• AA Recovery Interviews with Howard L.

  • Written by: Howard L.
  • Podcast

AA Recovery Interviews with Howard L.

Written by: Howard L.
  • Summary

  • Alcoholics Anonymous members from around the world share their awesome stories of experience, strength, and hope with interview host Howard L.
    Copyright © 2020-2025 AA Recovery Interviews
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Episodes
  • Beth F. – Sober 3 Years
    Feb 19 2025
    When Beth finally got sober less than four years ago, she had made it to middle age as an active, but functional alcoholic. She grew up in a family where alcoholism was present, but largely unaddressed. Beth moved nine times with her military family while still in elementary school, casting the die of a lonesome outsider. When she found alcohol early in her teens, Beth found the key to coping with life in both good times and bad. Though it took several decades to wear away the facade of normal or social drinker, Beth’s ability to both work and raise a family ignored the facts of her burgeoning disease. As her functional alcoholism gave way to increased problem-drinking, she knew she had to make a change. Fortunately, her aunt was a long-time member of AA and accompanied Beth to her earliest AA meetings. The damage done by her years as an alcoholic was revealed in working the Steps with a strong sponsor. She found the center of the herd and dug-in, attending daily meetings, reading the Big Book, praying, and sponsoring other women. Working the Program with her feet, Beth is also a trusted servant to the large and vibrant club she attends. Coming up on four years in July, Beth’s experience as a sober member of AA is exemplary for those early in sobriety. Her inspiring words engender the reality of working a solid Program by utilizing the simple set of tools available to all. So whether you’re measuring your sobriety by weeks, months, or years, you are certain to get a lot out of the next hour of AA Recovery Interviews with my friend and AA sister, Beth F. If you’ve enjoyed my AA Recovery Interviews series, have a listen to Lost Stories of the Big Book, 30 Original Stories Missing from the 3rd and 4th Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s an engaging audiobook I narrated to bring these stories to life for AA members who’ve never seen them. These timeless testimonials were originally cut to make room for newer stories in the 3rd and 4th Editions. But their vitally important messages of hope are as meaningful today as when they were first published. Many listeners will hear these stories for the first time. Lost Stories of the Big Book is available on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. It’s also available as a Kindle book and in Paperback from Amazon if you’d like to read along with the audio. I also invite you to check out my latest audio book, “Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered From Alcoholism”. This is the word-for-word, cover-to-cover reading of the First Edition of the Big Book, published in 1939. It’s a comfortable, meaningful, and engaging way to listen to the Big Book anytime, anyplace. Have a free listen at Audible, i-Tunes, or Amazon. [Disclaimer: AA Recovery Interviews podcast strictly adheres to AA’s 12 Traditions and all General Service Office guidelines for safe-guarding anonymity on-line. I pay all podcast production costs. AA Recovery Interviews and my guests do not speak for or represent AA at-large. This podcast is simply my way of giving back to AA that which has been so freely given to me. – Howard L.]
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • Leigh P. – Sober Since March 1995 (Encore Episode)
    Feb 12 2025
    Born and raised in London, Leigh's love affair with alcohol began in neighborhood public houses, or pubs. These establishments were and still are the centers of gathering in the town where Leigh grew up. Despite the fact that he was underage, having a pint or two of beer at the local pub was an unremarkable occurrence largely ignored by those around him. But, as he came of age, Leigh’s drinking in and outside of pubs escalated above and beyond the realm of normal drinking. He quickly found himself drinking much more than his mates. Like many budding problem drinkers, he became a functional alcoholic, achieving scholastic success by day, while drinking and often blacking out during the evenings and on weekend binges. By the time he was well into his first job after college, Leigh’s drinking had become problematic and obvious to everyone but him. After moving to Texas early in his career in the oil industry, his daily alcohol consumption and blackouts were mostly managed, though his first marriage succumbed to the ruinous effects of alcoholism. But the moniker of “functional alcoholic” faded quickly as his drinking spiraled out of control. Finally, after a two-week blackout, he awoke strapped down to a psychiatric hospital bed and realized he was finished. A visit shortly thereafter by a responsible fellow of AA coincided with a brief interval of clarity for Leigh. He soon found his way into the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous. He started doing the work and the results followed. In many ways, Leigh’s story is cut from the same cloth as many recovering alcoholics, and his 26 years of sobriety reflect the very fundamentals of AA. Whether his service work was taking AA into prisons or working with sponsees, Leigh combined those commitments with regular attendance at AA meetings to create a Program centered in the “middle of the bed”, as many of my British friends like to call it. As you take in Leigh’s simple, yet practical, wisdom for working the Program, I think you’ll sense his quiet confidence that his Higher Power is indubitably running the show. Though it’s the product of 26 years in AA, Leigh’s story may likely inspire and invigorate your experience in the Program no matter how long you’ve been sober. With that, I give you today’s AA Recovery Interview for the next 65 minutes with my friend and AA brother, Leigh P. [This is an encore of Episode 43 originally released September 9, 2021]. If you’ve enjoyed my AA Recovery Interviews series, have a listen to Lost Stories of the Big Book, 30 Original Stories Missing from the 3rd and 4th Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s an engaging audiobook I narrated to bring these stories to life for AA members who’ve never seen them. These timeless testimonials were originally cut to make room for newer stories in the 3rd and 4th Editions. But their vitally important messages of hope are as meaningful today as when they were first published. Many listeners will hear these stories for the first time. Lost Stories of the Big Book is available on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. It’s also available as a Kindle book and in Paperback from Amazon if you’d like to read along with the audio. I also invite you to check out my latest audio book, “Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered From Alcoholism”. This is the word-for-word, cover-to-cover reading of the First Edition of the Big Book, published in 1939. It’s a comfortable, meaningful, and engaging way to listen to the Big Book anytime, anyplace. Have a free listen at Audible, i-Tunes, or Amazon. [Disclaimer: AA Recovery Interviews podcast strictly adheres to AA’s 12 Traditions and all General Service Office guidelines for safe-guarding anonymity on-line. I pay all podcast production costs. AA Recovery Interviews and my guests do not speak for or represent AA at-large. This podcast is simply my way of giving back to AA that which has been so freely given to me. – Howard L.]
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Teska M. – Sober Since July 2016 (Encore Episode)
    Feb 5 2025
    [This is an encore of Episode 24 originally released April 29, 2021]. As the daughter of a Louisiana bar-owner, Teska’s father would spike her Coca Cola with whiskey when she was a child. But, though her family was rife with alcoholism within a culture where drinking was a way of life, Teska lived most of her life as a normal or social drinker. It wasn’t until she retired, after a long and successful career as a lawyer, that alcoholism bit into her life with ferocity. Teska’s self-admitted workaholism kept her use of alcohol and occasional binges confined to weekends throughout her legal career. But after she retired in her fifties, alcoholism took over with vengence where her work addictions left off. Like the man in the Big Book who retired to his carpet slippers, bathrobe, and irrepressible drinking, Teska headed down the same road to ruin. But unlike the man in the story, she didn’t have to die to stop drinking. Instead, she came to AA. Sober in AA for nearly 5 years now, Teska’s journey in sobriety is a tale worth hearing. Finding AA in her early 60’s, centering herself in the Program, and working the 12 Steps has enriched her quality of life. She clearly embodies what a woman transformed by Alcoholics Anonymous can be, irrespective of age. Her hopefulness for a happy and service-oriented future as a member of AA comes through loud and clear. On this episode of AA Recovery Interviews, I’m delighted to welcome my AA sister, Teska M. to the show. If you’ve enjoyed my AA Recovery Interviews series, have a listen to Lost Stories of the Big Book, 30 Original Stories Missing from the 3rd and 4th Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s an engaging audiobook I narrated to bring these stories to life for AA members who’ve never seen them. These timeless testimonials were originally cut to make room for newer stories in the 3rd and 4th Editions. But their vitally important messages of hope are as meaningful today as when they were first published. Many listeners will hear these stories for the first time. Lost Stories of the Big Book is available on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. It’s also available as a Kindle book and in Paperback from Amazon if you’d like to read along with the audio. I also invite you to check out my latest audio book, “Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered From Alcoholism”. This is the word-for-word, cover-to-cover reading of the First Edition of the Big Book, published in 1939. It’s a comfortable, meaningful, and engaging way to listen to the Big Book anytime, anyplace. Have a free listen at Audible, i-Tunes, or Amazon. [Disclaimer: AA Recovery Interviews podcast strictly adheres to AA’s 12 Traditions and all General Service Office guidelines for safe-guarding anonymity on-line. I pay all podcast production costs. AA Recovery Interviews and my guests do not speak for or represent AA at-large. This podcast is simply my way of giving back to AA that which has been so freely given to me. – Howard L.]
    Show more Show less
    55 mins

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