BRN #78 Paula Snow ❖ Off the Grid, Into Recovery

BRN #78 Paula Snow ❖ Off the Grid, Into Recovery

How do individuals turn their lives around after addiction? This conversation follows Paula Snow as she talks with host Beth about swapping a high-pressure life in restaurant kitchens for a recovery path rooted in Buddhist practice, service, and time in nature. Paula shares twelve years of recovery and admits, "my addiction really was an abandoning of myself".

She explains how Buddhist recovery meetings first made sense of her suffering, especially hearing that pain wasn’t unique to her: that others felt it too. From there, retreats and meditation became central, sometimes with the same driven energy she once poured into cooking and drinking. As programme director of Off-Grid Retreats, Paula now helps create nomadic, nature-based retreats where people can slow down, reconnect, and, as she puts it, feel "so held by nature".

She describes sites ranging from backcountry camping to comfy rooms with doors you can close, all aimed at lowering financial and practical barriers so more people can practise in the wild. Nature, for her, is an easy higher power: "nature is dharma, dharma is nature". Beth and Paula also talk about the upcoming Buddhist Recovery Summit and a journaling workshop Paula will co-lead with fellow trainee teacher Carson Kovic.

The focus is on moving beyond rigid inventory-style writing into free journaling that helps you see "what's really going on" and offers prompts and simple practices to take home. Threaded through the conversation is Paula’s commitment to service and sustainability. She’s honest about burnout, about the harsh inner voice, and about learning to be gentle: "if I’ve got time to put my pants on, I have time to meditate".

For anyone curious about recovery, community, and finding a home in nature, this episode offers a grounded, relatable story with plenty of practical encouragement. What might change for you if you let nature, practice, and kindness shape your recovery too?