SHAIR 81: "Tattooed Sobriety" with Sunny Buick, the story of a recovering hipster!SHAIR 81: "Tattooed Sobriety" with Sunny Buick, the story of a recovering hipster!
The SHAIR Recovery Podcast
Tattoo artist Sunny Buick shares how a “soul crisis” took her from speed, rockabilly bars and toxic relationships to 17 years of sobriety in Paris. The conversation touches on family chaos, AA, spirituality and learning to choose healthy love over drama.
1:07:12•30 Aug 2016
Tattooed Sobriety: Sunny Buick on Soul Crisis, Ink and 17 Years Clean
Episode Overview
- A “soul crisis” can be the turning point that makes change feel more urgent than staying stuck.
- AA meetings and step work offered Sunny a new high without the negative consequences of drugs and alcohol.
- Volunteer work and being of service were key suggestions that helped her get out of self-pity during painful transitions.
- Recognising patterns with narcissistic and chaotic partners helped her choose a calm, secure relationship in long-term recovery.
- Spiritual connection can come through meditation, movement, art and honest conversations with clients as well as meetings.
“I call it a soul crisis. And I really wanted to do something. I had my dream job. I felt like there was no reason for me not to take a look at myself and try to change myself and be happy.”
What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? In this chat on The SHAIR Recovery Podcast, tattoo artist Sunny Buick shares how a self-described “soul crisis” pushed her to change everything. Omar Pinto talks with Sunny, a Canadian–American artist living in Paris with 17 years clean and sober, about growing up with an alcoholic single mum, constant moving, and finding identity in San Francisco’s tattoo and rockabilly scenes.
You’ll hear how early speed use, heavy drinking and chaotic relationships were all tangled up with her creativity and ultra-sensitive nature. Sunny explains how marrying her drinking buddy led to a spectacular crash: a failing antique shop, lies, speed, and a husband who didn’t come home. A random taxi ride with a driver who somehow zeroed in on her unresolved issues with her mother became the spark that sent her to therapy and then to her first AA meetings.
She describes those early meetings as a kind of stand-up show full of old and young punks, and talks about getting “10 times higher” from recovery than from drugs. She also gets honest about the less glamorous part of long-term sobriety: drifting away from meetings, relying on work, clients and sports for spiritual connection, and wrestling with boundaries around a still-difficult relationship with her mother.
Her move to France, a disastrous relationship with a “pervert narcissist”, and finally a calm, secure marriage to a non-drinking partner show how her “picker” changed over time. If you’re someone who’s ever felt drawn to messy, magnetic people, or you grew up in dysfunction and wonder whether a stable life is even possible, Sunny’s story might give you fresh hope and a few laughs. Could your own soul crisis be the start of something better?
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