The Hope Chase Podcast

Episode 51: This weeks episode, Angie shares her own current personal struggles with outgrowing herself, outgrowing her old life. She recalls what each stage of growth has looked like in her recovery & healing journey over the last 4 years. Angie talks about how gaining gratitude & learning how to love herself played significant roles in the first 2 years. Looking back, she details what was import...

Episode 50: Happy Birthday to The Hope Chase! Our first anniversary!! It’s officially been 1 year. For this weeks episode, in honor of our birthday, Angie has repurposed the very first episode that was published. Rock bottom versus consequences. Are they the same? Is it necessary to hit rock bottom in order to find recovery? Can you truly recover without experiencing any “real life” consequences f...

Episode 49: This weeks episode is a conversation about finding purpose & setting goals in addiction recovery. Angie shares some breakthrough moments, some thoughts about her own 20 year active addiction & how the addiction became her purpose. While you may think that years of active addiction are “wasted years,” Angie discusses purpose & goal setting in recovery with a different perspective; and h...

Episode 48: This weeks episode is all about continuing the cycle of misery; the ultimate guide on how (or continue) to successfully ruin your life. Angie considers herself to be quite an expert on this subject, as she spent 20 years in active addiction, complete chaos and self destructive behavior. She goes through a list of things to do in order to effectively ruin your life. It can be incredibly...

Episode 47: Happy New Year!! Another year has come and gone. Are you in the same place, the same circumstance, the same situation as this time last year? Are you feeling stuck and stagnant in your growth, progress & recovery? Are you sick of not seeing the changes you want to see in your life? Reflecting on this past year, what worked, what didn’t work & what we can do differently in 2024…the ques...

Episode 46: Do you hate the holiday season? Do you dread this time of year, every year? Holiday cheer, the lights, the music, the joy… Angie used to hate it all. For over 15 years, she wanted nothing to do with the holidays. She was a Grinch. Regardless of where you are in your addiction recovery journey, feeling miserable, irritable, annoyed, depressed & lonely during this time of year is quite c...

Episode 45: This week, Angie discusses the topic of triggers & addiction recovery. Often times, triggers are associated with people, places & things. There’s so much talk about this topic; and it tends to be quite confusing. There aren’t any “things” that can make a person to use any substance. The decision to use comes from within. Angie explains a much easier way to identify & understand your tr...

Episode 44: This week, The Hope Chase explores the profound connection between grief & addiction recovery. Angie shares her own lived experiences with grieving both of her parents while trying to navigate her own recovery journey. She offers insights into the challenges and triumphs that accompany these journeys. Grief and recovery often go hand in hand. It’s important to recognize our own strengt...

Episode 43: The holiday season can be a source of depression, anxiety & fear for some of us in addiction recovery. Trying to stay clean and sober, trying to survive the holidays without falling off track doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Getting through the holiday season can be difficult. It’s incredibly common to feel some discomfort & loneliness during this time of year. Angie shares some of her...

Episode 42: Is there something, a thought, a belief, a trait, that everyone with addiction has in common? Is there anything that connects us all?? This week, Angie discusses what she believes to be the one belief that all of us with addiction have within ourselves. We all think that we are incapable of handling life’s responsibilities. Thinking it’s impossible for us to live life like “normal peop...

Episode 41: This week, Angie shares her own personal experiences with hitting her lowest bottom, how she got there & the beginning of her recovery journey. As she celebrates 4 years clean from her0in, Angie discusses why she never truly planned on getting clean. She talks about how her life didn’t change as she continued to create chaos in her life long after getting clean. Addiction & the act of...

Episode 40: Early recovery is a crucial time in the process of overcoming addiction. When a better life is promised to us, then why is it so difficult to “just not use” & “do the right thing?” It's important to avoid certain common mistakes that can hinder your progress and undermine your efforts. In this podcast episode, Angie discusses some of the mistakes she made during early recovery. She sha...

Episode 39: In this episode, Angie dives into the topic of self-doubt and how it can affect your ability to see progress in your recovery. What do we do when we doubt our own abilities to truly change our lives for good? In recovery, doubt and uncertainty can often feel overwhelming. It's easy to feel like you're not making progress or that you're stuck in the same place. But it's important to rem...

Episode 38: In addiction recovery, it's common for people to be labeled as "addicts" or "alcoholics" and compared to others who are also struggling with addiction. Are you in AA or NA? Are you completely abstinent? Are you sober or clean? These labels can be limiting and damaging to one's self-esteem and progress, feeding into the comparison trap of the recovery community. It's important to unders...

Episode 37: This week, Angie discusses how important it is in addiction recovery to listen to your body. In the process of recovery, it can be easy to get caught up in the expectations and guidelines set by others and society. Stop comparing. Start tuning in to yourself. It is important to remember that your body knows what it needs in order to heal and thrive. Listening to your body and better un...

Episode 36: This week, Angie explores the phenomenon of romanticizing memories in recovery. We often look back on our past experiences with a sense of nostalgia and fondness. Is it dangerous? It can be; it can lead us to minimize the negative consequences of our past behaviors and overlook the reasons why we made the decision to get clean and sober in the first place. But it doesn’t have to be dan...

Episode 35: In this episode, Angie delves into the topic of codependency and addiction recovery. Codependency is a pattern of behavior where a person puts the needs of others before their own, often at the expense of their own happiness and well-being. Often times, codependency is used as a tactic to avoid looking at & working on ourselves. Combining a codependent relationship with addiction recov...

Episode 34: This week, Angie discusses the importance of remembering why you started this addiction recovery journey in the first place. Remembering the initial times you related to someone with addiction, remembering what feelings you resonated with, what behaviors you recognized as your own... remembering the times we first recognized that our feelings and behaviors were most likely symptoms of...

Episode 33: This weeks episode, Angie discusses how you can actually break behavioral cycles, in addiction, recovery & life in general. Throughout active addiction, the cycles tend to continue, until one day, we have to choose between changing or staying the same. And change seems to happen when the pain of staying the same becomes even more unbearable. What happens when, in recovery, we find ours...

Episode 32: This week, Angie dives into the feelings of missing the old version of yourself when in recovery. It's not uncommon to feel a sense of nostalgia for the person you were before you started to work on yourself. This feeling can be especially strong when you're facing new challenges. In particular, when it comes to facing fears & feeling confident, sometimes it can feel as though we’re go...

Episode 31: In this episode, Angie explores the importance of choosing yourself and prioritizing your own happiness during the recovery process. Angie shares insights into a current struggle she is navigating, along with some common challenges that we face when trying to put ourselves first. In choosing ourselves, we can overcome negative self-talk, guilt and beating ourselves up, ultimately encou...

Episode 30: This week, Angie dives into the topic of choice in recovery. The power of choosing yourself first in every area of your life can be difficult especially in the area of friendships. Who you choose to spend time with is an integral part of your own progress & stability in recovery. It can become easy to prioritize yourself; protecting your energy and peace is important. Also, Angie share...

Episode 29: In this episode, Angie dives into the importance of showing up for yourself and staying consistent in recovery. She shares her own current life circumstances as they relate to this topic. Angie discusses how easy it can be to fall back into old habits and how to overcome these challenges in order to prioritize self care while staying consistent & creating balance. Listen in as Angie ex...

Episode 28: This week, host Angie explores the importance of embracing change and staying humble while navigating life on life's terms in recovery. Over this past week, she’s had many changes in her own life. While sharing her own life update, Angie discusses the challenges of dealing with change and the benefits of accepting it while staying true to oneself. She also delves into the significance...

Episode 27: This week, Angie dives into the complex and challenging topic of setting boundaries with loved ones who are struggling with active addiction. She explores the emotional toll that addiction can take on the individual and the importance of establishing healthy boundaries to maintain one's own wellbeing. Angie speaks from her own personal experience with addiction and boundary-setting, wh...