The One Day At A Time Recovery Podcast

Today my guest is Cole Chance. She is a woman in long term recovery, a yoga instructor and the creator of EMERGE Recovery, a live, online journey to recovery steeped in love, acceptance and empowerment. We talk about how she recovered from addiction and the tools that continue to support her on her path to wholeness.   Before we jump in, I have a couple of tips for you.  I’ve been meaning to talk about one of the most powerful relapse prevention tools that I have used for over 28 years, and I call it “willingness calls” A willingness call is an act of willingness to invest in your sobriety. It’s about cultivating a support system where you can give and receive support. The basic idea is that you have a list of people you call for a quick check in. I recommend one call per day, but you can do more if you’d like. The reason we do this is simply that addiction is a disease of isolation and connection is the cure.   Another reason is that to prevent relapse we need to con...

Today my guest is Richie Stephens, actor and author of The Gangster’s Guide to Sobriety. I heard him on the Rich Roll podcast and I was immediately hooked by his Irish accent and his ability to tell a good story. And let me tell you, he’s got a ton of them! I could literally listen to him all day.   Before we jump in, I wanted to say a huge Thank You to you and all my previous guests for helping the show reach the top 1% of self-help podcasts! All the shares, likes and especially the reviews help with ratings, so thank you, you all are amazing! If you haven’t yet had a chance to rate and review the podcast, it only takes a minute and your efforts have a global impact.    And as always, I have a really good free resource for you - I created a guide called “100 Resources for your first 100 days” available to you by visiting SoberLifeSchool.com   It’s a resource list of the best podcasts, recovery books, and online support groups. I’m telling you, even if you are ...

Today my guest is Andrea Ashley, the host of a VERY popular podcast called Adult Child. After getting sober in 2008, she found ACA which is “Adult child of alcoholics / Dysfunctional families” and it changed the course of her recovery. She launched her podcast to help others just like her, heal from childhood trauma to lead healthy fulfilling lives. She has a private where she facilitates ACA meetings, so check that out. She’s so much fun to talk to and I can’t wait for you to meet her!    Before we jump in, I want to talk about what happens to those of us who grow up in a dysfunctional home. We are forced to learn survival skills like people pleasing, validation and love through performance, and denying or suppressing our feelings.    Those survival patterns show up in adulthood as addiction, workaholism, codependency, unhealthy relationships and extreme independence. We have trouble trusting others and feel the need to do everything ourselves and often isolate ...

Today my guest is Renee Leonard Kennedy, the author of “After the Flowers Die: Encouragement for Walking Through Life After Loss.” I have to say, it was really interesting how we connected. Her publicist emailed me to pitch her as a guest, and I read it at a moment when I was really struggling with grief from the loss of my Mom. It was so serendipitous; it really felt like a spiritual experience, kinda like a little wink from God, if you will. I’m always in awe when stuff like that happens, you know? The exact message I needed right when I needed it.   Renee is a lovely woman in long-term recovery who shares what she has learned about processing grief in order to help others, so I love her for that. She also was very candid about leaving AA, finding Celebrate Recovery, and lots more.   Before we jump in, I have another quick book recommendation (besides Renee’s, of course), which is Atomic Habits by James Clear. It’s not your typical recovery book per se, but the parallels...

Today my guest is Hilary Phelps. If her last name sounds familiar it’s because she’s the sister of Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Phelps!    After 15 years of continuous sobriety, Hilary has decided to tell her story. We had a wide ranging conversation about what it was like to be the sibling of such a public figure, her own achievements, which are very substantial I might add, like being the number 1 ranked swimmer in her age group in the nation, a triathlete, and being a mother to an amazing little boy. We talk about her journey through alcohol abuse, what happened that lead her to sobriety and what life is like now after a painful divorce.   Hilary is so relatable, authentic and genuinely a beautiful person. I love her and I know you will too.    Before we jump in, I wanted to tell you 3 things.   First thing is I have officially opened a soap shop called “Happy Soul Soap and Candle Co” where I have a whole collection of Sobriety themed soaps with...

Today my guest is Steven Washington, author of Recovering You: Soul Care and Mindful Movement for Overcoming Addiction. If you have ever met someone who is so grounded, so authentic, and warm, then you will understand how I felt speaking with Steven. What a sparkling gift he is! See, this is why I love having a podcast. I get to meet amazing people and introduce you to them, and we are all better for it. We talk about his story of childhood challenges that shaped his life, alcoholism while performing at the highest levels, and the moment of clarity that altered the trajectory of his life.   Before we jump in, I wanted to share an interesting topic that came up in the 12 Step workshop I’m facilitating. The question was, how do I know if I’m doing God’s will or if I’m in self-will? Such an important question and one I think a lot of us visit from time to time. I did a short video about it on Tiktok but thought it was worth mentioning here too.   We do need to take action, a...

Today my guest is Lily Shanks. She is a former attorney turned certified yoga instructor and life coach. She is no stranger to perfectionism, workaholism, alcoholism, and burnout. Having learned how to overcome so many challenges, she now works with other women to do the same through a variety of practices. She is absolutely lovely, and I can’t wait for you to meet her!   Before we jump in, I have a favor to ask. The podcast is officially years old now, and I have spoken with over 250 guests, with some distinguished and exciting guests coming up. It takes a lot of work and expense to keep the show going; at the moment, I have 2 donors supporting the show. If the podcast has helped you and you feel so inclined to support the show through a donation, you can do so by visiting odaatchat.com, and there will be a link to donate. If you would like to support the show in other ways, reviews are hugely helpful, as is sharing it with friends. The show is a passion, and I’m so grateful for...