Joe Williams: Finding My Purpose Through Sobriety
Sober Awkward
Victoria Vanstone
4.8 • 533 Ratings
🗓️ 2 June 2024
⏱️ 61 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Joe Williams has lived numerous lives.
Google him and you will find out that he is an multi-sport Australian athlete and a proud Wiradjuri/Wolgalu, First Nations Aboriginal man.
But there is so much more to his story...
After succeeding in his life long dream of playing professional NRL and after a long battle with drugs, alcohol, suicidal ideations and Bi Polar disorder, Joe got sober and retired after just four seasons.
As one door closes, another opens and Joe walked into a boxing gym that would dramatically change his life.
Boxing gave him the discipline and structure that his rugby career lacked and he would go on to forge a successful career as a boxer.
From the outside everything seemed to be going smoothly, but as we have seen over and over again, going sober doesn't fix all of the underlying issues. Only doing the work can fix those!
In 2012, Joe found himself in a psychiatric ward after an attempted suicide - a day that he described as the most important day of his life.
Soon after surviving that day, Joe found his purpose which was to help people who struggle with mental illness.
Today he is an author, a motivational speaker and workshop leader who uses his lived experience and the lessons that he has learnt from the oldest living civilisation on the planet to change the lives of people all over the world.
I have no doubt his story will motivate and inspire you as much as it did me during this conversation!
Thank you Joe!
Show Notes
Joe's website:
https://www.joewilliams.com.au/
Joe's Instagram: @joewilliams_tew
Founder of @theenemywithin_ and @ourway_academy
Vic's book is out! Go and get yourself a copy whilst you can...
https://www.booktopia.com.au/a-thousand-wasted-sundays-victoria-vanstone/book/9780645757941.html
and please give a review at www.goodreads.com
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https://www.patreon.com/user?u=81897291
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@soberawkward @drunkmummysobermummy
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If you are struggling with your relationship with alcohol please reach out to your local doctor, a therapist, AA Group or just chat to a close friend. Don’t feel shame, just get the help you deserve. Contact us! If you have a topic you’d like us to cover then please email us -
vicandhamish@soberawkward.com
Check out our website at: https://www.soberawkward.com
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I'm Joe Williams, Wiradri Walglu Man, and this is Sober Alquid. |
| 0:05.6 | The cattle's boiled, Vic. |
| 0:07.5 | Great, perfect timing. Just a dash of milk for me, please, mate. |
| 0:13.3 | Here you go. Should we get started then? |
| 0:24.8 | Have you ever woken up on a Sunday morning and said, I'm never drinking again, |
| 0:28.3 | and then found yourself waving 50 bucks at a barman by happy hour? |
| 0:34.9 | Are you wondering why everyone else can stop at one while you head to a dodgy after party with a weird bloke called Disco Dave? |
| 0:39.5 | If so, it might be time to take a deeper look at your relationship with your reliable social crutch, alcohol. |
| 0:41.9 | On each episode, we'll investigate our own dysfunctional dealings with booze and find out if it's |
| 0:47.1 | possible to stop this deeply ingrained habit before things get too messy. |
| 0:51.3 | Yep, we're going to open up a shame shed of humiliating drinking stories to help you understand why |
| 0:56.5 | waking up from a booze coma each weekend with a kebab sticking out of your top pocket |
| 1:00.1 | might actually be negatively impacting your health. |
| 1:03.7 | Hamish and I are here to delve into what it's like being sober. |
| 1:07.6 | An unwanted warts and all look into why giving up those cheeky pints or putting down |
| 1:12.0 | those mummy wines will make you feel happier, help your anxiety and mental health, and turn |
| 1:17.4 | you into the most sparkly, authentic version of you. Won't that mean I become boring though, Vic? |
| 1:22.1 | Well, Hamish, we'll just have to wait and see. I'm Victoria Vanstone. I'm Hamish Adams |
| 1:27.3 | Cairns. And this is sober awkward. |
| 1:33.7 | So Vic, this is the last time. We're going to be face to facing. Yeah, for a while. |
| 1:40.8 | For months. Yeah. We have recorded enough. You guys are going to be all right. |
| 1:44.5 | There's still like the lots come out every week. |
... |
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