RE 431: Transformation

Today we have Katy, she is 40, from Olympia, WA and took her last drink on February 12th, 2023. Today's Sponsor: Café RE Use the promo code CONNECT for one free month in the alcohol-free community Café RE. [02:26] Thoughts from Paul: One of the best parts of doing the Recovery Elevator podcast is seeing the transformations people make. Many of the travelers on this year's Costa Rica trip also traveled last year. With every single repeat traveler, Paul could see the growth almost immediately. There are many different reasons for the transformations, but it is always visible in the smile. Paul wants to make a correction from a previous episode where he said that Goat Yoga was a horrible idea. Incorporating animals in our healing can be a great thing. One reason for this is the nervous systems of animals are much more intact, and with entrainment theory in biology, our nervous systems can heal while being around animals. Also, goats are hilarious. They are all about having fun and if you come near enough to them, they will make you part of the fun. In the interview with Katy, Paul references a previous episode covering Natlrexone. That is episode 164 if you wish to go back and listen. [08:06] Paul introduces Katy: Katy is 40 years old and took her last drink on February 12, 2023. She is from Olympia WA, married and they have two kids and a dog. Katy works in elementary education and for fun she likes to hike, read and listen to podcasts. Katy first started drinking at a young age, but it wasn't until she was in her late teens that she started having consequences like hangovers and blackouts. She went on to a college that had a reputation for being a party school and she fell right into the scene. Katy feels her twenties were stolen by an abusive relationship where the focus was on a party lifestyle. She had started drinking and driving, getting herself into debt, and struggled to hold down a job. The consequences of her drinking really started to escalate including a DUI that she got during a blackout. In her thirties, she continued to work in bars and blackout frequently. When she tried quitting on her own, she had some physical withdrawals and she decided to go to rehab. After around four months she decided to leave and started drinking immediately believing that she would be able to control it. Before long she was back where she was with her drinking and had a mental health scare that found her seeking help once again. Her family was very supportive, and Katy was able to make positive changes in her life including having children and getting her master's in education. She was able to stay sober through her pregnancies but would start drinking shortly after. Katy was prescribed naltrexone which helped her stop drinking and start working on herself. On her doctor's advice she started attending sobriety groups in addition to the medication. She prefers SMART recovery over AA but believes connection is important. Exercise is important to Katy's sobriety in addition to podcasts and reading. She looks for the good things in day-to-day life as well as in nature which help her feel gratitude. She uses some exercises to help with her anxiety that help her to surround herself in "now". She enjoys music where she can connect to the lyrics. Bucket list for Katy is to love her life and feel emotions. [47:27] In closing, Paul shares another installment of "You Can Be Right, Or You Can Have Peace". Recovery Elevator YouTube Sobriety Tracker iTunes Recovery Elevator It all starts from the inside out. I love you guys.