Beverly H. AA speakerBeverly H. AA speaker
Recovery Radio Network
speaking in 1997
39:11•27 Aug 2018
From Third-Grade Drunk to Long-Term Sobriety: Beverly H’s AA Story
Episode Overview
- Alcohol can feel like a solution for low self-worth and perfectionism, but it eventually creates deeper pain and unmanageability.
- Regular meetings, a home group and sponsorship lay the groundwork for facing future crises sober, not just early recovery.
- Working all Twelve Steps, including difficult amends, helps address buried memories, guilt and long-held denial.
- Long-term sobriety still involves mistakes and secrets, but honesty with a sponsor and the group makes continued recovery possible.
- Putting recovery first makes room for relationships, parenting and work to grow in healthier ways, one day at a time.
“I absolutely loved what alcohol did for me… I don’t ever have to live like that again.”
How do people find hope in the darkest times? Beverly H shares a raw, funny and deeply honest account of growing up in an Irish Catholic family where alcohol was "kind of like kool-aid" and becoming the overachieving eldest of seven who never felt good enough.
You’ll hear how her first blackout-level drunk happened in third grade, how vodka and prescription speed became her daily tools, and why she says, "I absolutely loved what alcohol did for me" even as her life became unmanageable at 16. Speaking to an AA audience in 1997, Beverly talks about using anything and anyone to escape reality, from unhealthy relationships to harsh words that left deep scars in her family.
She doesn’t blame her upbringing; instead she calls it her "ism" just waiting to be filled. That honesty makes this talk especially relatable if you’ve ever chased perfection, people’s approval or the “easier, softer way". The turning point comes when her mum suggests they "have a problem with alcohol" and take in an AA meeting.
Beverly arrives convinced she isn’t an alcoholic and only there to help her mother, yet finds herself drawn to people who seem genuinely happy and "had a solution going in their world". What follows is a long-term sober life she says she never planned: sponsorship, working the steps, marriage to another member, raising children in recovery, and facing grief, guilt, and even big secrets without picking up a drink.
Beverly’s style is straight-talking, self-aware and often humorous, even when she’s describing breaking an elderly patient’s leg while drunk, or nearly losing her newborn son. This talk suits anyone curious about AA, long-time members who need a reminder that "you’re as sick as your secrets", and anyone who wonders if it’s really possible to build a life they once thought was for "other people".
If you’ve ever felt like you didn’t fit anywhere, could Beverly’s story be the sign that you’re not alone?
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