RE 595: You Have One Job

RE 595: You Have One Job

What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? This episode follows Rich, a 60-year-old salesman from Sacramento, as he talks openly about going from secret vodka stashes and morning “pops” to 312 days alcohol-free and feeling, in his words, “fantastic”. You’ll hear how alcohol gradually shifted from fun college parties and bartending in a beach town to heavy, isolated drinking on work trips, where hotel choice was based on how close the liquor store was.

Rich describes realisation creeping in during lockdown, when his first worry was whether alcohol shops would close, and how apps, reading quit lit and online meetings started nudging him towards change. The turning point is brutal and honest: his wife quietly documented hidden bottles, confronted him with time-stamped photos, and his daughter saying, “Dad, I don’t even know what to say. You’ve never let me down,” became his rock bottom. Later telling his son was “rock bottom B”.

Instead of staying stuck in shame, Rich uses that pain as fuel for sobriety. Host Paul Churchill frames the whole episode around one simple job in early sobriety: “You have one job today, and that’s to not drink.” He explains how, if you stick to that job, your body quietly gets on with healing — rewiring dopamine, rebalancing sleep and repairing at a cellular level, often while you rest. Community and honest conversation sit at the heart of the episode.

Rich talks about finding support through Recovery Elevator’s Cafe RE, hosting group chats, and learning to talk to his wife instead of the bottle when emotions run high. His favourite sober moment? Full throttle on a snowmobile in Alaska, yelling inside his helmet, “I love my sober life.” If you’re tired of bargaining with yourself about “just two sips”, could focusing on one job — not drinking today — be the shift you need?