454- Chad P Part 2 - The Ripple Effect in AA454- Chad P Part 2 - The Ripple Effect in AA
Sober Speak- Alcoholics Anonymous Recovery Interviews
Chad P shares how his AA journey moved from early sobriety and strained family relationships to deep involvement in big book work, spiritual growth and sponsorship. The conversation highlights the ripple effect of strong AA guidance and the impact it can have on families, home groups and wider recovery communities.
48:14•26 Jun 2026
Chad P and the Ripple Effect of Sobriety in AA
Episode Overview
- Family members of alcoholics may need to recognise that, at times, they are dealing with the disease rather than the person they love, and may eventually have to let them face their own consequences.
- Chad describes how untreated alcoholism can quietly pull someone out of AA even while they appear active and involved, making honest self-appraisal vital.
- A strong grasp of the big book’s description of alcoholism and the steps helped Chad move from merely attending meetings to a deeper change in outlook and behaviour.
- Chad explains that he began working the steps as an atheist, motivated by belief in the fatal nature of alcoholism rather than belief in God, and later came to value experiencing a higher power rather than debating it.
- Immersing himself in Primary Purpose Group, intensive book study and actively working with others became central to Chad’s long-term sobriety and sense of purpose.
“The gift that he gave me was hopelessness.”
What remarkable journeys have people faced head-on against addiction? This conversation with Chad P from Ocean Grove, New Jersey, shows how one man’s recovery can send shockwaves through countless lives in Alcoholics Anonymous. The chat has a relaxed, story-telling feel, with host John M guiding Chad back through the years: from early sobriety in Oklahoma, to rebuilding contact with his ex-wife and young daughter, and then uprooting his life to move to Austin, Texas.
It’s aimed at anyone in recovery, but also those on the “other side” – partners, parents and friends trying to understand what alcoholism does to someone they love.
Chad speaks directly to them, warning that, “you’re hearing it come through their mouth in their voice, but it ain’t them… you’re having this talk with the disease of alcoholism.” You’ll hear how a chance meeting with a man from Las Vegas led to Chad being “12-stepped” at a year sober, and left with what he calls “the gift of hopelessness” – the realisation that he was quietly drifting out of AA and straight back to the drink.
That shock pushed him into the steps, even as an atheist, because, as he puts it, “I didn’t work the steps because I believed in God… I worked the steps because I believed in alcoholism.” From there the episode shifts into AA nerd heaven: big book studies, the Primary Purpose Group, and evenings at a table where Charlie Parker sat at one end and Mark Houston at the other.
Chad explains how their message reshaped his understanding of step three, daily inventory, prayer and, most of all, working with others. By the time Chad describes himself as “a ripple in that ripple effect”, you may find yourself asking: whose ripple am I part of, and who might be part of mine?
Do you want to link to this podcast?
Get the buttons here!
More From This Show
The latest episodes from the same podcast.
Related Episodes
Similar episodes from other shows in the catalogue.