Welcome back to the peripheral. Quick announcement before we start. I'm going to be at the True Crime Podcast Festival in Austin, Texas, August 25th through the 27th. If you use code Justin, you'll get some discounts. And if you've never been to the True Crime Podcast Festival, it's mostly

smaller indie podcasts, and it features a lot of panel discussions, a podcast row, and live

recordings that you can watch. So check it out at truecrimepodcastfestival.com and use code Justin.

On today's episode, I speak with Mike, who happens to be a recovering alcoholic.

Mike paints a very clear picture of how far alcoholism can drag us down, and what happens

when you have an addiction in conjunction with depression?

You can do things that you're not proud of, you can burn bridges, destroy relationships,

and make so many bad decisions that you feel like you're drowning and regret.

Mike was able to finally recognize his problem

and refocus on things that brought joy and passion into his life.

Hi, my name is Mike, and I just wanted to tell my story of being an alcoholic.

So how old are you now, Mike?

I'm 35.

And how long have you been drinking for?

About 15 years.

Probably a little longer.

I guess it started since high school,

but I've done, you know, everyday hardcore for about a good

15, 16 years. So was there anything happening in the beginning where you just drinking for pleasure,

partying or? Yeah, sure. I mean, it always starts off as fun, right? And then there comes a point

where it's no longer fun and it becomes just more of a necessity. But I would say that, I don't know,

maybe sixth, seventh grade, I would raid my parents' liquor cabinet before school and then fill up like a little

...