A Shot Glass of Recovery

From Trash-Bag Parties to True North: Jane's Story of Recovery

Welcome to the speaker series on A Shotglass of Recovery. Hi, I'm Lisa, the host of A Shotglass of Recovery, and this is our speaker series. Let's sit back and get ready for some more experience, strength, and hope. Let's listen in to Jane, from the Rule 62 women's group in Pennsylvania.
Her sobriety date is December 30th, 1991.  She started drinking relatively late compared to some alcoholics, she was 18. It was her first year of college, and she was a goody two-shoes in high school, who felt like she never really fit in anywhere. 
She describes perfectly that when she was drinking and she began to feel the effects of alcohol, all these missing pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that was me, all these missing pieces just instantly and effortlessly snapped into place until it stopped working.
 
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

Ep 15 Step 8 - Literature study - Taking a look at our wreckage

Join Lisa and the AA Solution Seekers online home group as they work through Step 8 of the 12 & 12 with warmth, honesty, and a lot of heart. In this candid literature study, members share real stories about forgiveness, resentment, and making amends — from childhood wounds and family drama to setting boundaries and learning to have compassion for ourselves and others. Lisa guides the group through recognizing facts vs. fiction, discerning God’s voice, and practicing humility while reminding everyone that the work is ongoing and learning to live differently is a beautiful, imperfect process. Whether you’re curious about the steps or deep in the work, this episode offers practical tools, gentle reminders, and the comforting truth that we get to change, one day at a time.
 
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

Patti O from Cincinnati Snowdrifts to Surrender: One Woman's Road to Recovery

Welcome to the speaker series on A Shotglass of Recovery — a heartfelt talk by Patty Oberski about her long, raw journey through alcoholism to lasting recovery. In this episode, Patty shares candid memories from a privileged yet chaotic upbringing, the recklessness of teen drinking, the spiral into prescription drug abuse, and a brutal suicide attempt that left her with a scarred face and deeper wounds. She talks openly about stealing, blackouts, hurting her family, and the shame that once pushed her out of her own home. But the story turns toward hope: how a neighbor and AA sisters 'dragged' her to meetings, how the fellowship and the Big Book slowly and powerfully rewired her life, and how service — psych ward and jail meetings — became the anchor that kept her sober for decades. Patty also describes making amends, rebuilding relationships with her son and family, and the profound spiritual experiences that followed, including sharing AA in Russia and seeing God’s hand in her recovery. The episode ends with gratitude for the AA community and a gentle reminder from host Lisa to subscribe, review, and support the podcast.
 
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

Tricia’s Raw AA Story: Born This Way, Finding Freedom

Hey friend — this episode feels like sitting across from someone who tells you everything, no filter. Tricia, an alcoholic with a sobriety date of January 1, 2011, shares the messy, heartbreaking, and fiercely hopeful story of how she went from a childhood of shame and an Irish-family culture of drinking to finding real freedom in AA.
She talks openly about the first sip at a festival, the feeling of being "born alcoholic," and the two-part beast of the allergy to alcohol plus the relentless mental obsession that kept pulling her back. There are raw moments here — psych ward stays, relapses, a marriage with someone actively using — and also the small, powerful turns that led her back.
What struck me (and will probably hit you too) is how the steps, a sponsor, and showing up to meetings slowly rewired her life. She describes writing out the fourth step, making amends, learning practical adulthood (hello, bank accounts and bills), and discovering a version of God that actually works for her. The promises of the program — especially the one about using your experience to help others — become her currency of healing.
Tricia doesn’t sugarcoat the struggle: she’s all-or-nothing by nature, battles control and people-pleasing, and still has days that are "lifey." But she also testifies, with humor and tears, that the freedom the program offers is real: it kept her alive, taught her how to be human, and gave her a life worth showing up for.
There are warm, funny flashes too — the irony of hating the happy faces in meetings, the ridiculousness of her early assumptions, and the joy of finding a loving partner in AA who actually has a program. Most of all, you’ll hear the way pain gets turned into connection: telling your story helps someone else say "me too," and that’s gold.
So if you want an honest, intimate listen — full of grit, laughter, humility, and the real work of recovery — stick around. Tricia’s story is proof that even when life gets lifey, there’s a path forward. If this resonates, come say hi to the group she loves (AA Solution Seekers meets daily at 7 a.m.), and if you’re enjoying the show, consider subscribing, leaving a review, or supporting the podcast.
 
 
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

Ep 14 Finishing Step 7 - Humility: From Forced Pie to Priceless Peace

Join us on A Shotglass of Recovery for a warm, honest literature study through Step 7 of the 12 & 12. We explore how the "disease of more" drives us, why humility isn’t humiliation but a nourishing practice, and how moments of real peace begin to appear when we stop running from pain. Hear fellow members share raw, relatable stories about surrender, character-building through suffering, and the slow, human work of letting go of ego and fear. Whether you’re brand new or have years in the program, this episode invites you to sit with the quiet, notice humility as a path to serenity, and maybe even raise your hand to share.
 
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

From King Alcohol to Higher Power: Stacy’s Raw Recovery Journey

Hey friend — if you’ve got a few minutes, sit with me for Stacy Cook’s talk from the A Shotglass of Recovery speaker series. Stacy lays it all out: a childhood of emotional starvation and adoption, stealing and trouble as a kid, finding alcohol at 12 and instantly knowing she’d be back for more. She doesn’t sugarcoat the wreckage — homelessness, institutions, arrests, and the chaos of being someone who could never drink safely.
But this is also a story of bright, messy miracles: a woman named Donna who took her in, a first experience of belonging in an AA meeting, going from renting a trundle bed to finishing college and later working in a field she never trained for — all because she kept showing up and doing the next right thing. Stacey’s life explodes with service: building meetings inside prisons (even death row), taking meetings nationwide, and eventually speaking at international events — things she once thought impossible.
She gets honest about relapse too: after 20 years sober she drank again and lost everything, even selling her body to survive and hurting her daughter. The return to sobriety came in 2013 after a desperate prayer and a series of humbling steps back into AA. Stacy emphasizes that staying sober is easier than getting sober, and explains how emotional sobriety and a relationship with a higher power rewired her life more than meetings, service, or willpower ever could.
There are tender threads throughout — finding her birth mother through DNA, facing hereditary cancer and lifesaving surgeries, and being lifted by unexpected connections (including men on death row who reached out during COVID). Her message is simple and fierce: you don’t have to be alone, keep coming back, find the sponsor and tribe that answer your “dog whistle,” and lean into God (or your chosen higher power) — that’s where the real change happens.
If you want an unvarnished, hopeful talk about the wreckage and the wonders of recovery — complete with humor, humility, and service — Stacy’s story is one to listen to again and bring a friend to. She signs off reminding listeners to subscribe, leave a review, and support the show if it helps them — because recovery is a circle: we give more than we ever imagined we’d get.
 
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

From 13 Shots to a Pocket Big Book: Andy’s Sobriety Turnaround

Hey — if you’ve ever felt like life was one big blackout and you were just trying to piece it together, this share is for you. Andy tells it straight: his last drink, the awkward first meeting, and how a simple invite to grab coffee turned into the hand that pulled him out of the hole. It’s raw, relatable, and full of those small, real moments that build a sober life.
He talks about thinking he could “handle” his drinking, learning what a sponsor actually is, and being guided to read just two pages a day — which turned into reading the whole thing and finally recognizing himself in the Big Book. There’s humor (Andy’s “great plans”), honesty (the mistakes he made), and a steady thread of hope as he describes working the steps and finding a relationship with a higher power.
The fellowship mattered — coming early, staying after for the parking-lot chats, and feeling welcomed. The metaphors stick: a pocket-sized Big Book that somehow became a life manual, and the idea of a “cup of acceptance” and a “cup of gratitude” as daily tools to stay sober and sane. It’s about small willingness, tiny open-minded steps, and letting the program change your view of everything.
Andy doesn’t pretend recovery is perfect. He shares the slip-ups, the times faith felt distant, and how he learned that faith must work through him 24 hours a day. Most importantly, he shows that staying connected — to people, to service, to reading and prayer — keeps the miracle alive and gives you just enough hope to get through today.
If you’re new, curious, or somewhere in the middle, this is a gentle reminder: one day at a time, and a little willingness can change everything. Pull up a seat, bring your pocket Big Book, and let these stories sink in — they just might save your life.
 
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

From High Heels to Higher Power: Liz’s AA Wake-Up Call

Hey — I want to introduce you to Liz Harrison’s story. She grew up in Brooklyn, built a fast-paced life in Manhattan media, and learned the hard way how drinking that started as fun slowly ran her life. One wild night and a third-date confession that he was in AA led to a Monday meeting in 1997 — and that single decision changed everything.
Liz talks honestly about the allure of the bar-room glow, the awkward, dangerous subway nights, and how work culture and liquid lunches made it easy to keep drinking. She didn’t come to AA planning to quit forever — she came broken, baffled, and surprised that the answer was a fellowship that asked her to show up.
What followed was the daily work of recovery: meetings, phone calls in the middle of cravings, sponsors, and the slow learning curve of the 12 steps. Liz admits she was in AA for years before she really did the step work — and when she finally did step four and made amends, something shifted that she calls a spiritual turning point.
Her story isn’t sugar-coated: there were relapses of thinking, emotional turmoil even while sober, job losses, and the messy, humbling business of making amends to people she’d hurt. But she also found lifelong friends, service work that filled her heart, and a steady practice (steps 10 and 11) that keeps her grounded.
Liz even finished college years later, weathered a cancer diagnosis with surprising calm, and now credits daily inventory, prayer, and helping others with keeping her life intact. Recovery for her is physical, mental, and spiritual — and it’s ongoing.
If you want a raw, real conversation about how AA can move someone from shame and chaos to purpose and service, Liz’s talk is full of small, human moments — the panic on a subway, the relief of a phone call that stayed you through a craving, and the deep gratitude of having a life she once thought impossible.
Grab a cup of tea and listen: this isn’t a polished sermon, it’s a friend telling you what worked, what didn’t, and how keeping the program alive each day made all the difference.
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

Elle speaker from the UK - Blackouts to Miracles: A Raw, Unfiltered Road to Recovery

Hey friend — this episode is a raw, straight-from-the-heart talk from Elle, an alcoholic who went from blackouts at 11 to law degrees, global moves, and ultimately a terrifying near-death in the ICU. She doesn’t sugarcoat anything: abuse, secret drinking, dangerous relationships, deportations, and years of a litre of vodka a day.
Elle walks you through how success on the outside masked a life slowly consumed by obsession — the mental pull, the body’s demand, and the spiritual emptiness that kept her trapped. You’ll hear about the crazy geographicals, the moments of absolute insanity, and the coping tricks that kept her going until they couldn’t.
The turning point is brutal and strangely beautiful: waking up in intensive care, told she had a 5–8% chance to live, paralysed and with failing organs. It was there she truly admitted powerlessness, believed something greater could help, and turned her will over — the kinds of Steps that change everything. She calls it a miracle, and after hearing her story you’ll understand why.
If you want experience, strength, and hope, Elle gives it all — the shame, the losses, the gratitude, and the hard-won clarity that recovery is possible even after the worst. This talk lands like a private conversation: uncomfortable at times, always honest, and ultimately full of compassion.
Press play if you want a story that’s unvarnished, human, and quietly miraculous — a reminder that even when everything feels lost, there’s a second chance waiting.
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.
 
 

Ep 13 12& 12 continuing Step 7 discussion

Hey friend — grab a seat and a shot glass (metaphorically), because this episode is like a warm check-in from someone who’s been there. Lisa, your host from the Solution Seekers literature study, walks us through a deep dive of Step 7 and the hard-but-liberating choice between the short pain of doing the work and the much worse penalties of giving up. It’s honest, a little raw, and full of real AA life: relapses, comebacks, and the tiny daily practices that keep us going.
You’ll hear about the messy, human business of sponsoring and being sponsored — the pride trips, the ghosting, the times we think we can be someone’s savior (we can’t), and how boundaries and humility actually save us. There are stories about being fired as a sponsor, being the one who leaves, and learning how to lovingly detach without abandoning care. It’s practical and compassionate: call for an inventory, do the steps, stop trying to control people, and let God (or your higher power) do the heavy lifting.
There’s a real emphasis on the payoff — peace of mind. At first it can feel boring compared to the old chaos, but that quiet is everything. Folks share how gratitude, servanthood (not servility), and staying ahead of newcomers helped them find a steadier, happier life. If you’ve ever feared serenity or clung to drama because it felt familiar, this episode gently explains why choosing sobriety’s small, daily pains leads to freedom.
Whether you’re new, struggling, a long-timer, a sponsor, or thinking about sponsoring, this one’s for you. It’s a warm, no-BS conversation that reminds you: do the work, set the boundary, love people but don’t try to fix them, and enjoy the peace when it comes. Come listen in — you might hear exactly what you need today.
A Shot Glass of Recovery
Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟
paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery
If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety.
You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.