Jon A. Age 26 Sober since: 1/1/18Jon A. Age 26 Sober since: 1/1/18
Keep Coming Back: Real Stories of Sobriety & Recovery
..."at this point I've crossed the threshold. Alcohol was no longer about having fun. It's not a social lubricant anymore, it was about not feeling the way I felt anymore. I would come home from work, drink beer, drink whiskey, smoke cigarettes , and pass out at 8pm so I didn't have to feel anymore"
53:02•7 Oct 2019
Jon A.'s Story: From Suicidal Drinking to Grateful Sobriety at 26
Episode Overview
- Alcohol stopped being a social activity for Jon and became a way to avoid feeling anything, leading to suicidal thoughts and daily dependence.
- Honesty with professionals was nearly impossible at first, as Jon dramatically minimised his drinking and genuinely believed everyone drank like he did.
- Hearing his own inner language, like feeling “terminally unique”, spoken aloud in a meeting gave Jon a first real sense of hope and belonging.
- Working with a sponsor and following simple suggestions, such as leaving unsafe situations, proved crucial in staying sober in early recovery.
- Jon describes sobriety as a more connected, meaningful life, where pain still appears but is met with tools, community and a commitment to keep coming back.
“Alcohol became my entire personality. Acquiring it, drinking it, talking about it. It was just my entire life.”
Interested in the personal battles against addiction? This conversation with Jon A., recorded when he was 26 and sober since 1 January 2018, goes straight into the messy, funny and painfully honest parts of early recovery. Hosted by Mike S., the chat has a relaxed, mate-down-the-pub style (minus the pub), mixing dark humour with serious honesty.
Jon talks about being the guy who seemed fine on the outside – job, jokes, big personality – while inside he was “completely dying spiritually”. His life shrank into a triangle of work, the off-licence, and his flat, where he’d drink, smoke, pass out by 8pm and call that relief. There’s plenty here for anyone who’s ever lied to a therapist about their drinking.
Jon recalls telling his psychiatrist he had “like 10 drinks” on a night out, then realising even that ‘lowball’ shocked her. At one point he told his therapist, “Alcohol is who I am,” and meant it. You’ll hear how suicidal thoughts, family history of alcoholism, and a brutally honest therapist all pushed him towards a 12-step room.
Jon describes the shock of hearing someone in a meeting use the exact words he’d used in his own head – that feeling of being “terminally unique” – and the huge relief that followed. He talks about choosing a sponsor, being told simply “why don’t you just leave?” when stuck at a boozy party, and realising that maybe he didn’t know best after all.
The chat also touches on higher power ideas, addictive ‘whack-a-mole’ with cigarettes, coffee and porn, and what it means to be a “grateful alcoholic” without sounding cheesy. If you’re counting days, doubting if AA is for you, or wondering whether life can ever feel genuinely happy without alcohol, this story might get you asking: what if it really can get better if you just keep coming back?
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