AA Old Timers PanelAA Old Timers Panel
Recovery Radio Network
Veteran AA members share funny, raw and faith-filled stories of how they got sober, stayed sober, and built lives centred on service and fellowship. The panel focuses on honesty, sponsorship, spiritual growth and the unexpected joy found in long-term recovery.
48:37•8 Sept 2026
Old Timers, Big Laughs and Long Sobriety: Rule 62 AA Panel
Episode Overview
- Long-term sobriety is sustained through daily actions: meetings, prayer, literature, and ongoing step work rather than relying on past progress.
- Radical honesty with sponsors – including sharing fears, plans and secrets – is presented as crucial to staying sober and growing emotionally.
- Service work, from committees to jail meetings and general service, is repeatedly highlighted as a key way to stay connected and sober.
- AA fellowship can become a true family, offering support for both good and bad times and replacing isolation with meaningful relationships.
- Spiritual experiences, from quiet ‘God moments’ to near-death awakenings, are described as central to finding purpose and relief from alcoholism.
“"I wouldn’t have a life if it wasn’t for Alcoholics Anonymous."”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This AA Old Timers Panel from the Recovery Radio Network drops you right into a lively Rule 62 conference, where long-term sobriety is anything but dull. Across the panel, you’ll hear straight-talking experience from Liz Snow, Steve, Jen and Brian Doyle, each with decades of sobriety and wildly different routes into Alcoholics Anonymous.
Liz shares how she tried to sneak in through Al‑Anon, stockpiling quaaludes, pot and Jack Daniels while her sons cycled through treatment, until a blunt inner question – “who’s the real alcoholic here?” – pushed her to AA and a new life centred on God, service, and plenty of laughter. Her near‑death experience on the operating table and daily prayer show how step three is still very real business.
Steve brings the calm, steady energy the chair describes, talking about multiple DUIs, blackout drinking and how treatment only worked once he became honest and teachable. He jokes that if you’re stuck on steps one to three “you’re just visiting”, and shares how sponsorship, daily meetings (including Zoom) and service kept him moving into the deeper work of step four.
Newer ‘old timer’ Jen talks about fear, dishonesty and the shock of realising that everything she swore would “never happen” to her did. Long‑term treatment, women’s home groups, and learning to tell her sponsor “everything” turned desperation into a daily, practical spiritual life – and a lot of unexpected fun.
Rounding things out, Brian describes AA as both spiritual home and family, contrasting his old “existence” with a life “beyond my wildest dreams” rooted in meetings, service, and a God of his understanding. If you’re wondering whether AA can really give you a life worth staying sober for, this panel might be exactly the nudge you need.
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