Getting Over The Bubbly: Mrs. American’s Journey To Recovery From Alcoholism And Depression With Hannah KirkpatrickGetting Over The Bubbly: Mrs. American’s Journey To Recovery From Alcoholism And Depression With Hannah Kirkpatrick
I Love Being Sober
Mrs. American 2021 Hannah Kirkpatrick shares how alcoholism, depression and destructive relationships tore her life apart, and how intensive 12-step work helped her rebuild her marriage and identity. The conversation focuses on early sobriety struggles, codependency, trauma and the practical realities of putting recovery first.
57:30•9 Aug 2022
From Pageant Crowns to Rock Bottom: Hannah Kirkpatrick’s Sober Comeback
Episode Overview
- Early perfectionism and feeling unworthy can quietly fuel addiction, even in seemingly stable families.
- Stopping alcohol, even briefly, can expose other behaviours like overeating and validation seeking that also need attention.
- Treating life like a failed business and accepting that "my best thinking got me here" can open the door to real change.
- Radical honesty and clear boundaries are crucial for couples who want to stay together through recovery.
- Going "all in" on meetings, sponsorship and service in the first year can build a stronger foundation than ever before.
“You have failed. You've bankrupt this business called your life. And now you should probably go hire a different CEO because you kind of sucked.”
Get ready to be moved by real-life accounts of how people turn their lives around after addiction. This conversation on *I Love Being Sober* follows Mrs. American 2021, Hannah Kirkpatrick, as she talks openly about how a seemingly "perfect" life collapsed under the weight of alcoholism, depression and unresolved pain. Hannah shares growing up in a loving family with high expectations, yet carrying a deep sense of never being "enough".
Acne, awkwardness and constant self-criticism fed into later patterns of binge drinking, compulsive overeating and seeking validation from powerful men. She explains how alcohol was never about having a casual drink: "It was give me one, give me 10 and give me a blackout. I don't want to feel. I don't want to think." When a fantasy relationship blew up her marriage, job and home in 2009, Hannah hit what she calls a "country song backwards" rock bottom.
A depression programme forced her to stop drinking for 30 days, revealing that alcohol, food and attention from men were all tangled together. Realising her "best thinking" had bankrupted her life, she checked herself into three 12-step programmes at once, treating her life like a failed business that needed a new CEO.
The episode walks through the brutal early months of sobriety, from attending AA meetings with wine in a coffee cup to learning how to go to the supermarket without heading straight to the liquor aisle. Hannah and host Tim Westbrook talk frankly about codependency, trauma (big and small), and why everyone in a family system needs to do their own work.
You’ll hear how radical honesty and boundaries rebuilt Hannah’s marriage, why she now puts recovery above everything, and how her sobriety date shares a birthday with her first child. If you’re in your first year or supporting someone who is, this story might have you asking: what would happen if you went all in on recovery, just like you once went all in on drinking?
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