Suzanne and Sarah do their best to keep up with Gaaby, who has 29 years of recovery in Al-Anon. Gaaby shares what life was like when her solution was trying to control everything and everyone around her, how she found her way into recovery, and how—after nearly three decades of working a program—she sticks around to deepen her practice of acceptance because, as she says, “reality is where the power lives.”

The Fourth D Club, Missoula, MT, www.4thdmissoula.org

Hosted & Written by Suzanne Garcia Pino

Co-Hosted & Produced by Sarah Grobel Bolstad

Music: I'll Tell You by Sarah Grobel Bolstad & Ian Ford

In this episode of Having Had a Spiritual Awakening, we talk with Stephen Ferguson, Executive Director of Crosswinds Recovery, about what constitutes “real” trauma and why comparing levels of trauma can hinder healing. Stephen shares insights from his work and experience in recovery. Stephen, Suzanne and Sarah consider whether spiritual awakenings are inherently turbulent, why transformation often feels disorienting, and the paradox of surrender; how giving up control can sometimes become another attempt to hold onto it.

The Fourth D Club, Missoula, MT, www.4thdmissoula.org

Hosted & Written by Suzanne Garcia Pino

Co-Hosted & Produced by Sarah Grobel Bolstad

Music: I'll Tell You by Sarah Grobel Bolstad & Ian Ford

Suzanne and Sarah talk with Zac C. about how spiritual awakenings sometimes happen in reflection rather than in real time—and sometimes they happen right in front of the TV, while watching Wheel of Fortune. Zac also shares about the important and inspiring work his recovery nonprofit, Beautiful Minds Recovery (www.beautifulmindsrecovery.com), is doing to provide peer support training within the community.

In the last ten minutes, Suzanne and Sarah discuss, with instructor Kathy Mangan, the mindfulness meditation classes that Red Willow Learning Center (www.redwillowlearning.org) will soon be offering at the Fourth D Club, free of charge. Everyone will benefit, and everyone is welcome!

The Fourth D Club, Missoula, MT, www.4thdmissoula.org

Hosted & Written by Suzanne Garcia Pino

Co-Hosted & Produced by Sarah Grobel Bolstad

Music: I'll Tell You by Sarah Grobel Bolstad & Ian Ford

Is it possible to be constitutionally incapable of being honest? Suzanne and Sarah sit down with Justin D. to unpack how AA and NA answer this question. Justin shares practical pro-tips for staying clean and sober, along with fascinating observations he made just a year into recovery—after being hit by a car and facing the challenge of healing without pain prescriptions. Justin also shares how this only became possible when he became willing to ditch any lingering victim mentality.

The Fourth D Club, Missoula, MT, www.4thdmissoula.org

Hosted & Written by Suzanne Garcia Pino

Co-Hosted & Produced by Sarah Grobel Bolstad

Music: I'll Tell You by Sarah Grobel Bolstad & Ian Ford

Suzanne and Sarah talk with Kate L. about the dreaded “outside topics” and wonder if, in the end, everything is an outside topic. They discuss black-and-white thinking, what “economic insecurity” might mean in the Ninth Step promises, and Kate’s love of wild AA meetings.

The Fourth D Club, Missoula, MT, www.4thdmissoula.org

Hosted & Written by Suzanne Garcia Pino

Co-Hosted & Produced by Sarah Grobel Bolstad

Music: I'll Tell You by Sarah Grobel Bolstad & Ian Ford

Suzanne and Sarah talk to Jay about how she is learning how to not carry the intensity of her addiction into sobriety, how self abandonment changes in recovery, and the time she tried to solve her Adderall-caused back problems by jerry rigging a stand up desk and a phone call to her father at 3 AM.

Hosted & Written by Suzanne Garcia Pino

Co-Hosted & Produced by Sarah Grobel Bolstad

Music: I'll Tell You by Sarah Grobel Bolstad & Ian Ford

The Fourth D Club, Missoula, MT, 4thdmissoula.org

Suzanne, Dan, and Sarah talk about hitting a sufficient bottom, choosing to surrender, and the tough– yet often fascinating– work of recovering from alcoholism.

Written and Produced by Suzanne Garcia Pino & Sarah Grobel Bolstad

Music: I’ll Tell You - Sarah Grobel Bolstad & Ian Ford

The Fourth D Club, Missoula, MT - https://www.4thdmissoula.org

In the inaugural episode of Having Had a Spiritual Awakening, co-hosts Suzanne and Sarah dive into what it truly means to experience a spiritual awakening after working the Twelve Steps. Having found freedom from alcoholism, they share candid stories of their own varied awakenings, from subtle, incremental shifts to profound "white light" breakthroughs. They emphasize that these aren't endpoints, but the beginning of a continuous integration process.