RAW Recovery Podcast

The Spiritual Experience What exactly is a spiritual experience? Is it something sudden and dramatic, or can it happen gradually as we begin changing the way we think, act, and live? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're exploring the spiritual experience as described in the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, including Appendix II, Spiritual Experience. We'll talk about the difference between a sudden s...

Are We Losing the Art of Showing Up for Each Other? We talk a lot about helping others, being there for people, and making sure nobody has to struggle alone. But when someone actually needs us, are we showing up? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about something that seems to be disappearing in our communities: genuine human connection and our willingness to be there for one another. With s...

A Daily Discipline Recovery isn't something we practice only when life gets difficult. It's something we learn to live every single day. Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about the importance of daily discipline in Alcoholics Anonymous and how the Twelve Steps help us build a new way of life. We'll explore what it means to practice spiritual principles consistently, even on the days when we...

Men's Mental Health Why is it that so many men struggle in silence? Why are we taught to be strong, handle our problems ourselves, and never let anyone see us struggling? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're having an important conversation about men's mental health, the expectations placed on men, and how those expectations can affect our emotional well-being, relationships, and recovery. We'll talk...

What Do We Do When We Feel Lost? Have you ever reached a point in recovery where you just don't know what to do next? Maybe you're sober, you're doing what you're supposed to be doing, but something still feels missing. Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about those moments when life feels overwhelming, our sense of direction disappears, and we begin questioning where we're headed. Alcoholic...

Guide to a Better Way What does it really mean to find a better way of living? And how do we begin making changes when the life we've been living no longer works? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about how the program of Alcoholics Anonymous gives us a guide to a new way of life through the Twelve Steps, spiritual principles, and the experience of those who have walked this path before us....

How It Works Rarely have we seen a person fail who has thoroughly followed our path. But what does it really mean to follow that path, and how does the program of Alcoholics Anonymous actually work? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're going back to the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, Chapter 5, How It Works, to explore the foundation of the Twelve Steps and the spiritual principles behind recovery....

Humility as an Ideal Is Often Misunderstood What does it really mean to be humble? Is humility about thinking less of ourselves, putting everyone else first, or recognizing who we are and where we stand? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're exploring humility through the Twelve Steps and the spiritual principles of Alcoholics Anonymous. Humility is often misunderstood, especially by those of us who ha...

The Painful Past Can Be of Infinite Value What if the very experiences we wish we could forget could become some of our greatest assets in recovery? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're exploring a powerful idea from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous: Our painful past can become a source of hope, understanding, and help for others. Many of us came into recovery carrying guilt, shame, resentment, re...

Are We Still Teachable? — The Daily Trudge We talk a lot about willingness in recovery, but what happens when we've been sober for a while and start thinking we already know everything? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about remaining teachable, keeping an open mind, and recognizing that spiritual growth doesn't stop just because we've put some sober time together. Have we become so comfor...

The Tremendous Fact: We Have Found A Solution “We have found a solution.” Those words from Chapter 2 of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous carry a message of hope for every alcoholic who still suffers. But what exactly is the solution, and how does it work? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're diving into the chapter There Is a Solution and exploring what the early members of AA discovered about alc...

Alcoholism: The Progressive Disease Alcoholism is a progressive disease. But what does that really mean, and how do we recognize its progression? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about how alcoholism develops, how it gets worse over time, and why we cannot measure the severity of our alcoholism simply by looking at what we still have. Alcoholism doesn't look the same for everyone. Some los...

Showing Love Through Our Primary Purpose What does it really mean to show love in Alcoholics Anonymous? Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. But are we truly living that purpose, or are we just talking about it? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about how love, compassion, and service are demonstrated through carrying the message to the alcoholic...

Unity — The Second Legacy What happens to Alcoholics Anonymous when we forget the importance of unity? Bill W. left us three legacies: Recovery, Unity, and Service. Each one plays an important role in keeping Alcoholics Anonymous alive and available for the alcoholic who still suffers. Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about the Second Legacy — Unity — and why it's so important to the survi...

Integrity What does it really mean to live with integrity? We talk a lot about honesty in recovery, but integrity goes beyond simply telling the truth. It's about doing the right thing, even when nobody is watching. It's about keeping our word, taking responsibility for our actions, and living by the principles we claim to believe in. Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about integrity and th...

Are We Restored To Sanity? Step Two tells us that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. But what does being restored to sanity actually mean? Does it mean we never make another bad decision? That our thinking is suddenly fixed? Or is the sanity we're talking about something much more specific to alcoholism? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're digging into Step Two and the meaning...

True Tolerance What does it really mean to practice tolerance in recovery? It's easy to be tolerant of people who think like us, believe what we believe, and live the way we live. But what happens when someone challenges our beliefs, disagrees with us, or lives a completely different way? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about true tolerance and what it means to practice patience, understa...

I Am Responsible... What does it really mean to be responsible in recovery? In Alcoholics Anonymous, we talk a lot about taking responsibility for our actions, our recovery, and our relationships with others. But responsibility goes beyond simply admitting when we're wrong. Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about what it means to be responsible for our own recovery and what happens when we...

Does God Remove ALL Defects Of Character? Step Seven tells us to humbly ask God to remove our shortcomings. But does that mean God removes every defect of character? And if He does, why do some of those same behaviors keep showing up in our lives? Today on The Daily Trudge, we're talking about the difference between having our defects removed and continuing to work on ourselves. What does the Big...

We Meet These Conditions Every Day In the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, we're told that we are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition. But what does that really mean? We meet these conditions every day. Not just when life gets difficult, not just when we're struggling, and not just when we feel like it. Today on...

Courage And Prudence Courage tells us to move. Prudence tells us to pay attention to where we are going. Recovery takes both. There are times when we need the courage to face something we have avoided, speak honestly, make a change, or take action. But courage without prudence can become recklessness, and prudence without courage can become fear dressed up as wisdom. Today we’re talking about how...

H.O.W. Honesty. Openness. Willingness. Three simple words, but they can change the direction of our recovery. Honesty helps us see where we really are. Openness lets us hear something new. Willingness gets us moving. Today we’re talking about what H.O.W. actually looks like in real life—not as a slogan, but as a way of approaching recovery, relationships, change, and the choices we make every day....

Freedom to Choose As Bill Sees It, page 124, talks about a kind of freedom that changes as we grow. At first, we may do the right thing because we have to. Then we begin doing it because we know we ought to. Eventually, the real freedom comes when we can make the right choice without fighting it every step of the way. That is one of the gifts of recovery. We are no longer trapped into reacting the...

The Greatest Gift Of All Recovery gives us a lot more than just the ability to stop drinking. Over time, it can give us freedom from obsession, a clearer mind, stronger relationships, usefulness to others, and a deeper connection with God. Today we’re talking about what the greatest gift of recovery really is. Is it sobriety itself, or is sobriety the doorway to everything that becomes possible af...

The AA Preamble Most of us have heard it hundreds, maybe thousands of times. But how often do we actually stop and listen to what the AA Preamble is saying? Today we’re going to break it down—not just recite it. What does it mean that AA is a fellowship? What does it mean to share experience, strength, and hope? What does it mean that our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics...