That's Me! That's Me episode 36 with Dee S.That's Me! That's Me episode 36 with Dee S.
Recovery Radio Network
Dee S. shares how coming to AA to quit smoking led to recognising her alcoholism, building fellowship, raising four children in sobriety, and relying on acceptance and meetings through grief and life’s hardest moments. The conversation blends humour with candid reflections on long-term recovery, marriage, and motherhood.
41:09•16 Oct 2026
Quitting Smoking, Finding Sobriety: Dee S. on AA, Motherhood and Acceptance
Episode Overview
- Initial reasons for attending AA may be about smoking or control, but ongoing meetings can reveal a deeper alcohol problem.
- Fellowship and regular attendance, especially at a consistent home group, help create a sense of belonging and routine in sobriety.
- Parenting and marriage in recovery can be challenging, and it’s valid to seek professional help, including medication, when needed.
- Showing up to meetings in whatever emotional state you’re in allows others to support you through grief and major life events.
- Acceptance and focusing on one’s own reactions, rather than trying to control others, is presented as a core tool for long-term sobriety.
“Acceptance is the answer to all of my problems today. When I am disturbed, it’s my reaction I can change.”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This episode of Recovery Radio Network’s "That’s Me! That’s Me" brings together humour, honesty, and long-term recovery as hosts Monica Kay and Julia Jay chat with their guest, Dee S. The show focuses on a simple but powerful question: what made people go back after their first Alcoholics Anonymous meeting? Dee shares that she originally turned up because she wanted to quit smoking, not because she thought she was an alcoholic.
Her plan was to get her drinking "under control" so she could stop smoking – a familiar bit of logic that many in recovery will recognise. As she laughs, "I came here to quit smoking cigarettes," and everyone’s reaction is always, "Wow!" Across the conversation, you’ll hear how Dee’s six months of being "California sober" (still smoking pot) eventually led to a turning point on a long drive back from Las Vegas.
That trip became her moment of surrender and the start of her sober date: 29 July 1990. From there, meetings in San Francisco and later Cincinnati gave her fellowship, routine, and a place to belong. The episode also speaks to parenting and sobriety. Dee describes having four children in three years, the strain on her marriage, and the reality of sometimes needing extra help like medication for situational depression.
There’s no glossing over the hard bits, but there’s a lot of warmth and humour, including a classic kid-in-the-car-seat story involving the word "asshole" and a very honest question about daddy. Things round out with Dee’s favourite passage from the Big Book: "acceptance is the answer to all of my problems today." Her experience with grief, including the loss of her son during COVID, shows how AA fellowship and daily meetings can hold someone through the worst moments.
If you’re wondering what might keep you coming back to meetings – or how people stay sober through real life, kids, loss, and everything in between – this conversation might be just what you need today.
Do you want to link to this podcast?
Get the buttons here!
More From This Show
The latest episodes from the same podcast.