Sober Motivation: Sharing Sobriety Stories

Elisa drank alcohol for 30 years.

What started as relief from childhood trauma slowly turned into alcohol addiction, DUIs, broken relationships, and a life she says she barely remembers.

At eight years old, Elisa testified in court against someone in her own family. Growing up afraid and feeling like she didn’t belong, alcohol became the thing that finally quieted the fear.

In this episode of the Sober Motivation Podcast, Elisa shares her recovery story—how childhood trauma shaped her addiction, why alcohol felt like the answer, her struggles with alcoholism, and the spiritual and emotional healing that helped her get sober.

We also discuss recovery, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), EMDR therapy, relapse, grief, and what it means to build a life worth staying sober for.

If you’re struggling with alcohol, questioning your drinking, or looking for hope in recovery, this episode is for you.

Elisa on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elisansaunders/
Sober Motivation Mobile App: https://apps.apple.com/app/sober-motivation-app/id6759266291
Sober Motivation Website: https://www.sobermotivation.com
Support the Podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/sobermotivation
Contact me anytime: brad@sobermotivation.com
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“I genuinely thought I was a hopeless alcoholic addict with no chance of return.”

That’s where Gio found himself.

After years of success as a hockey player—including a Division I scholarship and a professional career—addiction slowly took over. What started as drinking and partying became something much darker, leading Gio to a gas station parking lot where he finally called his dad and admitted:

“I can’t stop using.”

In this episode, Gio shares his journey through hockey culture, addiction, opiates, losing his identity after hockey, multiple treatment stays, relapse, and how he found hope after believing he was too far gone.

If you’ve ever wondered whether recovery is possible, or felt like you’ve gone too far to change, this episode is for you.

Gio on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gflamminio/
Sober Motivation Mobile App: https://apps.apple.com/app/sober-motivation-app/id6759266291
Sober Motivation Website: https://www.sobermotivation.com
Support the Podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/sobermotivation
Contact me anytime: brad@sobermotivation.com
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Manny grew up in New Orleans surrounded by alcohol, but after watching the damage drinking caused in his own family, he wanted nothing to do with it.

That changed later in life.

After marriage, business success, cocaine, alcohol, Hurricane Katrina, divorce, depression, day drinking, and eventually drinking four to five bottles of wine a day, Manny found himself isolated, physically broken, and barely able to walk. What started as social drinking became full-blown alcohol addiction.

In this episode of the Sober Motivation Podcast, Manny shares his powerful story of addiction, rehab, relapse, recovery, forgiveness, and what it really takes to quit drinking and rebuild your life.

We talk about high-functioning alcoholism, losing everything after Katrina, the fear of who you are without alcohol, relapse after years sober, repairing family relationships, and why sobriety has to become more than just not drinking.

If you are questioning your drinking, trying to quit alcohol, sober curious, in early recovery, or coming back after a relapse, Manny’s story is a reminder that it is never too late to change.
Sober Motivation Mobile App: https://apps.apple.com/app/sober-motivation-app/id6759266291
Sober Motivation Website: https://www.sobermotivation.com
Support the Podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/sobermotivation
Contact me anytime: brad@sobermotivation.com
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He had a loving family, a private school education, great friends, and every opportunity in front of him. Yet by age 33, Gary was drinking in 7 a.m. bars in Spain, waking up in hostels with no money, and wondering how his life had fallen apart.

In this episode of Sober Motivation, Gary Mairs shares how alcohol slowly took over despite what many would consider the perfect childhood. From teenage binge drinking in England to years of anxiety, financial chaos, broken relationships, and undiagnosed ADHD, Gary opens up about the reality of alcohol addiction and the moment he finally decided enough was enough.

In this episode:

• Growing up in England and early binge drinking culture
• When alcohol started feeling different
• Living with undiagnosed ADHD
• Alcohol addiction and self-medication
• University drinking and drug use
• Financial struggles caused by alcohol
• Moving to Spain and taking the problem with him
• Drinking at 7 a.m. bars
• The emotional rock bottom that changed everything
• Finding recovery through AA and daily habits
• Rebuilding confidence, purpose, and self-respect
• Why sobriety became the foundation for everything else

If you’re struggling with alcohol, questioning your relationship with drinking, or searching for hope in recovery, this conversation is a powerful reminder that change is possible.

Download the Sober Motivation App: www.sobermotivation.com
Gary on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sobernsound/
Sober Motivation Mobile App: https://apps.apple.com/app/sober-motivation-app/id6759266291
Sober Motivation Website: https://www.sobermotivation.com
Support the Podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/sobermotivation
Contact me anytime: brad@sobermotivation.com
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Todd looked like he had it all together. He had a good job, a family, a home, and no major public consequences from drinking. But inside, alcohol was taking up more space than he wanted to admit.
In this episode of the Sober Motivation Podcast, Todd shares how weekend drinking, binge drinking, hangxiety, shame, and constantly thinking about the next drink made him question his relationship with alcohol. He talks about trying to moderate, why quitting felt extreme at first, and the moment his son asked if they needed an Uber home from a baseball game.
That question changed everything.
Todd opens up about what it was like to stop drinking as a dad, why life without alcohol did not become boring, and how sobriety helped him become calmer, more present, and more connected with his family.
If you are sober curious, trying to quit drinking, questioning your alcohol use, or wondering if your drinking is “bad enough” to stop, this conversation will hit home.

In this episode:
Questioning your relationship with alcohol
Weekend drinking and binge drinking
Hangxiety and the shame cycle
Trying to moderate drinking
Sobriety as a parent
Quitting drinking before rock bottom
Why alcohol steals time, energy, and connection
Learning how to have fun without alcohol

Todd is the author of I Didn’t Believe It Either: One Dad’s Discovery That Everything Is Better Without Alcohol.

Connect with Todd on IG: https://www.instagram.com/tkinney111/
Sober Motivation Mobile App: https://apps.apple.com/app/sober-motivation-app/id6759266291
Sober Motivation Website: https://www.sobermotivation.com
Support the Podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/sobermotivation
Contact me anytime: brad@sobermotivation.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.