86. You Were Meant for More Than This - One Woman's Story of Being Loved Thru the Mess86. You Were Meant for More Than This - One Woman's Story of Being Loved Thru the Mess
This is Your Wake-Up Call
Ashley shares her journey from early meth use, deep grief and multiple overdoses to faith-centred recovery and a new sense of identity. The conversation highlights how church community, rehab and daily prayer supported her as she began to believe she was meant for more than addiction.
1:09:44•6 Apr 2026
You Were Meant for More: Ashley’s Wild, Honest Journey from Overdoses to Hope
Episode Overview
- Early addiction can grow from feeling invisible or unwanted, especially in chaotic family systems.
- Grief, toxic relationships and unprocessed trauma can fuel deeper substance use and repeated overdoses.
- Consistent community support and a church that "loves you through the mess" can make sobriety feel possible.
- Faith practices such as daily prayer and seeing oneself as "God’s daughter" helped Ashley lose the desire to use.
- For loved ones of addicts, Ashley urges focusing on loving the person rather than obsessing over the addiction itself.
“"You were meant for more than this."”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This conversation on **This Is Your Wake-Up Call** follows Ashley, a self-described "ugly, awkward and odd kid" from a family of ten, through years of addiction, heartache, and repeated overdoses into a new life she never expected to want. The chat with host **Jeri Bisbee** is raw and conversational, with plenty of dark humour and straight talking.
She shares multiple overdoses, two cardiac arrests, and a suicide attempt where she says bluntly, "I was 100% ready to let my addiction win." You’ll hear how grief, toxic relationships and fentanyl nearly finished her story, and how a simple, stubborn message kept coming back: **"You were meant for more than this."** A pivotal moment comes when a church leader looks her in the eye, prays over her, and she suddenly goes nearly three weeks without using or experiencing withdrawal: "I went a solid 19, 20 days without a single drug and without a single withdrawal.
Ashley walks through early meth use at 13, foster care, losing her mum to MS, and a long season of heavy addiction and chaos. I wasn't even sick." The episode leans heavily into faith-based recovery. Ashley talks about rehab, praying daily, choosing community over isolation, and finding a church that "loved me through the mess" rather than judging her appearance, history or sexuality.
She explains how her sense of identity has shifted, saying she now sees herself first as "God’s daughter" and feels called to a different future. The tone fits anyone affected by addiction—those using, those in recovery, and those who love them—especially if they're curious about how faith and community can support sobriety. If you’ve ever wondered whether your story is too messy to matter, this one might make you think again.
What if you really were meant for more than this?
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