Health

Vanessa and I talk about how the holidays can be a painful time for alcoholics and their families. The memories of years past—sometimes more like nightmares—can induce fear and stress. We may feel resentful that we cannot drink like “a normal person.”

We are back! We have really missed you and are so excited to kick-off season 2 with an exciting new change, Vanessa Merlini joins the Secrets of a Sober mom team as our new cohost!

In this season finale episode, I talk to MY sponsor Tara about hope and higher power and sponsorship. Tara is a mother of 2 and has 16 years sober. Her kindness and wisdom to me have been truly a gift.

I go down memory lane with my very first young love Gregg. We reminisce about how we were both such straight-arrow kids, the fun we had as adolescents in love and how we lost touch for decades, and how we reconnected as recovering addicts.

In this episode, I talk with Jessica Lahey about the balancing act of parenting, addiction, and how they often combine. Jessica is a teacher, writer, and mom. Over twenty years, she’s taught every grade from sixth to twelfth in both public and private schools.

Amy Dresner is a journalist, author, and former comedian as well as a recovering addict and alcoholic. She has been a columnist for the addiction/recovery magazine TheFix.com since 2012 and has freelanced for addiction.com, Psychology Today, Vice, and many other publications.

This week I’m speaking with my friend Vanessa Merlini about “Mommy wine culture,” “Mommy Shame,” and then the best of all, sobriety.

My dad passed away before I got sober. I will regret that for the rest of my life. Fortunately, he wasn’t alive to see descend into a life of hell. I honestly don’t think he could handle seeing his daughter slowly kill herself.

Lisa Smith and I have a conversation about breaking the stigma of alcoholism and mental health, particularly for professional women. Lisa Smith is the author of the award-winning book, Girl Walks Out of a Bar.