ESH: Mildred F - 15 years in a convent couldnt keep her sober!

ESH: Mildred F - 15 years in a convent couldnt keep her sober!

What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? Here, Mildred F from Toronto shares a jaw‑dropping story that stretches from a prairie farm to a convent bell tower, through psych wards, skid row and finally into long-term sobriety. Mildred talks candidly about growing up the youngest of ten in a Roman Catholic family, feeling like she never quite fit, and taking her first drink at just five years old.

Fifteen years in a convent, dozens of hospital stays, therapy, even marrying her psychiatrist – none of it touched her alcoholism.

As she puts it, “None of that fixed me.” Her turning point comes on a park bench, weighing just 85 pounds and planning her suicide, when she experiences a sudden release from the obsession to drink: “In a heartbeat, that compulsion and obsession was taken away… I remember thinking, I don’t have to drink anymore.” From there, you’ll hear how treatment, AA meetings, sponsorship and the Twelve Steps slowly rebuild her life. Mildred doesn’t sugar-coat anything.

She admits to drinking perfume and mass wine, hiding bottles in convent towers, and later losing everything with her alcoholic husband. She talks about paying back debts, going back to university, buying houses, and realising that money, success and clever theology still didn’t fix the emptiness inside. This talk has a strong spiritual edge, but it’s grounded in very practical AA action: home groups, sponsors who tell the truth, and ruthless honesty about fear, ego and old beliefs.

Mildred reflects on learning to like women, building real friendships and letting her heart soften, especially around family wounds and her sister Dora’s death. If you’re wondering whether long-term recovery can change not just your drinking, but your whole way of seeing yourself and others, this story might give you plenty to think about.