196 Using Meditation to Enhance My Sobriety196 Using Meditation to Enhance My Sobriety
You're Sober! Now What?
Tamar Medford shares how guided meditation, mindfulness, and even a 24-hour day of silence have helped her stay sober and build resilience. The episode focuses on practical ways to make meditation workable for those in recovery who struggle to sit still or quiet their thoughts.
12:55•31 Mar 2022
Using Meditation to Strengthen Sobriety and Still the Mental Chatter
Episode Overview
- Guided meditation can be easier than sitting in complete silence, especially in early recovery.
- A 24-hour day of silence may help you notice how much distraction and mental chatter shape your day.
- Mindfully observing sounds, sensations, and surroundings can deepen presence and create a spiritual experience.
- Choosing meditations that match what you are working on—mood, confidence, resilience—keeps the practice practical and relevant.
- Regular meditation can support long-term sobriety by helping you stay grounded and emotionally steady.
“I believe that using meditation is such a great way and such a great tool that you can use to enhance your own sobriety.”
What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? This episode of "You're Sober! Now What?" follows Tamar Medford as she talks about how meditation has become a key part of her long-term sobriety and recovery journey. A self-confessed former "self-help junkie," Tamar explains how she once tore through books on Buddhism and meditation but rarely acted on what she read.
The turning point came after she got sober, when she started using meditation as a practical tool rather than a concept on a page. She’s upfront about how hard it was at first: sitting in silence meant hearing the loud "roommate" in her head telling her she was wasting time, should do the laundry, or find another distraction.
To make it manageable, she shifted to guided meditations, and shares a memorable experiment from early recovery: a full 24-hour day of silence. No talking, no phone, no computer – just music, books, journaling, and a powerful afternoon on a park bench, noticing the wind in the trees, children playing, dogs barking, and how her body felt with bare feet in the grass.
That simple practice of paying attention, she says, became a deeply spiritual moment and a foundation for her mindfulness. Tamar talks about using apps like Insight Timer and Lane Kennedy’s meditation content to find guided sessions that match whatever she’s working on – mood, confidence, resilience, or simply staying still. She connects these practices to her entrepreneurial leap, the "doors swinging wide open" once she committed to living a purpose-led life after leaving her corporate job.
If you’re sober and restless, struggle to sit still, or feel bombarded by mental chatter, this episode offers a relatable look at how meditation can support clarity, resilience, and continued recovery. Could a few minutes of guided stillness each day be the next step in strengthening your sobriety?
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