SHAIR 204: My Fair Junkie Author Spotlight with Amy DresnerSHAIR 204: My Fair Junkie Author Spotlight with Amy Dresner
The SHAIR Recovery Podcast
Author and comic Amy Dresner talks with Omar Pinto about writing her raw memoir *My Fair Junkie*, facing shame, and using discipline instead of feelings to build lasting sobriety. The conversation blends dark humour, personal stories and practical tools for handling cravings, relapse and stigma in recovery.
1:36:48•8 Jan 2019
My Fair Junkie: Amy Dresner on Brutal Honesty, Discipline and Staying Sober
Episode Overview
- Writing honestly about addiction can be painful but helps others feel less alone and more hopeful.
- Cravings and urges usually pass if you delay, distract yourself and take contrary action instead of using.
- Relying only on feelings keeps people stuck; repeated disciplined actions help create stability and a new identity.
- Relapse is common; returning to recovery without shame is more important than protecting your ego.
- Being open about addiction and recovery can reduce stigma and make it harder for shame to control you.
“"Fuck your feelings, dude. For real… You're not going to get sober, or get what you want… listening to your fucking feelings. Discipline creates stability."”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This SHAIR Recovery Podcast conversation with author and comic Amy Dresner shows just how messy, funny and brutally honest that process can be. Host Omar Pinto brings Amy back for an Author Spotlight on her memoir *My Fair Junkie*, and you’ll hear the unfiltered reality of what it’s like to put every horrific, humiliating detail of addiction on the page.
Amy explains that writing the book was "not cathartic" at all, but deeply painful, because she had to re-enter the headspace of active addiction without the numbing effect of drugs or denial.
She talks candidly about including sex addiction, eating disorders and repeated relapses, insisting that the most shameful stories are often the ones people most need to read, so they can finally say, "me too." Amy describes the odd mix of poverty, pressure and pride that comes with a small advance, tough deadlines and then months of promoting your own book while feeling awkward saying, "buy my book" on endless podcasts.
The conversation widens into bigger recovery themes: cravings that usually pass in about 20 minutes, the power of contrary action, and creating new neural pathways through disciplined routines like meetings, sponsorship and service. Amy’s mantra, "fuck your feelings," isn’t about ignoring emotions, but about not letting them run the show. As she puts it, "Discipline creates stability," and repeated action slowly turns into a new identity.
They also tackle anonymity, stigma, and why being open about addiction and recovery can make someone feel "bulletproof" rather than ashamed. Raw humour, science talk about dopamine, and real-time coaching of struggling community members keep the conversation lively and very real. If you’ve ever wondered whether your story is "too much" to share, or if you can really change after years of chaos, this one might make you rethink what’s possible in sobriety.
What parts of your story are you still afraid to own?
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