Sarah I PPG Webster’s 6 Year Anniversary 06-07-26Sarah I PPG Webster’s 6 Year Anniversary 06-07-26
Mad Dog Recovery AA Speakers
Sarah I shares six years of sobriety at PPG Webster, describing how alcohol ruled her life, the heavy consequences she faced, and how AA’s 12 steps reshaped her relationships, faith and daily living. Her story focuses on shame, family, loss and the steady, imperfect process of finding freedom without alcohol.
44:57•24 Jul 2026
From Self-Hatred to a "Life Beyond My Wildest Dreams" with Sarah I
Episode Overview
- Alcohol became Sarah’s higher power, driving choices around work, relationships and even pregnancy, until she lost the power of choice over drinking.
- AA and the Big Book helped her see alcoholism as an illness rather than a moral failing, easing crippling shame about choices involving her children.
- Thorough step work, especially inventory and amends, shifted resentments, repaired key relationships and turned her worst experiences into a way to help others.
- Daily practice of steps 10 and 11 is presented as crucial to staying “happy, joyous and free”, not just technically sober.
- She describes a ‘life beyond my wildest dreams’ as the ability to be present for both deep grief and everyday joy without needing alcohol.
“I turned my will and my life over to the care of alcohol for the next 20 plus years of my life.”
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction? This heartfelt AA speaker meeting features Sarah I sharing six years of sobriety at PPG Webster’s anniversary, offering an honest look at how alcohol took over her life and how Alcoholics Anonymous helped her find a way back. You’ll hear Sarah talk about arriving in AA full of shame and resistance, convinced she was “garbage” and that a loving higher power would never want her.
She explains how alcohol became her god: “I turn my will and my life over to the care of alcohol for the next 20 plus years of my life.” From losing custody of her children, to prison, to near-death consequences, she lays out the reality of alcoholism without drama or sugar-coating. The heart of the talk is how the AA programme and the Big Book reframed her belief that she was simply a bad person.
A sponsor helped her see that she had “lost the power of choice when it comes to a drink”, and that she needed “a power greater than alcohol”. She walks through the steps in practical terms – resentment work that showed how her anger had “corrupted my soul”, amends that focused on saying “I was wrong” rather than “I’m sorry”, and daily 10th and 11th step practices that stop her ego running the show.
This episode speaks most strongly to people who feel beyond forgiveness, especially parents burdened by guilt, and to those with time sober who quietly feel stuck. Sarah’s examples of grief, family repair, and ongoing imperfection show a sobriety that makes space for pain and joy side by side, describing her life now as “imperfect, flawed, broken, beautiful”.
If you’ve ever wondered whether AA can work for someone as damaged as you feel, this raw share may be exactly what you need to hear today.
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