open life-giving doors. Our guest is Dr. Steven...

Spiritual transformation is the gateway out of addiction and into constructive living. Authentic spirituality requires that we experience the Divine mystery while also “chopping wood and carrying water.” Special guest Dr. Robert Hemfelt, psychotherapist specializing in relationships and addictive disorders, author and professor, joins us again this week. He shares additional insights about the dif...

How do you know if your spiritual path is opening you to an authentic experience of God’s presence or entwining you in an addictive cycle of dependence? Healthy spirituality leads us into greater love for ourselves and respectful connection with others. Religious addiction, however, traps us in absolutist thinking and ever-growing dependence on a person or institution. Special guest Dr. Robert Hem...

Music is naturally healing, living in us as the everyday rhythms of heartbeat and breath and the tones in our voice. Music-making, enjoyed playfully without the pressure to perform or entertain, is a profound way to facilitate well-being and connect with the joy of life. And that‘s what recovery is all about. Guest Christine Stevens, MSW, MA, MT-BC, author of Music Medicine: The Science and Spirit...

Human beings are deeply connected to each other. We long for the best for those we love—but we can’t give it to them. We want their well-being—but we can’t force them to do the right things. Paradoxically, the wisest way to love others is to keep the focus on ourselves. Specializing in working with those who chronically relapse and their families, guest Heidi Voet Smith shares how essential it is...

What is that feeling of profound emptiness lurking underneath active addiction and over focus on others? It’s the sense of self gone missing. Our sense of self is that authentic voice within that draws us into fulfilled living based on self-awareness and self-respect. Even if we missed developing that as children, in recovery, we have a second chance. Guest Sandra Felt, Licensed Clinical Social Wo...