Wall Street Alcoholic Finds His Calling After Addressing Childhood TraumaWall Street Alcoholic Finds His Calling After Addressing Childhood Trauma
I Love Being Sober
Tom O’Connor shares his journey from a traumatised childhood and high-flying Wall Street career to a near-fatal six-storey fall and 23 years in recovery. The discussion focuses on AA, Adult Children of Alcoholics, trauma work, and the power of service and family connections in building a sober life.
59:56•18 Oct 2022
From Wall Street Millionaire to Six-Storey Fall: Tom O’Connor on Trauma and Sobriety
Episode Overview
- Professional success can hide severe alcoholism until the "wheels come off" in personal life.
- Life-threatening events, like Tom’s six-storey fall, don’t automatically lead to sobriety without structured support.
- Addressing childhood and adult trauma through ACA, workshops, and therapy can significantly deepen recovery.
- Sponsoring others and being of service helps maintain sobriety by shifting focus away from self and into helping others.
- Consistent routines, meetings, and connection with the fellowship are crucial to prevent the "relapse before the relapse".
“I was going to die. So what did God do? He lowered me off a building.”
What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? Here, you’ll follow Tom O’Connor’s wild, heartbreaking and ultimately hopeful journey from a chaotic childhood to Wall Street success and, finally, long-term sobriety. The conversation centres on Tom, the youngest of nine children from what he jokes was "Catholic Irish Alcoholics" territory on Long Island.
With a mum who was a "raging alcoholic" and a dad who died of pancreatic cancer when Tom was 12, he explains, "At that point I vowed never to rely on anyone ever again." That vow fed a ruthless drive: Tom became a self-made millionaire by 30, smashing phones on the trading floor by day and drinking top-shelf liquor by night. The turning point is nothing short of jaw-dropping.
After a drug- and alcohol-fuelled night out, Tom fell six stories from a New York rooftop: "I was going to die. So what did God do? He lowered me off a building." He survived with major injuries, yet kept drinking for three more years until the sight of his crying infant daughter in the rear-view mirror finally pushed him into AA.
You’ll hear how 23 years in recovery, mostly through AA and Adult Children of Alcoholics, have reshaped Tom’s relationships, especially with his siblings and children. He talks about addressing childhood and adult trauma through programmes at The Meadows, therapy, meditation, journaling and other modalities, while keeping AA as his foundation.
This episode really leans into service and community: Tom brings meetings into rehabs and homeless shelters, sponsors men, and emphasises that real change happens when people "give it away to keep it". The style is honest, raw and funny in places, with Tim and Tom swapping stories about relapse, ego, and road rage — all grounded in a message of hope.
If you’re wondering whether a chaotic past or successful career makes you "too far gone", this one might have you asking: what could your own story look like if you kept showing up?
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