Jerry M. AA Male
Jerry M. AA Male

Recovery Radio Network

Jerry M. recounts his path from a fearful, ashamed drinker and drug user to a sober judge and father who relies on Alcoholics Anonymous for daily living. He reflects on powerlessness, family healing, and finding a sense of belonging and spirituality through the AA program.

HonestInspiringAuthenticHopefulInformative

53:08•7 May 2026

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From Pear-Shaped Kid to AA Judge: Jerry M. on Finding a Life Beyond the Bottle

Episode Overview

Alcohol and drugs briefly eased Jerry’s feelings of being different and inadequate, but over time they shrank his life until almost nothing was left but using and working.
His experience in juvenile hall and later as a juvenile court judge showed him that sincere promises to quit are not enough against real powerlessness.
AA meetings, simple suggestions, and identification with others helped him accept he was an alcoholic and that he needed ongoing support, not one-time fixes.
Through sobriety and the AA program, he reconciled with his mother, built healthier relationships with his sons, and chose to be the father he never had.
Regular meetings and spiritual practices now act as his essential emotional maintenance, helping him move from ego and fear towards humility and feeling “one among many”.

“I can be the kind of father I wished I'd have had.”

What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? In this talk from Recovery Radio Network, Jerry M. shares how booze, drugs and self-loathing slowly shrank his world, and how Alcoholics Anonymous gave him a way back to humanity, family and himself. Jerry starts with humour and honesty, calling himself “an intellectual” who tried to study his way out of alcoholism.

He talks about growing up with a violent, alcoholic father, being a “pear-shaped” kid who never felt good enough, and the moment marijuana first made him feel “at one” with his friends. That early relief turned into years of drinking and using, even as he held jobs, coached Little League and tried to look like a solid family man.

From mopping floors to sitting in a crusty men’s stag meeting, he’s handed simple directions that cut through his clever rationalising: “Sit down, shut up, and listen.” He explains how sobriety reverses the shrinking of his life, how his relationship with his 82-year-old mother shifts from hatred to genuine love, and how he’s learned to be “the kind of father I wished I’d have had.” This talk speaks straight to anyone who feels like a fraud, scared they’re “a nothing” inside.

You’ll hear powerful stories from his work as a juvenile court judge, where he sees teenagers making the same promises he once made in juvenile hall: “I’ll never do it again.” His own turning point comes in a flat in Downey, crying, broke in spirit, and realising that his mind was “either drinking or thinking about it”. AA, for Jerry, isn’t theory; it’s practical surrender.

Jerry shows how meetings, honest sharing and the AA steps gave him dignity, connection and a sense of being “one among many”. If you’ve ever wondered whether AA could work for you, could Jerry’s story be the nudge you need?

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