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Former Alcoholic: How I Knew I Had A Drinking Problem! Guy Wills on Mental Health & Getting Sober

January 08, 202501:05:22
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go Wills right mate all right mate okay
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um are you a day counter how many days
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have you been sober oh so I I actually
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looked the other day and it's something
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like it's
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1,79 or something like that so it's a
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whole heap of time now just just under
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two yeah two it's just over two and a
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half years I think so you're not super
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rain a little better I know a lot of um
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recovering alcoholics are they no no so
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there's a lot of people who um yeah but
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but I think that's the biggest thing for
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me is that I don't Define Myself by it I
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think that's uh not that saying people
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who do can't Define themselves by it but
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I think once when you're saying I am
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this you then have to follow up with
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those numbers and that's becomes your
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identity whereas for me it's not it's
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been part of my journey and that's where
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I'm going like I don't want to be boxed
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off in it yeah well congratulations
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however many days yeah yeah um let's
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start this conversation at Rock Bottom
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uh was was Rock Bottom for you a moment
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or was it like a prolonged period of
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time a serious of series of moments so I
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think it was a series of moments but
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there was a specific time that it
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happened and I was like right okay I
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need to sort my [ __ ] out and and fix
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this and but there had been multiple
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occasions I'd lived in obviously I'm
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from the UK lived in the UK and then we
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uh I came over here over to New Zealand
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was living over here and I could just
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see a lot of the same patterns that had
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affected me back in the UK reoccurring
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again it's it's funny I think it's a
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quote from um confucious it's like
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wherever you go there you are yeah and
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it's true like you can't you can't yeah
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you can change your situation but you
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need to change yourself exactly and it's
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something that is I didn't realize it
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it's like obviously people speak about
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all the time and and and that it's that
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you can't run away from your troubles
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and that was something that I didn't
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even
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really think of I didn't realize I was
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doing it to be honest I thought oh no I
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just go for the trip and it'd be a good
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break away but yeah over time then I
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realized oh hang on this isn't this
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isn't this is all following me this is
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all go to [ __ ] manchest is not the issue
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oh yeah yeah exactly exactly and it was
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um and that's the biggest thing that was
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the biggest part on this kind of
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Learning Journey of giving up booze is
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is that you suddenly realize that it is
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you and and it's and that's the toughest
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pill to swallow with it is that
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acceptance of that and going do you know
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what and and part of that you forgive
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yourself as well while you're doing it
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is or you have to because you otherwise
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you can just I'm this Dreadful person
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I've I've put people through this so
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there has to be an element of accepting
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and forgiveness while you're while
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you're doing it definitely so so so what
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was that what was that last night the
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Final store oh so last night it was like
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a week it was the we my birthday weekend
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and it was nothing there was nothing
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it was bad but it wasn't it could have
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been I've done way worse things what
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what were you like as a as a drinker
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like were were you angry were you suly
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were you fun I was everything I was a
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bit of it it depended when what slipper
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fit really uh I was very gregarious I'd
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be out there I'd jump on tables dance i'
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would I'd act as if it was like a Greek
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Wedding at a funeral do you know what I
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mean so I'd be up on the I'd be smashing
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plates I'd be be I just caused chaos and
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I and I think over time I I came to
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realize that that chaos came from a
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place of one needing to be seen I think
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and wanting that kind of and it was a
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tough tough road to go down but yeah as
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a kind of drunk I wasn't ever there was
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a lot of occasions where I did offend
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people uh but then that just came part
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of my character that was the sad part of
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it is that people then like oh it's guy
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got is it's all right he's he upset
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whoever or is it and would kind of wake
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up on a Sunday and or Monday or whenever
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I was waking up hung over and be like oh
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I think I [ __ ] up last night but I
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can't remember who it was and I kind of
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almost send out like a blanket message
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it wasn't as saying too much but enough
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to be like was it you that I offended oh
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they anxiety yeah yeah so there so there
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was no I suppose this is what you sort
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of expect if you see like a Ben Affleck
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movie um it's like there H crash's car
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and it's like that's it this is my rock
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bottom so you were just sort of like s
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sitting in a [ __ ] state for a while yeah
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it' been a [ __ ] I think Co had a lot to
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do with it i' I'd massively upped my
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drinking intake over Co I'd gone from
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like well every day was a bloody holiday
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when it during Co but it was for me with
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the odd wage yeah yeah exactly so I was
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like oh well I must spend this on
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alcohol so uh so that's what I did but I
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go up to like four bottles of wine a day
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while I was doing it and I was hammering
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it and then it's ju yeah it just became
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really um just one of those where it was
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really eaten away at me with that but
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that I had the the issue the issue just
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arose and it just became a real very
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problematic thing over time and I I was
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feeling it and my life wasn't going the
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way that I wanted it to so and there was
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one there was one weekend specifically
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where it was my birthday weekend went
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out upset my partner and came back home
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and is is this the partner that you got
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married to Congratulations by the way
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yeah just recently yeah
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what' you do um so it was I got really I
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ended up getting really paranoid I was
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extremely tired I was I knackered from
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work I'd gone out on the pace and I just
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got really paranoid about some fell with
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my wife and I was just um yeah I just
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kind of was horrible I was just horrible
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to everybody uh ended up going home
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couldn't remember most of the rest of it
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and then the next day she was in bits
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quite rightly so and I was I could just
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see it all happening again because I'd
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already been married in the UK i' split
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from that it was a bit of a toxic
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relationship for both parts as these
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things go um but that I definitely saw
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how my side was had affected that hugely
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um so yeah it was just massively it just
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I could just see it all un unraveling
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again and I just thought there's only
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one common denominator and that's just
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booze and I I I thought to myself how
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long am I going to keep going on that
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how long am I going to keep putting
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myself and other people through that
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especially the people who love me the
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most so yeah so you said your partner um
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I'm never going to drink again um how
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did I'm sure this wasn't your first last
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time in commer how did how did you know
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that this would be the last last time oh
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good question
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I I I I don't know there was just a
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feeling in the pit your stomach where
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it's almost like you know when you [ __ ]
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up in life and you have been caught out
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and something catches you out or you've
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set a porcupine and it's kind of like
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the internal lie to yourself and you've
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lied to yourself go no I don't have a
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drinking problem there's nothing there
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that is affected everything else is all
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right there's but it one thing for
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certain it's not the alcohol and then
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there's the this point where you kind of
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just go yeah it's the alcohol and and
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that kind of weight fell off me and when
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I kind of internally took it on and knew
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it was that it just I I knew that was
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that that was it then I just knew I I
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kind of there's a big thing with the AA
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where they say um it's like the first
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step and it's that admitting defeat and
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everything and for me it they don't say
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admit defeat but it's that kind of um
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that acceptance yeah completely uh and
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that's what and it's such a strange
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feeling I think the only time you feel
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or that I can acknowledge that I felt
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like that is when you fall in love and
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it's that kind of suren that surrender
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to yourself is that you're going okay
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I'm going to let my guard down and let
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somebody in and just like love whereas
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with alcoholism because it kind of is
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like your mistress it's that kind of
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thing on your side that's always there
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and protects you and has always looked
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after you and helped you in great times
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but also in your worst times for me
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especially um so to let that go and yeah
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it became a bit of a
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yeah just having to Let It Go was quite
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a hard hard process because it was like
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my protection for a long long time and
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how how was your mental health at this
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time do you have any suicidal thoughts
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or anything or not at this not at this
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point but I I definitely had uh
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beforehand and this is what I mean is
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when you're saying before is it was it
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this like rock like was it this bottom
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were you right at the bottom of the
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barrel or were you was there multiple
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things there had been multiple things
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there had been time back in the UK where
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i' contemplated not being here anymore
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there had been times in New Zealand as
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well where I just was lost like
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completely lost I didn't know what to do
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uh and it was getting to the point like
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I'd just been sapped from my job um I I
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didn't know where to turn I didn't know
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what to do but at the time at that time
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I still didn't give up drinking it
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wasn't the alcohol's fault whereas now
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when I look back it kind of still wasn't
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the it it was a me problem it's exactly
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what you said at the start of this it
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was a me problem and it's something that
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I I couldn't delve deeper in while I was
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still drinking and but I knew it was
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something I had to delve deeper in for
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me to have that life that I knew I
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probably deserved and wanted yeah good
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on you and um so so ya that that that
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seems like a big a big step I me there's
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so many resources online and that's um
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that's our parts in up Crossing you're
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one of these resources now so many so
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many podcasts so many books um so many
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Instagram accounts um why AA that seems
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like yeah so the AA for me is it kind of
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seemed like
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the the the beginner's guide to giving
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up booze uh and it seemed like the right
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place to go for me there was books and
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there was but I wasn't I knew I had to
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be around people who wanted the same
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thing and that was something that became
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really apparent once I went there and I
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I went in I had had to go with my now
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wife walked in
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uh [ __ ] myself because it's not it's
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all good saying it to yourself and going
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you know what I think there's a bit of
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an issue there with drink or I think
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there's a problem with myself and
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alcohol um but the biggest issue is and
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and that's all good saying it to
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yourself but I think saying it to other
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people especially people you don't
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[ __ ] know and then you're saying oh
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yeah by the way I'm guy and I'm an
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alcoholic and it was hard as well
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because I
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don't I wasn't a perceived alcoholic I
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wasn't in my I wasn't somebody who was
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uh I wasn't up in the morning having VOD
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on my cornflakes do you know what I mean
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I was just I just like to drink a lot at
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weekends and stuff yeah yeah that's the
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funny thing about it because um yeah
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even if if you tell people I think I've
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got I think I'm an alcoholic they'll be
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like well you're not you're not drinking
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myths on the street you never miss a day
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of work you still keep fit exactly so
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yeah the the comparison games I think is
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very dangerous when it comes to
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completely and I think it's like
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anything with it whether it's mental
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health or alcohol is it's all Spectrum
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based you can't judge it off off you're
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either on a par bench drinking a bottle
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of vodka or you're not or or you're
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sober there's I and I think that's why I
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really needed to make a page like right
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mate or something which is for the
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people who are in the gray area who who
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can go out on a Friday and Saturday and
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Sunday and are really in that middle
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part of do is this a drink is this a
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drinking problem because I'm told by
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alcohol companies I'm told by look just
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by looking at other people that this is
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completely normal and it is completely
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normal and that's the scary part of it I
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think for myself is when you take a step
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away from alcohol and you look it for
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what it is it is all encompassing in
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society and it's very hard
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to break that down and see how um we can
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take a step away from that and look at
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it so that we can better ourselves in
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certain
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yeah cuz I had um Dr Ashley Bloomfield
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on the on the podcast and we we talked
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about alcohol and I said alcohol it'll
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probably end up being like tobacco or
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sugar and you'll be like I can't believe
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they got away with it um but he said
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it's a drug that can be consumed um
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safely and without issue and small
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quantities but the the difficulty there
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is it's so addictive yeah and it's and
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it depends what kind of P like depends
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on what kind of person you are as well
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and what you if like maybe there's parts
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of it that are hereditary for yourself
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or maybe it's just something and it
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depends where you're using it and uh if
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you use it in small amount I don't know
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anybody who goes to a doctor and tells
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the doctor the legit amount of alcohol
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they actually drink do you know what I
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mean I think it's um the occasional
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glass we now yeah yeah exactly that's
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what I mean it's like every once in a
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while you mean every night so do you
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know what I mean and I think it's it's
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and and and this is how these companies
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get away with it as well is they put
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drink responsibly on the back of the the
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and nobody like what does what is
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responsibly um if we're taking it from
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the actual statistics and stuff we're
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saying that maybe one glass a month is
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going to be all right for you um
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anything more than one to two a night is
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high is suggesting that you not don't
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not that you have a problem with it at
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all but that that there could be issues
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with the health later on down the line
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yeah so so so AA where do you even where
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do you even begin with it you Google it
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and you go to like a a hall locally or
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yeah pretty much pretty much I got on
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Google and was just like where's my Lo
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like where's my closest one and it's
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really there was really helpful on there
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uh found my Google was great for it
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obviously just popped up closest one was
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like a kilometer away or a couple of K
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away I was like right okay and I just
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walked in you kind of just walk in
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people are there and it's funny cuz
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there's some people there who've been
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for years like like 20 years 30 years uh
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and then there was like little old me
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trying to be like oh yeah okay and you
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kind of iron it open half of the battle
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is getting through the door like most of
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these things uh and I was just trying to
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kind of work out what was like did I
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need to be there and that's the like
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it's like well I I don't need to be
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there like and and you have this
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internal battle all the way through it
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but once I got to the but they the
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people there were great very supportive
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you you get up you don't have to say
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anything if you don't want to uh did you
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I did but I felt I needed to um what was
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um can you remember it like repeat your
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yeah I can vividly I can't remember the
00:15:12
speech but I just I just
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remember I God it was hard I remember
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just standing they they go around and
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they they're like oh we've got a new
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person here would you like to say
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anything and I Knew by saying something
00:15:26
that it would put my stamp on I've got
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job to do now um so I I I said yeah I
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said yeah hello my name is guy and I'm
00:15:35
an alcoholic and I just burst into tears
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uh and it was yeah it was just horrible
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it was horrible oh sorry uh and yeah it
00:15:50
was just let me just switch this sorry
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uh and yeah it was just it was just
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horrible it was the worst thing that I
00:16:01
could ever think of doing but it was
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also the most relieving thing that I
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could have done um I I came away from it
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feeling ton lighter I went to a few I so
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I I then did that for about 12
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weeks um but that was just my preference
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for it like there was people that you
00:16:20
could go you can go for as long as you
00:16:22
want um so you don't have a you don't
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still have a sponsor or no no no no no I
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never I never had a sponsor
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uh there was a couple of people in there
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who said that they could help me if I
00:16:32
wanted um but I think I
00:16:35
managed I I I think after the after
00:16:39
admitting it to myself that it was a lot
00:16:42
easier to move forward and it
00:16:47
was it just became yeah it just became a
00:16:49
lot easier it became a lot easier and um
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you're you're now wife who was your
00:16:54
girlfriend at the time so she she came
00:16:56
with you um yeah I can't imagine much
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like a higher level of vulnerability
00:17:02
than that no what was what was that day
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like the day after well for her I think
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it probably was very relieving for her
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because literally a day before she was
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probably quite close to leaving me and
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want to so to actually see me doing
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something proactive towards bettering
00:17:19
myself which in the long term would
00:17:21
better the relationship and all that I
00:17:23
think she was probably quite happy about
00:17:25
it and I think she she was unbelievably
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supportive
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um we talked openly and frankly which is
00:17:32
always best um and yeah we got
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to yeah we it just it was she was great
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and for myself it
00:17:43
wasn't I needed her support and I think
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that's I think that's part of part of it
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so
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yeah but it must it must be scary for
00:17:53
her at the um the same time like she
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must be thinking well I does this mean I
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can't drink again I can drink
00:17:59
responsibility I I don't have a problem
00:18:01
with it yeah she well she didn't drink
00:18:03
too much but um it was something that we
00:18:08
had to at the start kind of work around
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and we had to have those conversations
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uh is it okay if I have a drink tonight
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is it and I would be like I'd be like
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yeah yeah yeah it's fine but in the back
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of my mind I was like this is this is
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quite hard this is this is i' would love
00:18:23
a bear with you right now um but I I
00:18:28
wasn't that kind of what was tough for
00:18:30
me was the social aspect it wasn't the
00:18:32
having the
00:18:33
alcohol
00:18:35
necessarily um it was a social aspect of
00:18:37
it and it felt like to me it felt like
00:18:39
the elephant in the room whereas the
00:18:41
actual matter of the fact is nobody
00:18:43
really really cared that much um so it
00:18:47
wasn't yeah it was it was just a lot
00:18:49
easier it it wasn't too hard in that in
00:18:52
that respect because we're quite
00:18:53
supportive of each
00:18:54
other um have you relapsed at all no
00:18:58
well I've
00:19:00
relapsed is that a tricky word no I
00:19:02
don't think re no it's not a tricky word
00:19:04
but it's uh so I did a year first I did
00:19:08
one year and after that year I'd already
00:19:10
said after this year I'm going to see if
00:19:12
I can dip my toe back in the water again
00:19:14
and see how it goes and I did the year
00:19:17
uh we were back in the UK at the time on
00:19:19
holiday and that year i' so the year had
00:19:24
gone and we kind of celebrated had a few
00:19:27
drinks and it was I did about three
00:19:28
weeks where I drank and then after that
00:19:31
3 weeks I stopped again uh I just Mass
00:19:34
it wasn't that I was became the Savage
00:19:36
animal as soon as the alcohol touched my
00:19:38
lips or anything and started tearing
00:19:40
things apart I just could see it
00:19:43
progressively get quite quickly changing
00:19:45
back like I got into this really good
00:19:47
place I felt fantastic my health was
00:19:49
great all everything was tip toop and I
00:19:52
thought maybe I can reintroduce alcohol
00:19:55
and I tried and it I could just see I
00:19:59
felt lethargic I became more
00:20:02
irritable uh I was just tired in general
00:20:06
I couldn't be bother those things like
00:20:07
the gym and those nice like positive
00:20:10
things that You' I was a bit like oh
00:20:12
well tomorrow tomorrow everything became
00:20:14
a bit more tomorrow rather than just
00:20:16
being like no I can do that today um so
00:20:20
yeah after that year after that three
00:20:22
weeks I was just like I'm going to go
00:20:23
again and then ever since that I've not
00:20:26
I've not and I've never had the urge to
00:20:27
now is it's
00:20:29
I just don't even think about it anymore
00:20:31
yeah that's funny that's why I opened
00:20:33
this chat by um asking about the day
00:20:35
counting thing because I I feel like um
00:20:37
I mean it's a proven Theory and it does
00:20:40
work um but if if you're thinking about
00:20:43
every morning when you wake up you
00:20:44
you're constantly thinking about it yeah
00:20:46
um but it seems like it's just not even
00:20:48
not even a part of your life and you've
00:20:49
been through a massive um upheaval
00:20:51
recently it's quite funny so you were
00:20:52
you you were living in Manchester and
00:20:54
drinking and your mom died and then you
00:20:55
moved to New Zealand then you've been on
00:20:57
this whole briy journey and um just
00:21:00
recently your dad's died so if there was
00:21:02
ever a point or a life event where you
00:21:03
were going to maybe take to the bottle
00:21:05
again yeah you think that would be it
00:21:07
yeah completely and I think
00:21:10
um it was something that that was I was
00:21:16
aware of cuz I thought especially at the
00:21:18
funeral I thought maybe maybe I should
00:21:21
kind of see him off you know and give
00:21:23
him a a a razor glass to him do you know
00:21:26
what I mean um but then I just he was
00:21:30
extremely proud of where I'd got to and
00:21:32
he was fully understandable that his age
00:21:36
group had this kind of warped idea of
00:21:39
what alcohol did and that wasn't their
00:21:40
fault either it was just due to the fact
00:21:43
that that's how people like alcohol was
00:21:46
good to have a glass with your meal it
00:21:48
was good like education and stuff like
00:21:50
that and um if you've got a cold have a
00:21:54
bit of whiskey do you know all those
00:21:55
kind of like home remedies and stuff um
00:21:59
so I but he was proud of where I'd got
00:22:01
to with it and I think I didn't I didn't
00:22:05
ever I was I was proud of myself for
00:22:07
that you know what I mean so I never
00:22:09
felt that kind of urge and and along
00:22:11
this time as well like over these kind
00:22:13
of last three years I've managed to
00:22:15
build up tons of ways to cope with [ __ ]
00:22:19
and I think that's the key thing is it's
00:22:21
not just doing your having a four-week
00:22:24
dry January or whatever you're going to
00:22:26
do is fantastic but people fall off very
00:22:29
quickly and they wonder why and it's
00:22:31
because the the they're they're
00:22:33
expecting to stop something that has
00:22:34
served as a served its purpose for such
00:22:36
a long time in what in in helping them
00:22:39
and then they go okay well that's it and
00:22:43
or what and then they go back to the
00:22:44
bottle so easily because they've not put
00:22:46
anything else in place that would cover
00:22:48
what you like which would help you if
00:22:50
you were feeling a bit stressed or a bit
00:22:52
sad or a bit happier you what are your
00:22:54
viices now oh chocolate and sweets and
00:22:58
have a nightmare for it sugary stuff is
00:23:01
just a oh a my achilles here all right
00:23:06
what about what about like um maybe
00:23:08
they're not called vies but you know
00:23:09
just just like good things that you've
00:23:11
replaced the AL oh yeah so um so now I
00:23:15
I'm big in the gym I love going to the
00:23:17
gym uh I go and do I go almost every day
00:23:22
I've I try new things that's my biggest
00:23:24
thing I try new experience that's what
00:23:25
I'm kind of addicted to now is trying
00:23:28
all the things that I couldn't when I
00:23:29
was drinking uh and I think that's the
00:23:32
most poignant thing for me is the you
00:23:34
get time back when you stop drinking and
00:23:37
and and it's something that when you're
00:23:38
drinking you don't realize how much of
00:23:40
it there is that you're wasting on it uh
00:23:44
or the all the hangover or however
00:23:46
you're feeling um so now I it's exper
00:23:49
I'm addicted to new experiences exper
00:23:52
experience new things new people new
00:23:55
Ventures new just doing stuff definitely
00:23:58
what about um what about your old friend
00:24:00
group either in Manchester or your
00:24:02
friends that you made here in New
00:24:03
Zealand did you did you have to shed
00:24:05
that and move on to a new friend group I
00:24:07
did it's it's funny and that's one of
00:24:09
the the big things I think with alcohol
00:24:11
is a lot a lot of the time when people
00:24:13
are thinking of cutting back or stopping
00:24:15
completely they think there's this this
00:24:17
mentality of what you have to give up
00:24:19
but I think also there's a you have to
00:24:21
look at what you can gain from it
00:24:23
massively and that I have I've not lost
00:24:27
any of my friends still all there but
00:24:29
it's just that they're doing stuff that
00:24:31
I don't want to be doing and that's that
00:24:33
doesn't mean that I have disregarded
00:24:35
them or I don't care for them and still
00:24:37
wouldn't check in on them I just won't
00:24:40
go and see like if they're going to
00:24:41
going to a pub BS me like there is
00:24:44
literally a a place where you just drink
00:24:46
alcohol and yes you will have a
00:24:47
conversation stuff but I can do that
00:24:49
over a coffee and a cup of tea and or a
00:24:52
Dr and I can go for an hour or two to
00:24:55
support to go for six hours and to P or
00:24:58
a bar just that doesn't interest me
00:25:00
anymore so you do lo you do lose so you
00:25:04
lose that close connection cuz you're
00:25:06
not trying to phone up somebody and say
00:25:08
oh don't I come for a bear tonight um
00:25:10
but that doesn't stop you from checking
00:25:12
in and seeing how they are and stuff
00:25:14
what do you what do you miss the most if
00:25:15
anything about a full s session is it
00:25:17
the
00:25:18
anticipation oh I I don't know you know
00:25:21
I miss I miss the whole kind of the
00:25:24
setup of it before you go out
00:25:26
and Yeah completely the reality is when
00:25:29
you go out it's the same it's it's the
00:25:31
hamster wheel right the anticipation
00:25:33
yeah and it's like all right and you
00:25:35
start getting that fizz you start
00:25:36
fizzing up for it and and you get
00:25:38
excited and I enjoy I do enjoy there's
00:25:41
something that I said to said to my wife
00:25:43
the other day and I was just like [ __ ] I
00:25:45
sometimes I miss the chaos I miss the
00:25:48
chaos of it all they just the complete
00:25:51
disregard which is something that I'll
00:25:53
dig deeper on my because that's
00:25:54
something for myself I need to dig
00:25:56
deeper and go what is that that I'm
00:25:58
what I miss out of alcohol why do I want
00:26:01
chaos he wants that but there's just
00:26:02
that kind of power that kind of no [ __ ]
00:26:05
like no [ __ ] given a little bit you know
00:26:07
what I mean and it's just and I suppose
00:26:09
it becomes your identity in a way it's
00:26:10
like oh you know go he was crazy last
00:26:13
night yeah it is a bit but there's it is
00:26:16
but that comes as well with the there is
00:26:19
a part of it where you're like [ __ ] we
00:26:20
don't want him coming out cu he's always
00:26:21
a bit of the liability you know what I
00:26:23
mean it's just they want you the P but
00:26:25
definitely not at the wedding or yeah
00:26:27
yeah exactly and as a person you come
00:26:29
away from that thinking well where's my
00:26:31
value then as a person it's it's [ __ ]
00:26:34
it's good at the time and you think
00:26:35
you're you're the person in that group
00:26:38
but but in the long like you want to be
00:26:40
valued as as a in a friendship you want
00:26:43
to be valued as a friend you don't want
00:26:44
to be valued as the class clown who just
00:26:47
gets pissed up and is great for to you
00:26:50
want to be seen as who you are generally
00:26:53
do you know also yeah yeah how so how
00:26:54
old were you when you gave up late 20s
00:26:56
early 30s uh early 30s early yeah see
00:27:00
you can still get away with new early
00:27:01
30s but if you're in your 50s or
00:27:02
whatever it's quite a trade joke yeah
00:27:04
and you see it you see it do know what I
00:27:06
mean and and you think oh [ __ ] these a
00:27:08
Le bastard but then you also and this is
00:27:11
pointing the finger at anybody but then
00:27:13
you also can see that person and and a
00:27:15
lot of their life they don't have much
00:27:17
of a life I see it especially in
00:27:19
construction um there's a lot of guys
00:27:22
out there who have because they've not
00:27:25
dealt with their mental health in
00:27:27
certain ways just not understood their
00:27:29
mental health they've used alcohol to
00:27:31
counteract it and because they've used
00:27:33
alcohol it's it's uh it's made them into
00:27:36
a person that they generally probably
00:27:38
are not and they've lost family members
00:27:42
and friends to it and they and they they
00:27:44
become quite isolate isolated and lonely
00:27:47
people um which I find that's that's
00:27:50
when you look at and you're just like oh
00:27:51
[ __ ] like what what did they go back to
00:27:54
now it was all good 20 years ago but
00:27:56
what are they going back to now yeah
00:27:58
why did you decide to um start the
00:28:01
account right mate why was that was was
00:28:03
part of it a reason to like keep
00:28:05
yourself accountable yeah well you know
00:28:08
what I don't at the time I I I would
00:28:10
have said oh no it's just yeah I it's a
00:28:14
it's a tough one that I I think there's
00:28:16
definitely a part of it that was but
00:28:18
there was also a part of it that I
00:28:19
wanted to be the person that I wanted
00:28:23
out there uh because when I was feeling
00:28:25
[ __ ] and depressed and burnt out
00:28:28
and alol was my only really good mate I
00:28:32
felt that no that that nobody else was
00:28:35
out there who could who I could relate
00:28:38
to or anything so I wanted to be
00:28:39
somebody who other people could relate
00:28:41
to and be like oh [ __ ] I got on a and or
00:28:44
I wake up on Sundays and feel like the
00:28:46
world's [ __ ] ending and and that this
00:28:49
keeps happening every weekend and I'm
00:28:51
bored of it and I'm tired of it and I
00:28:53
don't know how to get out of it so I
00:28:55
just thought while I try and navigate my
00:28:59
way through this weird world of like
00:29:01
sobriety and stuff I'll put it out there
00:29:04
and it's also good for now I I I'm glad
00:29:07
I did it because I can reflect back on
00:29:09
it and just be like oh God God what what
00:29:12
was I thinking there
00:29:13
or what why why did I go down that route
00:29:16
with it and stuff so yeah yeah cuz I
00:29:18
think that's how our paths uh cross we
00:29:21
were going to the same gym at different
00:29:22
times of the day one of those um bft
00:29:24
gyms yeah and um the uh the gym owner
00:29:27
she said there a guy there's a you
00:29:29
should meet so we we caught up for um
00:29:31
for a drink and I think this was at the
00:29:32
beginning of your journey yes you're
00:29:33
asking some podcast questions and it's
00:29:35
been it's been fun watching you junor
00:29:37
since then it's it's bloody hard you
00:29:39
know you you post most days yeah um and
00:29:43
the you expect to sort of get that
00:29:44
exponential growth or go viral or
00:29:46
whatever and um the reality is it's
00:29:48
generally a grind and it's quite slow
00:29:50
you do what Gary ve says you post every
00:29:52
[ __ ] day but you've been very very
00:29:55
consistent with it it's been bloody
00:29:56
great yeah no I think it's well there's
00:29:58
a consistency with myself there do you
00:30:00
know what I mean and I think it's about
00:30:02
um it's a big thing for me is I I know
00:30:05
how bad and I know you've been in that
00:30:07
kind of mental health space when you
00:30:08
feel like dog [ __ ] and you don't feel
00:30:11
like the world deserves like like like
00:30:14
you're just a burden on the world a
00:30:16
little bit and I I I do it because I
00:30:18
want to catch that person who needs it
00:30:20
the most on that day and it and I some
00:30:23
of it will hit with people some of it
00:30:24
doesn't and I honestly couldn't care
00:30:27
less but as if
00:30:28
now and again I'll get a random message
00:30:30
off somebody and they' be like oh thank
00:30:32
you so much for like that just made me
00:30:34
that just helped just a little bit
00:30:35
that's it that's that's and that's that
00:30:39
makes me happy that's that's the
00:30:41
byproduct of doing what I do is that it
00:30:43
makes makes me happy that was something
00:30:45
for a long time that I couldn't get or
00:30:47
hold on to or grasp yeah 100% what do
00:30:50
your workmates think because a lot of
00:30:52
you oh they're funny they watch a lot of
00:30:54
it's done with your reflective jacket on
00:30:55
at work yeah yeah they must you in the
00:30:58
the T room or whatever like oh there he
00:30:59
is yeah well they see me just kind of
00:31:01
walking through sight like this and my
00:31:03
camera be like who's this dick Ed does
00:31:05
he think he is um so yeah but um I
00:31:10
exactly for the very reasons I just said
00:31:12
before I don't give a [ __ ] because I
00:31:13
just know it needs to be like hopefully
00:31:15
it might help somebody along the way or
00:31:17
something but yeah they uh they're all
00:31:20
quite they're all begin to it and I and
00:31:22
I open the conversation but as soon as
00:31:24
they're like oh what you doing I say
00:31:25
about right and then we get into a
00:31:26
conversation about mental health so it's
00:31:28
a win-win for me if they see me doing it
00:31:29
and they question it then it gives me an
00:31:31
opportunity to see how they're doing and
00:31:33
see how their mental health is yeah how
00:31:35
how is your mental health now I mean
00:31:37
it's it must be a lot better it's good
00:31:39
but it's not a cure all isn't it you
00:31:41
can't stop drinking and then you're
00:31:43
happy for the rest of your life yeah
00:31:44
that's [ __ ] yeah and I I'd hate for
00:31:46
anybody to listen to this thinking that
00:31:48
that's that that is what happened
00:31:50
especially when they quit drinking it
00:31:52
isn't it just gives you the opportunity
00:31:53
to fix uh or I say fix what a [ __ ] word
00:31:56
but help yourself on that Journey um
00:32:01
don't give up booze and suddenly think
00:32:03
oh my life's going to be amazing and
00:32:05
I've seen a couple of people on
00:32:06
Instagram or social media and they're
00:32:08
doing this amazing things and they're
00:32:10
doing ultramarathons it don't happen
00:32:12
overnight you've got to really work it
00:32:15
you've got to go and see a counselor
00:32:16
you've got to go and see therapists uh
00:32:18
try different things with therapists as
00:32:20
well you don't if I know a lot of people
00:32:22
a lot of guys a lot of girls that I talk
00:32:23
to and they go on oh I've had this
00:32:26
therapist and they've never been back
00:32:27
since and I say it's like a car mechanic
00:32:29
you've got to go and you'll find the
00:32:31
right one eventually but don't just go
00:32:33
to one have a [ __ ] experience and go oh
00:32:36
this is never like this is this this
00:32:38
isn't for me and also there's heaps of
00:32:40
therapy different therapies out there
00:32:42
don't just think sitting on a couch and
00:32:44
and talking to somebody is is the only
00:32:47
therapy out there there's there's
00:32:48
different kinds of therapies get get
00:32:50
Advent some of that will be mad and out
00:32:52
the gate and have fun with it like I
00:32:55
always say especially to people that I
00:32:57
work with
00:32:58
this not the process of looking after
00:33:00
yourself doesn't have to be this
00:33:02
horrible Hellbound kind of thing where
00:33:05
you delve deep and you and you get
00:33:07
relive all these traumas and it's and it
00:33:09
eats at you there they will be part of
00:33:11
it and it will be hard and you'll have
00:33:13
to but you'll shed a few tears and stuff
00:33:15
but there'll also be moments where you
00:33:16
can have a laugh at yourself and be like
00:33:18
[ __ ] H yeah like that I was C I was
00:33:20
just coping I was just trying to get
00:33:21
through it and maybe if I try this
00:33:23
therapy so yeah but my my mental health
00:33:27
on the whole is is is good I when again
00:33:30
sorry but there's another thing as well
00:33:32
when you give up booze you you almost
00:33:34
fly off the other handle to the other
00:33:37
side and you try and do everything that
00:33:38
you you run you you you go to the gym
00:33:42
you eat all the healthy foods and you
00:33:43
become this other side it's about
00:33:45
finding that kind of bit in the middle
00:33:47
cuz you'll burn yourself out as much
00:33:49
doing that stuff as you will drinking as
00:33:51
well so it's about finding that happy
00:33:52
media yeah what about um yeah yeah what
00:33:56
about your biggest sort of physical
00:33:58
changes oh so my physical change I think
00:34:01
I definitely shed a few pounds uh that
00:34:05
was definitely something but I think
00:34:07
again I I my skin was 100% better like
00:34:11
my I would always have like dry skin uh
00:34:13
and I just wouldn't and also I'd never
00:34:16
drink water because I was always like I
00:34:18
drink a bit of water but it was kind of
00:34:19
a gap filler before I was having a drink
00:34:22
um but my my skin my like and there was
00:34:26
one thing that I noticed straight after
00:34:27
after was people could see it straight
00:34:28
away in my face there people oh you look
00:34:31
you're looking great like you your skin
00:34:33
looks good and all this I was like oh oh
00:34:35
this is this is it's quite nice this and
00:34:37
then you because people are saying nice
00:34:38
things you obviously start reacting to
00:34:40
it and you feel a bit better about
00:34:41
yourself and stuff um well it's like the
00:34:44
book Atomic habits say like you do
00:34:45
little things and then you get that um
00:34:47
you get that forward momentum habit yeah
00:34:49
exactly um so someone gives you some
00:34:50
feedback about your appearance it's um
00:34:52
inspiring yeah and also it kind of
00:34:54
solidifies the thought processes that
00:34:56
you've had before about what you're
00:34:58
than having quitting boo and I don't see
00:35:00
as soon as somebody says oh you look
00:35:02
great or you're glowing or something
00:35:04
like thatly those thought processes that
00:35:06
have led you to that point start going
00:35:08
ah okay this is good if I want more
00:35:10
reactions like this I've got to keep
00:35:11
doing more of the same which is so you
00:35:13
just solidifying that so yeah yeah what
00:35:16
about um mental changes what what about
00:35:18
the most surprising mental changes I'm
00:35:20
mental is it's unbelievable for mental
00:35:24
changes for myself um I I don't ever
00:35:29
feel I don't feel depressed generally I
00:35:32
don't feel I I I still deal with an
00:35:34
anxiety and social anxiety but I don't
00:35:37
know I think we all kind of do a little
00:35:39
bit 100% And and I think that another
00:35:43
reason why I think a lot of white
00:35:44
alcohol is brilliant for that thing is a
00:35:46
lot rather than dealing with small talk
00:35:48
and thinking that everybody's
00:35:50
hyperfocused on you a drink just takes
00:35:53
the edge off a lot of people so um so
00:35:56
yeah so I deal with anxiety a a bit and
00:36:00
and new things but
00:36:02
generally not my mental health is
00:36:05
generally great all the time and that's
00:36:06
not me trying to blow my own trumpet or
00:36:09
be like hey look I'm I'm but that is it
00:36:12
is honestly even when my dad passed away
00:36:14
I could process the whole
00:36:16
thing so e and I'm still processing it
00:36:19
now obviously but it's something
00:36:21
that I can just manage my like I'm not
00:36:24
going from really happy to really sad
00:36:27
really anxious or any and I think that's
00:36:30
something that alcohol really does to
00:36:31
you is because of your cuz it [ __ ] up
00:36:34
your gut like microbiome and stuff like
00:36:37
that it means that your mood stabilized
00:36:39
your serotonin is all over the place so
00:36:42
then you can't your your mood you have
00:36:44
these weird mood swings uh so I just
00:36:47
don't have moods I'm pretty generally
00:36:49
quite happy all the time you what about
00:36:51
people that love you and are really
00:36:52
close to you I'm think in particular
00:36:54
your now wife like so she was um she was
00:36:56
with you at the worst yes and she's with
00:36:58
you at at your best like what are some
00:37:00
observations that she's noticed oh I
00:37:02
don't I just think she I don't know I
00:37:05
think there's more I'm not more driven
00:37:08
I've always been driven but now I do the
00:37:11
driving rather than just thinking about
00:37:13
oh yeah I should be doing this and I
00:37:14
should be and I'm got to be at this
00:37:15
level now I can do it and I think she
00:37:18
she enjoys that and I take her on that
00:37:20
ride with me as well as much as I can
00:37:22
like anything that I'm learning or in a
00:37:24
new book that I'm reading and it tells
00:37:25
me oh you should do this for anxiety or
00:37:27
you I I'm I I've got her on my fun bus
00:37:30
with me do you know so I think she's I
00:37:33
think she bounces off it as well and
00:37:35
she's taken a lot of the things that
00:37:37
I've used and and and the things that
00:37:40
I've read about on board as well which I
00:37:42
think has has helped her because she
00:37:43
deals with anxiety and stuff like that
00:37:45
as well uh or struggles with anxiety
00:37:48
sometimes so I think yeah I we just help
00:37:50
each other in that way yeah have you
00:37:52
been reading heaps more obviously got
00:37:53
heaps more productive hours yeah well
00:37:56
that's it you get so much time
00:37:58
uh it's what what do you do with all
00:37:59
that time um so yeah start just reading
00:38:03
a lot of mindful books and I just want
00:38:06
to I try and it's great having your
00:38:08
Jetties and Steven bartletts and stuff
00:38:11
but I these thoughts come from somewhere
00:38:13
else as well so I I I just try and go
00:38:17
I'm just trying to go down see how deep
00:38:19
the river goes a little bit uh what does
00:38:22
that mean can you elaborate on that yeah
00:38:24
so I now because I find that everything
00:38:26
so especially when you see it on social
00:38:29
media a lot of stuff kind of gets
00:38:31
regurgitated and it's from other
00:38:35
psychologists or theorists or people
00:38:38
who've said it thousands of years like
00:38:40
you I mean like You' never seen so many
00:38:42
kind of Roman philosophers and stuff or
00:38:45
like Greek philosophers like senica or
00:38:47
some and these are things that were said
00:38:49
thousands of years ago so I'm like on
00:38:51
this kind of like bit of a a mooch now
00:38:54
to not just go for the books that are
00:38:56
kind of hinted to me by certain
00:38:58
companies on the internet I'm like okay
00:39:00
well and as soon as a name is mentioned
00:39:03
in a book I'll buy that book of that
00:39:05
person even though I've not heard
00:39:06
anything else of them or and I and I
00:39:08
just try and see how deep the rabbit
00:39:12
hole goes with it because I inevitably
00:39:14
it's going to tell me more about myself
00:39:16
or maybe they might say the same point
00:39:18
but in a different light so yeah yeah
00:39:23
um yeah what would you message BD anyone
00:39:25
that's on the hamster wheel right now
00:39:27
you know so the it's the rinse repeat
00:39:29
cycle you know go out Friday night
00:39:31
Saturday night yeah I think it's hard
00:39:34
it's extremely you've you've got to meet
00:39:36
people where they are and and it's some
00:39:39
people won't ever be able to see any
00:39:41
difference some people will be
00:39:43
questioning it um it's how deep people
00:39:46
really want to go that inevitably you've
00:39:49
got to have that kind of moment of
00:39:51
surrender whether it's just for a just
00:39:56
for cutting back or just but I think
00:39:59
there's so many people I've spoken to
00:40:01
who've who've tried and failed and tried
00:40:03
and failed and I just think just keep
00:40:05
trying and that is the main part of it
00:40:08
you only need to succeed once exactly
00:40:10
exactly and maybe the first time last a
00:40:13
week and then you have a drink or maybe
00:40:16
it last a couple of days and you have a
00:40:17
drink that's okay it's like just meet
00:40:19
yourself where you are on that day and
00:40:22
and and don't and that's where mindful
00:40:24
mindfulness has been my biggest asset
00:40:26
for doing this is just that reflect when
00:40:28
it when things do go wrong or don't go
00:40:31
to planets about just reflecting on that
00:40:33
and finding what where the um where
00:40:37
where the messages in that for you what
00:40:39
is it why have you had a drink why have
00:40:41
you what is it a certain way that you
00:40:44
drive home is it the way you shop at
00:40:46
night is it because you get at the end
00:40:48
you're so used to going in and doing
00:40:50
your shopping at night that uh and then
00:40:52
getting the drink at the end of it that
00:40:54
you suddenly get this urge at the end
00:40:56
say there's there's like you've just got
00:40:57
to delve deep and just keep asking why
00:41:00
and then once you've kind of worked out
00:41:01
the why then it's what what is it
00:41:03
teaching me I think have you sort of um
00:41:06
with all the work you've done and
00:41:08
especially looking internally to
00:41:09
yourself like have you figured out where
00:41:12
your problem with alcohol started I
00:41:14
don't I think um is it just something
00:41:17
you start to do for you know with the
00:41:19
rugby boys and then it becomes like a
00:41:21
bad habit yeah definitely I I think it
00:41:24
was
00:41:25
um I it always been part of my life cuz
00:41:28
my parents drank so much and I say so
00:41:31
much they drank on the every evening but
00:41:33
nothing crazy but they would just drink
00:41:35
every night uh and I think it was just
00:41:38
so part of the norm and family life that
00:41:40
that's kind of what it was and it was
00:41:42
ever
00:41:43
present uh and then yeah with the rugby
00:41:47
and I'd gone from playing in my own age
00:41:50
group to then moving up to the seniors
00:41:52
and there was a lot of older BLS all had
00:41:54
jobs and I was this kind of new kid on
00:41:56
the Block didn't really know
00:41:59
anybody and alcohol was a was the kind
00:42:02
of communal meeting point for everybody
00:42:04
and it was something that it didn't take
00:42:06
very long for me to be very good at uh
00:42:08
was drinking so uh it help I when I look
00:42:12
at it now and where it took its turn was
00:42:14
definitely that kind of social anxiety
00:42:17
part of it was my biggest one and I
00:42:20
think it just got exacerbated in the
00:42:22
more and again just going back to what
00:42:24
we were saying on when you when people
00:42:27
start going oh you're so funny last
00:42:29
night you did this thing you start going
00:42:31
oh okay well my that was the behavior so
00:42:33
you start solidifying that behavior even
00:42:35
more because you go oh okay it must have
00:42:37
been the booze and and later on it
00:42:39
became the booze and the Coke and and
00:42:41
and it's it just tick follows talk a
00:42:43
little bit and yeah yeah and then
00:42:46
because people appraised that then it
00:42:49
became ah okay well I can hide behind
00:42:51
that alcohol quite a bit and I and I
00:42:53
don't have to worry and be scared of I
00:42:54
can just get go hard quick and get
00:42:57
pissed and then and then everybody will
00:42:59
like me and it won't matter and I won't
00:43:01
care as well at the same time um what
00:43:03
about um regret anything you change no
00:43:07
no there's I wish there'd be some
00:43:10
moments that I wish I'd maybe done it a
00:43:12
bit differently but I don't I don't
00:43:13
regret anything because it's led me to
00:43:15
this point now and I'm extremely happy
00:43:17
and I'm the healthiest I've been and all
00:43:20
that so I don't I just it's just
00:43:23
sometimes a shame the way it had to play
00:43:25
out I think so it's not that but don't
00:43:27
you think you could have found this
00:43:28
happiness years earlier I think yeah I
00:43:31
could have I I could have but i' also
00:43:35
there was I think there's been lessons
00:43:36
along the way in relation like my past
00:43:40
relationships with people that if I'd
00:43:43
had not been such a horrible bastard
00:43:47
sometimes that I wouldn't have been able
00:43:48
to be as good as I am now for the person
00:43:51
that I've just married if that makes
00:43:53
sense and that isn't the fact that I'm
00:43:54
like oh well it was a good thing that I
00:43:56
was horrible isn't and but but what I'm
00:43:59
saying is that it's kind of led me to
00:44:01
this this point if I had not I would
00:44:05
have yeah I don't know I don't know it's
00:44:08
it's a good good question again but I
00:44:10
just I don't I I don't think you should
00:44:13
ever have regrets really I think there's
00:44:15
just certain times when you could have
00:44:17
maybe it could have played out a bit
00:44:19
differently yeah I suppose everything
00:44:20
everything's going to happen in its own
00:44:22
own sort of time a you got to figure
00:44:24
these things out for yourself and for
00:44:25
some people it'll be a quicker Journey
00:44:26
than other yeah and I I I look at it as
00:44:29
well that yeah maybe 10 years ago would
00:44:31
have been perfect like maybe I could
00:44:33
have been one of these fantastic people
00:44:35
at 21 that doesn't drink and but then I
00:44:38
maybe not have had a perspective where
00:44:41
I'd be able to help people now in this
00:44:43
position do you know what I mean and I
00:44:45
and I get a lot out of what I can do now
00:44:47
and help other people then I and I
00:44:49
wouldn't have been able to do that if
00:44:50
I'd not gone through these experiences
00:44:53
what what was it like the first few
00:44:54
times going to um like festivals
00:44:57
conerts sports games yeah you know I
00:45:01
suppose things that you associate with
00:45:02
um getting a tray of beers or yeah
00:45:05
exactly it's and it's exactly like when
00:45:08
you go to a festival or or a rugby game
00:45:10
or anything you never just go and get
00:45:12
one cuz the cues are so bloody long and
00:45:15
ages yeah exactly exactly um so yeah
00:45:19
it's it's hard the first kind of couple
00:45:22
were hard and you feel a bit like itchy
00:45:24
feet and you're a bit like oh I should
00:45:26
be doing something head what what do I
00:45:28
normally
00:45:29
do but equally at the same time you
00:45:32
start you start to enjoy enjoy what
00:45:35
you're doing like I've gone to go and
00:45:38
watch a rugby game and it becomes the
00:45:40
the thing that you've gone to do becomes
00:45:42
primary again rather than secondary
00:45:44
rather than going oh we we'll have a few
00:45:45
Bears then we can watch a rugby it's
00:45:47
like we can watch a rugby and have a few
00:45:49
Bears um so it becomes the things that
00:45:52
you want to do become more primary
00:45:54
rather than secondary I think whereas
00:45:56
beforehand it'd be about getting to the
00:45:59
getting to the set event getting Bears
00:46:01
getting a certain and then enjoying the
00:46:03
music or enjoying the gig and half the
00:46:05
time you get halfway through it and you
00:46:08
you you're that drunk that you don't
00:46:09
know what's happening anyway oh M I've
00:46:11
I've got um some videos on my phone of a
00:46:12
Lady Gaga concert like $170 tickets or
00:46:15
whatever and it's like no I don't
00:46:17
remember taking that I don't remember
00:46:19
taking that it's terrible yeah I've done
00:46:21
it so many time I've just look back and
00:46:23
I'm like what the f what what what why
00:46:25
have I spent all that money and just not
00:46:27
even taking any of it in whereas now I
00:46:30
go to all the gigs that I want to go to
00:46:32
I go to rugby and I remember it all I
00:46:35
remember it all it's good um did you
00:46:38
encounter any sort of like peer pressure
00:46:40
early on calling you a [ __ ] or a little
00:46:42
[ __ ] or you at the age where I think
00:46:46
there's a lot I think a lot of the
00:46:47
people that I'd surrounded myself could
00:46:49
see the reasons why I was doing it and I
00:46:51
and I they they they supported that now
00:46:55
don't get me wrong there's been some
00:46:56
times where I've been out with people
00:46:58
that don't know me and it's been a bit
00:47:00
more oh and and and people are really
00:47:02
taken back by it and I think it's
00:47:04
because it's out the norm and it's not
00:47:06
people are like oh why are you doing
00:47:08
that and people question it which is
00:47:10
quite is quite funny really CU it's it's
00:47:12
the end of the day all it is is a drink
00:47:14
but as I've said to a lot of people it's
00:47:16
more to do with that person so and and
00:47:18
you have to if you are going to some
00:47:21
something like that and people are being
00:47:22
a bit kind of like oh go on [ __ ] have
00:47:24
a drink what up with you like it's it's
00:47:27
not about you it's about them they've
00:47:30
they've got a perception of how the
00:47:31
night should be and how it should look
00:47:34
so as soon as you've kind of Jarred that
00:47:37
that makes them Panic a little bit
00:47:39
internally you're not fitting into the
00:47:40
narrative exactly I think um yeah I
00:47:43
think there's never been a better time
00:47:44
for that now like in terms of
00:47:45
understanding and awareness about it and
00:47:47
alcohol-free drinks and all that sort of
00:47:49
stuff but yeah I don't know I don't know
00:47:51
like we yeah we're slightly older if
00:47:53
you're if you're younger like in your
00:47:54
early 20s or whatever i' imagine that
00:47:55
peer pressure is quite
00:47:57
yeah no definitely um but the for low
00:48:01
like recent statistic statistics which
00:48:03
is great is that it is going down in um
00:48:06
18 to 25 year old alcohol like alcohol
00:48:09
usage is going down although it is going
00:48:11
up between from people 65 onwards yeah
00:48:14
so you got they're like oh it's going
00:48:15
down so it's it is and I think it's a
00:48:19
it's a cruel world out then then you've
00:48:20
got online kind of things and I think
00:48:22
that's another thing that comes into
00:48:24
play now and I'd imagine why people
00:48:25
don't like getting drunk as much is you
00:48:28
can film it and back when I was growing
00:48:31
up and you couldn't you'd be a dick and
00:48:34
it would just last for that evening and
00:48:35
that was it whereas now if you're a
00:48:36
[ __ ] it it can go viral uh and you
00:48:39
can be planted over it so it's more of a
00:48:42
kind of people don't I I presume don't
00:48:45
do it not just for the health reasons
00:48:47
but for showing phase people don't want
00:48:49
to be seen as that idiot yeah it seems
00:48:51
like it's it's it's okay to be drunk as
00:48:53
long as you're not the drunkest person
00:48:54
in you know as long as you're not the
00:48:56
person that ever talking about the next
00:48:57
day yeah yeah yeah yeah what about um in
00:49:00
the beginning it must have been like a
00:49:02
scary Prospect
00:49:04
thinking I'm never having another drink
00:49:06
again in my
00:49:07
life yeah that was the the scary this
00:49:10
the two scary things for me was that
00:49:13
because it it was my fail safe it was
00:49:15
the the thing that if anything ever went
00:49:18
wrong or like I said to you before if
00:49:20
there's anything like any celebration or
00:49:22
anything that I could just drink was
00:49:25
always there and that crutch was always
00:49:27
there but all the the other thing that
00:49:29
was the most nerve-wracking was the the
00:49:32
the loss of friends I thought nobody
00:49:34
would want to hang around with me and
00:49:35
that was that was equally the scariest
00:49:37
thing I I I didn't feel like people
00:49:39
would want to know me uh because I
00:49:42
that's the only life that I'd L like
00:49:44
lived by was an alcohol driven
00:49:47
lifestyle um so yeah it it it was scary
00:49:51
at the start but in the in the long in
00:49:54
the long term it's it's not it's it's
00:49:57
all up here people it's it's not uh
00:50:01
something that you really have to be
00:50:02
that worried about yeah seems like
00:50:04
you're almost like disgusted by alcoh
00:50:07
yeah no I it's funny I'm not I never
00:50:10
want to demonize it but I in the long
00:50:12
run end up demonizing it not it's funny
00:50:15
because there's um there's a m of our he
00:50:17
used to work on the podcast called um
00:50:18
Jack Henderson and I I I heard you do a
00:50:21
podcast with him a couple of years ago
00:50:22
and you're like I'm never going to be
00:50:24
one of these people that goes on about
00:50:25
drinkers the devil
00:50:27
your Instagram feed that's what it is
00:50:29
now I I did partially wonder if part of
00:50:31
that is um like a defense mechanism for
00:50:33
yourself and you're you know you're
00:50:35
constantly reinforcing this to yourself
00:50:37
to yeah no it is and I think it's you
00:50:40
it's part when you say it I think for
00:50:41
myself anyway but also also can I can I
00:50:44
just say there's there's nothing wrong
00:50:45
with you saying something two years ago
00:50:47
and having a different approach now
00:50:48
because it's all part of the journey and
00:50:50
the evolution yeah and I think we're all
00:50:51
changing all the time and exactly and I
00:50:53
just think it's what you educate
00:50:55
yourself in I'm I'm sure or if people
00:50:58
read more about alcohol or even listen
00:51:01
to a few more deeper podcasts like the
00:51:03
hubman one about alcohol and heard about
00:51:05
that suddenly you go [ __ ] hell like
00:51:10
and and that isn't about pointing the
00:51:12
finger at alcohol going if you drink it
00:51:14
you it's the worst thing ever but the
00:51:18
science kind of says a lot about it and
00:51:20
what it does to our bodies and it's not
00:51:22
just about what it does to us as people
00:51:26
on a out it's what it's actually doing
00:51:28
to our internal function and what it's
00:51:31
doing it's it's a real Iceberg and we're
00:51:33
seeing the tip of it and sometimes our
00:51:36
tips might be higher than others and you
00:51:39
might see somebody's like alcohol on the
00:51:41
outside bit but but it's what it's doing
00:51:43
to to us internally and our gut health
00:51:48
our mental health like it affect it can
00:51:50
affect your full body like your full
00:51:52
body uh it's link to seven different
00:51:55
types of cancer like there's just
00:51:57
there's just a lot there's IBS there's
00:52:00
there's heaps of links to it and I think
00:52:02
it's once you delve deep but for the
00:52:05
most part like I didn't want to you
00:52:07
don't want to you don't want to see that
00:52:09
oh yeah it's all right there's always
00:52:10
something there's always something
00:52:11
that's going to kill us don't worry
00:52:13
about it yeah everything causes cancer
00:52:15
um the hubman lab um podcast that you're
00:52:17
talking about it's about 3 hours long
00:52:19
but [ __ ] that's a good podcast um ever
00:52:22
since listening to that I've sort of you
00:52:24
know reassessed and reevaluated um my
00:52:26
relationship with alcohol he talks in
00:52:28
the he's like if you're a heavy drinker
00:52:30
like um you one to two standard drinks
00:52:32
day I'm like that's heavy oh my
00:52:37
God yeah it's quite alarming it's I
00:52:39
found that that really good like I I I
00:52:42
still drink um but it's definitely made
00:52:44
me um more mindful about my personal
00:52:47
relationship with alcohol think it's a
00:52:49
good it's a good one as well because
00:52:51
it's something you can go back because
00:52:52
there's so much sciency com like stuff
00:52:55
that he speaks about in it that you can
00:52:57
go back on multiple occasions and just
00:52:58
go and check it out and just take little
00:53:00
Snippets from it but um but yeah yeah
00:53:04
how long does it I mean you had a very
00:53:06
very good career like 10 10 years or so
00:53:08
maybe more of of drinking have you
00:53:10
reversed all the damages or is there
00:53:12
longterm damage or I think there yeah
00:53:15
there's definitely some I still have my
00:53:18
memory I still would say my memory loss
00:53:20
is still there so there's a lot of my
00:53:22
20s I don't remember um which is fine in
00:53:25
some parts like it's your 20s you're
00:53:27
having a bit of fun but there's also a
00:53:29
big part of it where there's significant
00:53:30
things like moments with my mom that I I
00:53:33
won't ever get back because and I don't
00:53:35
remember because I was either drunk or
00:53:38
hung over or missed out on it because I
00:53:40
went out on the piss and stuff like that
00:53:43
um but um yeah no a lot of the things I
00:53:47
I think I've managed to revert um energy
00:53:51
levels my sleep is the biggest one uh my
00:53:54
sleep was all over the place whereas now
00:53:57
I sleep like a a bare hibernate and it's
00:54:01
unreal um so yeah no I there's a lot of
00:54:05
Hell things that are reverted but me
00:54:07
memory loss is one thing that is kind of
00:54:09
scary and I I I still have moments where
00:54:12
I can't remember certain times and and
00:54:14
those memories and it's kind of
00:54:16
frustrating when everybody else can um
00:54:19
but you can develop that as well like I
00:54:21
obviously can do the Mind Games and all
00:54:22
the kind of apps and all that kind of
00:54:24
stuff to try and increase it again um
00:54:28
but yeah I think there's some points
00:54:30
where you can just kill it off you you
00:54:33
kill off with all that gray matter and
00:54:34
stuff you some a lot of the time you can
00:54:38
gain it back but there's also that time
00:54:40
when you can't there's a point it's what
00:54:44
what does um an average Saturday night
00:54:45
look like for you now oh cup of Team
00:54:47
biscuits
00:54:49
really uh no it varies it varies uh like
00:54:53
any other I I enjoy at the moment like I
00:54:56
said to you before I'm starting to study
00:54:58
restudying so I'm swatting away at the
00:55:02
moment and just trying to smash that out
00:55:05
but uh it's like any other but I just
00:55:07
have more boundaries in place now before
00:55:09
I had very little boundaries and I would
00:55:11
do stuff to excess whereas now I'll go
00:55:14
out and socialize and still do exactly
00:55:16
the same things but I will I I when I'm
00:55:21
had off I just say oh that's it I'm I'm
00:55:24
done now I've said hello who to who I
00:55:26
need to to I've and people are getting a
00:55:28
bit louder and a bit more like a bit
00:55:30
spitty yeah exactly yeah yeah exactly
00:55:33
real spitty it's like yeah when when
00:55:35
when your mate tells you the um the same
00:55:37
bullet point or conversation Point that
00:55:39
he's told you twice already it's like
00:55:40
okay I'm out exactly exactly that
00:55:43
exactly so and there's no no harm in
00:55:45
like that's like you're going into the
00:55:47
lions then a bit do you know what I mean
00:55:49
if you go so yeah it's but I have my
00:55:52
feeling then I'm like all right okay I'm
00:55:54
going to I'm going to go and also start
00:55:56
filling up your time again so in the on
00:55:59
a Sunday it depends what I'm doing on a
00:56:01
Sunday morning now so it's not about the
00:56:03
Saturday night is what I'm do yeah 100%
00:56:05
I think this is something you sort of
00:56:06
touched upon earlier if you got
00:56:07
something um to look forward to the next
00:56:10
morning that you're excited about um
00:56:12
you're not going to have fomo about
00:56:14
what's happening around you know behind
00:56:15
you because you'll be busy looking and
00:56:16
getting excited about what's ahead of
00:56:17
you yeah completely um and that's one
00:56:20
thing that I say to people that I work
00:56:22
with again and stuff is is about what
00:56:25
you can gain it's not about losing your
00:56:27
Saturday night and that that 4 hours of
00:56:30
a Saturday night or 6 hours um but by
00:56:35
maybe cutting that night a bit shorter
00:56:37
or having less to drink or stopping
00:56:39
drinking completely you're going to gain
00:56:41
a whole day maybe two days cuz let's
00:56:43
face facts all hangovers kind of go into
00:56:46
Monday and Tuesday a little bit anyway
00:56:48
um so you're gain all that time so on
00:56:51
the Sunday you're going to gain time
00:56:52
which means that you can go and try that
00:56:54
new thing you've never done before or or
00:56:56
you can start on that project that you
00:56:57
really want to start on and all those
00:56:59
kind of aspects I think and what are you
00:57:02
studying uh so at the moment I'm doing a
00:57:04
certificate in
00:57:06
Psychology uh and counseling and youth
00:57:08
counseling at the moment uh so yeah
00:57:12
that's fun and there's a few more of the
00:57:13
certificates in there but I can't
00:57:14
remember them off the top of my head
00:57:16
Jason there um I was going to say this
00:57:18
one small thing but I suppose it's not
00:57:20
really that small but you know removing
00:57:22
alcohol from your life it's opened so
00:57:23
many sort of unexpected doors for you
00:57:25
hasn't it yeah definitely it is it's the
00:57:28
best life hack ever and I it doesn't
00:57:31
matter what kind of supplements right
00:57:33
there on the market or what new fad
00:57:37
there is going on I promise you if you
00:57:39
are somebody who drinks and you stop
00:57:41
drinking just go even if you're not the
00:57:43
biggest of drinkers just say to yourself
00:57:45
I'm going to just do one year that this
00:57:47
isn't my forever this isn't but I'm just
00:57:49
going to do one year I'm not drinking
00:57:51
let's just see what can happen let's
00:57:54
just get and and then you can and this
00:57:55
is what I was saying to you about it
00:57:56
doesn't have to be a scary Prospect it
00:57:58
doesn't have to be this oh [ __ ] it can
00:58:00
just be I'm just going to do it for you
00:58:01
and it also makes it a bit easy with
00:58:03
your friends he's just I'm just doing a
00:58:05
year doing this support me I'd really
00:58:06
appreciate if you support me just going
00:58:08
to do it and just find out how how far
00:58:11
the rabbit hole goes a bit with it and
00:58:12
and see what you can do and for me it's
00:58:15
it's been the best thing I've ever ever
00:58:17
ever ever done it's not just physically
00:58:20
not just for my mental health but for
00:58:23
financially for relationships for for
00:58:26
just everything work I'm more productive
00:58:28
at work it's it's apart from when you
00:58:31
dash off to the lunch room to do your
00:58:32
videos yeah exactly exactly um but I I I
00:58:36
can still fit that in you know what I
00:58:38
mean um but yeah no it's and it just
00:58:41
means I can I can yeah it's honestly
00:58:45
it's it's the best thing and it and
00:58:47
that's it's one of my little things now
00:58:50
where it's it's not a it's not I don't
00:58:53
know if the frustration is the right
00:58:55
word but with friends and people who do
00:58:57
still
00:58:58
drink um and they live their lives and
00:59:01
they do whatever they want but I just
00:59:03
can see the potential in them of where
00:59:04
they could when they have these little
00:59:06
dreams or oh I wish I was doing this or
00:59:08
I'm not getting that job promotion at
00:59:09
work and I just don't know why but but
00:59:12
they'll be super lethargic on a Monday
00:59:14
CU they've been out and had a massive
00:59:15
weekend and it's just like if you just
00:59:17
gave up just for half a year not even a
00:59:20
four year just give it just just see how
00:59:23
how far you can go with it and just see
00:59:25
what benefit you can and do do stuff
00:59:28
with the time don't just sit on your
00:59:30
hands just going oh I've given up boo
00:59:31
now I'm expecting the world to offer it
00:59:33
to me it's you've got to do the work
00:59:36
with it
00:59:37
definitely yeah and that's true with I
00:59:40
think any aspect of anyone's life yeah
00:59:42
like mentally if you're in a bad place
00:59:44
like you have to do the work yourself
00:59:46
yeah and anything good that happens
00:59:48
you've got to do it yourself you make it
00:59:49
happen completely and I think it's uh
00:59:52
you you've yeah you've just always
00:59:54
you've always got to do you can't expect
00:59:56
the world to give you anything you are
00:59:57
the creator of your own world so you
01:00:00
have to create the the world you want to
01:00:02
see around you and that's one of my man
01:00:05
like Manch be the vibe you want to
01:00:07
receive you've got to put out what you
01:00:10
want back massively and I I think if you
01:00:13
if you can't just point the finger do
01:00:15
you know what I mean you can but you're
01:00:18
not going to get much back in
01:00:20
return yeah yeah yeah you got to you
01:00:23
cast yourself as the as the leading the
01:00:25
leading man or lady in your own movie
01:00:27
definitely don't just be an extra in
01:00:29
someone else's movie no exactly and it's
01:00:31
just and you've got to bring that energy
01:00:32
to that you can't be if you can't you've
01:00:34
got if you're going to bring that Robbin
01:00:36
energy you're never going to be Batman
01:00:38
and you and and I've never heard that
01:00:40
one I like it though and no one wants to
01:00:42
be robbing no exactly uh you want you
01:00:45
want to be uh saving the day and that's
01:00:48
uh you've got to be your own hero and
01:00:50
your own cheerleader and it's something
01:00:52
that I actually found hard within the
01:00:53
first three months of not drinking is I
01:00:55
was was kind of expecting this kind of
01:00:57
brass band to rock up and be like well
01:00:59
done he's up to three months and it hit
01:01:01
me like a ton of bricks that I wasn't
01:01:03
going to get that and I think that's
01:01:04
some and you learn to become your own
01:01:06
chery and you've got to celebrate
01:01:08
yourself massively and in everything in
01:01:10
life I don't think that's just alal but
01:01:12
I think you have to stop down stop
01:01:14
playing quiet play play loudly and and
01:01:18
people some people will like your music
01:01:19
and some people won't that's on them not
01:01:21
on you yeah are you pray of yourself
01:01:24
yeah yeah you know what the first first
01:01:27
first time I think yeah it's something
01:01:30
that it's funny that you asked that I've
01:01:31
been thinking about that quite quite a
01:01:33
lot recently because it's something that
01:01:34
I really struggle with is is being a lot
01:01:37
a lot of the time I I wanted to make my
01:01:39
mom and dad proud and now they're not
01:01:40
here it's something that you kind of you
01:01:44
sat with and you and it's not about
01:01:46
making them proud anymore but can you
01:01:48
make yourself proud and by doing that
01:01:51
hopefully in in the course of it you'll
01:01:53
make other people proud of you as well
01:01:56
um but yeah I I think I am and I just I
01:02:01
just need
01:02:02
to keep in my lane and and keep doing
01:02:04
what I'm doing um not worry about where
01:02:08
this goes or what happens with it or but
01:02:10
just just keep on keeping on really and
01:02:16
yeah just just do just be the person
01:02:18
that I I need for myself I think I love
01:02:22
that I think that's a good place to end
01:02:23
it yeah from when we first met like two
01:02:26
and a half years ago whatever it's now
01:02:27
like you can see this um compounding
01:02:29
momentum you're getting yeah um yeah
01:02:32
you're becoming Unstoppable it's bloody
01:02:33
great mate hopefully hopefully that's
01:02:35
like I I know where I want I know where
01:02:37
I'm going that's the big thing for me at
01:02:39
the moment is yeah where where's that
01:02:40
are you are you like a go plan like twoe
01:02:42
plan five year plan or do you just have
01:02:44
like a bunch of things that yeah I just
01:02:46
have a bunch of things that I know I'm
01:02:47
going to do I know I'm going to I'm I'm
01:02:49
going to be the best in my position of
01:02:51
what I do and I don't like saying coach
01:02:53
or therapist or anything like that cuz I
01:02:55
I think that incorporates a lot of kind
01:02:57
of other things but I'm going to be
01:03:01
successful at helping people get to
01:03:03
where they want to be definitely as a as
01:03:05
a coach if you want to call it that but
01:03:07
I hate the word coach um so yeah I'm
01:03:10
going to be doing that I'm going to be
01:03:12
getting around speaking uh at different
01:03:14
events that's on the cards as well we
01:03:16
got a few coming up this year uh and
01:03:20
yeah just going to be helping out and
01:03:22
also as I said to you before once I've
01:03:24
finished my learning I'm going to write
01:03:25
a book I'm going to say that now and
01:03:28
then speak into existence mate and man
01:03:31
100% 100% big believer in it so well
01:03:34
it's not the uh it's not the Saturday
01:03:36
night piss talking is it you know I'm
01:03:37
going to write a book I'm going to do an
01:03:39
Iron Man yeah exactly uh no I'll leave
01:03:42
the immen to you that's insane all
01:03:46
running all right guy Wills right mate
01:03:49
um oh I um if anyone's made it to the
01:03:51
very end of this and has been captivated
01:03:53
by this conversation what's the best way
01:03:54
they can get hold of you so the best way
01:03:57
is DDD wrem uh. co.nz or I've got my
01:04:02
Instagram page where I've got tons of
01:04:04
tips help and I'm always open to a
01:04:06
conversation about alcohol or mental
01:04:08
health or
01:04:09
mindfulness love it hey it's been
01:04:12
wonderful to sit down with you um man
01:04:14
you've done the hard work haven't you
01:04:16
you too yeah uh yeah yeah it's it's it's
01:04:19
it's been fun it's a pro it's an
01:04:21
experience I don't know whether it's the
01:04:22
the hard hard work it's it is hard work
01:04:26
but it's it's everything's hard I think
01:04:28
depends on which way you look at yeah no
01:04:29
you just seem to have this lightness
01:04:31
about you now yeah I do I feel like mate
01:04:34
I definitely feel like I don't feel like
01:04:35
there's no there's no pressure anymore
01:04:38
there's no pressure I don't give a I've
01:04:39
got to a point where I don't give a [ __ ]
01:04:43
and and it's such a freeing feeling to
01:04:44
have um so yeah I don't I'm just ready
01:04:48
to I I know where I'm going where
01:04:50
wherever that may be but I know I'm
01:04:52
going somewhere and it's going to be
01:04:53
good oh I know where you're going you're
01:04:54
going to new or next buy some
01:04:56
choc yeah yeah probably to be honest all
01:05:00
right hey thanks mate it's been an
01:05:01
absolute pleasure today really
01:05:02
appreciate your time mate cheers mate
01:05:04
appreciate it

Podspun Insights

In this episode, the conversation dives deep into the journey of sobriety, exploring the emotional and practical challenges faced by someone who has turned their life around after struggling with alcohol. The guest shares candid reflections on what rock bottom truly means, revealing that it wasn’t just a singular moment but a series of realizations that led to a pivotal decision to embrace sobriety. The discussion touches on the importance of self-acceptance, the impact of societal norms around drinking, and the often-overlooked emotional toll of alcohol on mental health.

Listeners are treated to a raw and honest account of the guest's experiences, from chaotic nights fueled by alcohol to the liberating feeling of reclaiming one's life. The episode highlights the significance of community support, especially through platforms like Alcoholics Anonymous, and the necessity of finding new coping mechanisms in the absence of alcohol. As the guest recounts their transformation, they emphasize the joy of rediscovering life without the haze of drinking, showcasing how sobriety has opened doors to new experiences, healthier relationships, and a more fulfilling life.

Ultimately, this episode serves as a beacon of hope for anyone grappling with their relationship with alcohol, encouraging them to reflect on their own lives and consider the potential for change. It’s a heartfelt reminder that while the journey may be challenging, the rewards of self-discovery and personal growth are well worth the effort.

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 95
    Most inspiring
  • 92
    Most satisfying
  • 92
    Best performance
  • 90
    Most emotional

Episode Highlights

  • The Power of Acceptance
    The importance of accepting one's struggles and moving forward.
    “Acceptance is the toughest pill to swallow.”
    @ 02m 30s
    January 08, 2025
  • Rock Bottom Realization
    Recognizing the need for change after a series of troubling moments.
    “There’s only one common denominator, and that’s just booze.”
    @ 06m 30s
    January 08, 2025
  • The Journey to Sobriety
    After facing significant loss, he chose to embrace sobriety and found new ways to cope.
    “I thought maybe I should kind of see him off... but then I just...”
    @ 21m 21s
    January 08, 2025
  • Finding New Joys
    He discovered a passion for new experiences and fitness after quitting drinking.
    “I'm addicted to new experiences, new things, new people.”
    @ 23m 32s
    January 08, 2025
  • Mental Health Transformation
    His mental health improved significantly, allowing him to process grief without alcohol.
    “I don't feel depressed generally... my mental health is generally great all the time.”
    @ 36m 05s
    January 08, 2025
  • The Importance of Mindfulness
    Mindfulness has been my biggest asset in overcoming challenges.
    “Mindfulness has been my biggest asset.”
    @ 40m 24s
    January 08, 2025
  • The Journey of Self-Discovery
    Reflecting on personal growth and the lessons learned from past relationships.
    “Everything happens in its own sort of time.”
    @ 44m 20s
    January 08, 2025
  • On Overcoming Peer Pressure
    Navigating peer pressure while choosing not to drink can be challenging.
    “It’s not about you, it’s about them.”
    @ 47m 30s
    January 08, 2025
  • The Impact of Alcohol on Memory
    Discussing the long-term effects of alcohol on memory and relationships.
    “I still have my memory loss, which is kind of scary.”
    @ 53m 15s
    January 08, 2025
  • The Best Life Hack
    Removing alcohol can open unexpected doors and improve various aspects of life.
    “It's the best life hack ever!”
    @ 57m 28s
    January 08, 2025
  • Creating Your Own World
    You are the creator of your own world; take charge of your life.
    “You can't expect the world to give you anything; you are the creator of your own world.”
    @ 59m 56s
    January 08, 2025
  • Keep Moving Forward
    Stay focused on your path and keep progressing, no matter the challenges.
    “Just keep on keeping on, really.”
    @ 01h 02m 16s
    January 08, 2025

Episode Quotes

Key Moments

  • Reintroducing Alcohol19:52
  • Coping Mechanisms22:11
  • New Experiences23:28
  • Friendship Dynamics24:11
  • Physical Changes34:01
  • Mental Changes35:20
  • Improved Sleep53:57
  • Persistence1:02:16

Words per Minute Over Time

Vibes Breakdown

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