Emotional Sobriety in the Writing ProcessEmotional Sobriety in the Writing Process
Eternally Amy - A Sober Mom of Eight's Journey from Jail to Joy
Amy Liz Harrison reflects on the emotional side of writing her sobriety memoir with ADHD, rejection sensitivity and a fraught publishing experience. She shares how spiritual tools, 12-step work and emotional sobriety help her handle criticism and stay true to her story.
45:29•18 Aug 2026
Emotional Sobriety, Tough Publishers and Writing Through ADHD
Episode Overview
- Publishing relationships can hit emotional sore spots, especially when communication is poor and expectations aren’t clear.
- Late-diagnosed ADHD and rejection-sensitive dysphoria can make feedback, delays and conflict in the writing process feel intensely personal.
- Sharing vulnerable material carries the risk that some people may use it against you, so each writer has to decide what level of exposure feels right.
- Pausing between stimulus and response, through spiritual practice and sobriety tools, helps prevent self-abandonment when criticism arises.
- Painful experiences with publishers and critics can inform kinder, more supportive ways of working with other writers in future.
“When you’re showing all your vulnerabilities and someone takes advantage of that, that’s a bummer. And it’s a risk. And you’ve got to decide, is it one that I’m willing to take?”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This candid conversation follows Amy Liz Harrison as she talks through the emotional rollercoaster of writing her first memoir, *Eternally Expecting*, during COVID while juggling eight kids, late-diagnosed ADHD and the tender realities of recovery. You’ll hear how a “vanity press” publisher turned from trusted guide into what Amy now calls her unexpected “guru”, showing her exactly how she never wants to treat authors.
She explains how poor communication, a rigid production process and dismissive emails landed right on her core wounds of abandonment and rejection, especially with her rejection-sensitive dysphoria.
As she puts it, her publisher “took advantage of the material that was in my book… and she used that to her advantage when something arose that she didn’t like.” Amy also shares the sting of an old childhood friend refusing to write a blurb, and a recent social media pile-on from someone questioning her sobriety and authenticity. For anyone who writes about recovery, these moments show just how vulnerable it can feel to put your story out there.
Throughout, Amy keeps returning to emotional sobriety: pausing before reacting, leaning on 12-step tools, meditation and a spiritual practice to avoid self-abandonment when criticism hits. She reads a Buddhist reflection on how “true power lies in pausing” and contrasts her past habit of apologising for everything with her current ability to sit with difficult feelings for “two days” before responding.
This chat is especially helpful if you’re writing about addiction, mental health or trauma and worry that your story is “too much”, “not good enough” or that people might use your openness against you. It’s raw, honest and aimed at anyone who wants to share their experience without losing themselves in the process. If you’re wrestling with whether to tell your own story, could Amy’s journey help you decide what risks are worth taking?
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