We Can Only Work With The Truth (The Daily Trudge)

We Can Only Work With The Truth (The Daily Trudge)

Curious about how others take an honest look at their drinking and recovery? This Daily Trudge instalment of the RAW Recovery Podcast follows Dion as he talks candidly about why "we can only work with the truth" and why anything less keeps people stuck. The style is relaxed, scruffy, and very human.

One minute he’s joking about different voices, bad hair days, and hating mumble rap, the next he’s cutting straight to the heart of addiction: lying to doctors, downplaying the liver pain, insisting "I don’t drink that much" while everything falls apart. You’ll hear him say plainly, "Recovery cannot happen without honesty. It cannot," making it clear who this is for: people in recovery, those questioning their drinking, and anyone who wants real talk rather than polished slogans.

Dion breaks down his version of the "four A’s" of recovery – awareness, acceptance, action and accountability – and hints at adding a fifth: attitude. He jokes that action isn’t a magic word, "Action is the magic thing to do," gently calling out the habit of asking for guidance then binging TV instead of doing the work. A big theme is rigorous honesty, which he describes as "an internal honesty" – being scrupulously truthful with yourself, not just others.

He shares how fear, shame and pride kept him hiding from the truth for years, even while working in treatment, and how facing the truth has brought healing to his family and relationships. This is raw, chatty, and sometimes sweary, but it’s aimed at creating a safe space where people who "didn’t have childhoods" and feel different can laugh, relate, and hear that change is possible if they’re willing to be honest.

It might leave you asking yourself: what truths about your drinking or your recovery are you still dodging?