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Sober Motivation: Sharing Sobriety Stories

How to Get Sober - Exploring the Missing Question.

Sober Motivation: Sharing Sobriety Stories

Brad McLeod

Mental Health, Alternative Health, Sobriety, Sober, Education, Quit Drinking, Alcohol Free, Health & Fitness, Self-improvement

4.8596 Ratings

🗓️ 29 January 2026

⏱️ 15 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

“How do I get sober?”

It’s the most common question people ask when they’re struggling with alcohol — and it’s a fair one. But in this solo episode of the Sober Motivation Podcast, Brad challenges the idea that how is the real problem.

Instead, he offers a powerful reframe drawn from 16 years of personal recovery and 14 years of supporting people in sobriety:

👉 The real question isn’t how do I get sober — it’s what are you willing to do to get sober and stay sober?

In this honest and reflective episode, Brad explores why so many people feel stuck when trying to quit drinking, even after trying rehab, meetings, therapy, books, podcasts, and recovery programs. He explains how the search for the “right way” to get sober often becomes a form of avoidance, and why willingness — not information — is what actually leads to lasting change.

This episode covers:

  • Why asking how to get sober can keep people stuck

  • The role willingness plays in quitting alcohol and staying sober

  • Why many people believe they’re “different” — and how that belief blocks recovery

  • The fear of discomfort and change in early sobriety

  • Why alcohol feels like it “worked” for so long

  • The importance of changing routines, environments, and relationships

  • Why doing sobriety alone rarely works

  • How shame and ego prevent people from asking for help

  • Why support and connection matter more than willpower

Sober Motivation Community: https://sobermotivation.mn.co/

Sober Motivation Website: https://www.sobermotivation.com

Support the Podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/sobermotivation

Contact me anytime: brad@sobermotivation.com


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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

How do I get sober?

0:01.5

That is the number one question that I've gotten from thousands of people over the years.

0:07.0

And I think it's a decent question, but it misses the mark on so many things.

0:11.9

The better question that I have for people and that you should have for yourself is what

0:18.4

are you willing to do to get and stay sober?

0:23.9

The how part doesn't really answer the real question here, the real roadblocks that are in

0:30.5

your way from a sober life that are in between you where you are now and living a sober life a lot of times when

0:38.5

people ask me too about the how part i can throw out some ideas and i've done this countless

0:45.0

times of maybe it's rehab maybe it's meetings maybe it's reading books maybe it's listening to

0:50.9

podcasts maybe it's celebrate recovery or smart recovery or dharma recovery maybe it's an outreach podcasts. Maybe it's Celebrate Recovery or Smart Recovery or Dharma Recovery.

0:55.6

Maybe it's an outreach program that's in your community.

0:58.6

Maybe it's therapy.

1:00.6

You wouldn't believe how common it is that people tell me that they've tried all of that, and none of it works.

1:07.5

None of it works.

1:08.5

And it's so relatable to me because I remember when I walked into my first

1:11.9

AA meetings, celebrate recovery meetings, the first time I went to rehab and I didn't achieve my

1:18.4

goal.

1:18.8

I didn't stay sober afterwards.

1:21.1

So I was ultimately like, it just didn't work.

1:25.0

That didn't work.

1:25.7

But really, it was planting seeds when I look back.

1:29.3

So I think the question is we have to ask ourselves is what are we willing to do?

...

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