Deb H.: Sober 37 Years! Sober Wise Guy Episode. From Abuse to Recovery.

Deb H. made a difference in my early recovery. She went through more in her childhood than I did. I felt less alone to find this out. She works a solid Program. I have many friends who have endured impossible odds to get and stay in recovery. I thank every one of you for touching my life. Please share this story with anyone that has suffered a traumatic childhood.

 

Welcome to the Voice of the Incomplete Skeptic, Sober Wise Guy series. 

In today’s day and age, it’s important to bestow our voice for loved ones online. As they say, no one lives forever, so if you're in long-term recovery, please consider leaving your Voice as a Guest on SWG.  Family and friends will one day yearn to hear your Voice and feel the spirit of what your life meant to them.

And for the strangers at the gate, many folks are probably wondering if they need sobriety or not. Your story may help save a life!

On SWG, I interview “Old Timers”, that is people who are 30 years or more ‘clean & sober’.    To some extent in recovery, Old Timers are occasionally marginalized.  People assume they don’t need positive reinforcement, or that they have big egos and should be summarily dismissed as less important than Newcomers to recovery.  

Newcomers are the lifeblood of the body of recovery.  Perhaps Old Timers might be viewed as the backbone of recovery, while God is the Spirit of Recovery which animates us all.

The objective of SWG is to share ESJ, “Experience, Strength, and Hope” with the still-suffering addict or alcoholic, and to inform the public about what the recovered life looks like. 
My guest today is Deb H!  She is a Survivor of serious childhood trauma, i.e., emotional, spiritual, and sexual abuse.  

I asked Deb, 'WHAT IS THE GREATEST COMPLIMENT ANYONE COULD EVER GIVE YOU?'  Her answer was that she is "authentic".  She is that.  

 

Transparency:  I have known this woman since I first sobered up and seriously...I was a real basket case.  God used her Voice to help me know I am not alone and demonstrated that anyone can move through the worst that life can throw at them, if they just 'Turn It Over to God, One Day At A Time."  

 

In many ways, her life was understandable to me.  It's as if HP (Higher Power) put exactly the right words in her mouth right when I needed to hear it.  This happened with many people in my early recovery, but Deb and my alignment had a dimension to it that is unusual.  

PTSD after experiencing trauma is normal.  Even after decades in recovery, there is a part of us that still needs to 're-heal'.  We heal, sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly, but it will always materialize if we work for it.  We can have a largely functional life as long as we don't add drugs or alcohol to our defects of character.

I don't trust people that are too squeaky-clean.  LOL!  It's not illegal to be crazy.  It's only illegal to act crazy.  When I drink, I act crazy.  When I don't drink, I stay out of prison.  Not a bad deal, this recovery is.  

 

I love the 12 Steps.  Deb proves that recovery works!  But right now, she needs our prayers.  Her mother passed away.  Please hold her in prayer.