Samantha first had to struggle with the ism in alcoholism, a monumental battle on its own. Then came facing the ugliness behind the mask, beginning a long journey of self realization and recovery. No one could have told her that the tools she gained in sobriety would become the only anchor strong enough to prepare her for the most devastating challenge still ahead.

Bob sits down with Samantha as she traces her path from chaotic childhood dynamics and an alcohol soaked early adulthood into a grinding fight for sobriety and purpose. She walks through the masks she wore, the relationships she jumped into for validation, the escalating drinking that finally ended with her being hauled to rehab, and the unexpected spiritual crack that opened the door to true recovery. But the real gut punch comes when she recounts her daughter Brittany’s decade long battle with addiction, her fleeting stretch of hope, and the overdose that forced Samantha to make the unthinkable decision no parent should face. What follows is a brutally honest look at grief, faith, survival, and the fragile, daily work of staying sober when the one thing you thought would destroy you actually happens yet somehow, you keep going.

HopeMovementCoalition.com

Supporting Grieving Families & Fighting the Opioid Epidemic

Hope Movement Coalition was born out of the devastating loss of loved ones to fentanyl poisoning and opioid-related deaths. Our mission is to provide unwavering support to those navigating the complicated grieving process, help them find strength in their darkest moments, and be a voice for the voiceless in communities across the nation.

AR HHS Act 811 Opioid Overdose Reversal Kits Naloxone ACT 811: Arkansas’s 2023 law requiring opioid overdose reversal kits in public high schools and state-supported universities.

While We’re Waiting (WWW) on FB

WWW is a nonprofit ministry which offers free faith-based retreats and support for bereaved parents

Text Us at 501-613-8915

Leave a voicemail 501-613-8915

Email us team@shoutoutfromthepit.com

Subscribe Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | Email | RSS | Subscribe to the Podcast Feed

Thought to Consider . . .

Let the lunatic out of the attic.
Joy isn’t the absence of pain – it’s the presence of God.
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, the courage to change the one that I can, and the wisdom to know that person is me.”

*~*AACRONYMS*~*

F A I T H = Facing All In Trusting Him

The identification that one alcoholic has with another is mysterious, spiritual – almost incomprehensible. But it is there.

“Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics.”

Spiritual Life

“The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it. Unless one’s family expresses a desire to live upon spiritual principles, we think we ought not to urge them. We should not talk incessantly to them about spiritual matters. They will change in time. Our behavior will convince them more than our words. We must remember that ten or twenty years of drunkenness would make a skeptic out of anyone.”

Baffling Feature

For those who are unable to drink moderately the question is how to stop altogether. We are assuming, of course, that the reader desires to stop. Whether such a person can quit upon a nonspiritual basis depends upon the extent to which he has already lost the power to choose whether he will drink or not. Many of us felt that we had plenty of character. There was a tremendous urge to cease forever. Yet we found it impossible. This is the baffling feature of alcoholism as we know it – this utter inability to leave it alone, no matter how great the necessity or the wish.

Forgiveness

“Through the vital Fifth Step, we began to get the feeling that we could be forgiven, no matter what we had thought or done. Often it was while working on this Step with our sponsors or spiritual advisers that we first felt truly able to forgive others, no matter how deeply we felt they had wronged us. Our moral inventory had persuaded us that all-round forgiveness was desirable, but it was only when we resolutely tackled Step Five that we inwardly knew we’d be able to receive forgiveness and give it, too.”

VITAL SUSTENANCE

Those of us who have come to make regular use of prayer would no more do without it than we would refuse air, food, or sunshine. And for the same reason. When we refuse air, light or food, the body suffers. And when we turn away from meditation and prayer, we likewise deprive our minds, our emotions, and our intuitions of vitally needed support.

God’s miracle-working power is as manifest today as it was in the past. It still works miracles of change in lives and miracles of healing in twisted minds. When a person trusts wholly in God and leaves to Him the choosing of the day and hour, there is God’s miracle-working power becoming manifest in that persons life. So we can trust in God and have boundless faith in His power to make us whole again, whenever He chooses.

Affirmation!

“Taking advantage of technological advances, for example, A.A. members with computers can participate in meetings online, sharing with fellow alcoholics across the country or around the world. Fundamentally, though, the difference between an electronic meeting and the home group around the corner is only one of format. In any meeting, anywhere, A.A.’s share experience, strength, and hope with each other, in order to stay sober and help other alcoholics. Modem-to-modem or face-to-face, A.A.’s speak the language of the heart in all its power and simplicity.”

Dianne