What Do You Do When You Don’t Feel Like Doing Any of It?What Do You Do When You Don’t Feel Like Doing Any of It?
RAW Recovery Podcast
The episode centres on days when motivation disappears and recovery routines feel like hard work, with Dion sharing how he handles exhaustion and rash reactions. The talk mixes humour, lived experience, and references to AA literature to highlight progress, courage, and consistency over perfection.
34:38•12 Oct 2026
When Recovery Feels Like Hard Work: Showing Up When You Don’t Want To
Episode Overview
- Recovery routines can feel heavy and exhausting, even when nothing is dramatically wrong.
- Reacting quickly often leads to being wrong; pausing supports fair‑mindedness and tolerance.
- True courage is admitting you are wrong and may need help, rather than trying to "man up" alone.
- Consistency in meetings, prayer, and service has a cost, but relying only on moods to act is unreliable.
- Progress, not perfection, is the realistic goal; doing the best you can today with what you have is enough.
“"I'm sitting here behind this microphone and I absolutely have no inspiration. I'm empty, I'm tired, the routine feels heavy."”
What drives someone to seek a life without alcohol? This episode of RAW Recovery Podcast sits right in that gritty space where motivation goes missing and routine starts to feel like hard labour. Dion is upfront from the start: "I just I don't really feel like doing much today... I'm not in a bad mood or anything, I'm just kind of wore out." If you've ever felt "aa'd out" or tired of the daily grind of recovery, you'll likely relate.
The chat moves between light humour and real honesty. There’s Spider-Man being lined up on camera, football talk, and coffee jokes, but underneath it all is a serious question: what do you do on the days when you simply don’t feel like doing any of it – meetings, service, phone calls, prayer, even getting out of bed?
Dion talks about the "exhaustion of consistency" and how early recovery can feel exciting, but later it’s you and the repetition: "The same meetings, the same microphone every day I do the same thing." A big focus is on the Daily Reflection "curbing rashness" and the cost of reacting instead of pausing – illustrated by a small incident with spilt ice and a short temper.
From there, Dion stresses fair‑mindedness, tolerance, and the idea that "when I react I'm usually wrong." The conversation widens into how moods can’t be allowed to run your life, how consistency has a cost, and why admitting "I'm wrong and I might need some help" is described as real courage. There’s also some raw talk about men's meetings, self‑name‑calling, and why "man up" might miss the point of genuine recovery.
Dion brings in the Big Book and Twelve and Twelve to reflect on obsession, instinct, and striving towards progress rather than perfection. If you're feeling worn out by the routine of recovery and wondering whether it’s normal to feel this way, this chat may help you ask: what does showing up look like on the days you really don’t feel like doing any of it?
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