Welcome back to another episode of the Sober Motivation podcast. Today's conversation with John

is one that really stayed with me after we finished recording. From the outside, his life

didn't look like what people usually imagine when they think about addiction. No arrest, no dramatic

rock bottom moment, but inside he was carrying years of guilt, shame, and memories that alcohol and drugs

only made heavier.

John spent more than two decades drinking, believing for most of that time that he didn't really

have a problem.

In this episode, he opens up about growing up in a loving home, the sudden loss of both

of his parents, and the painful moments he carried with him for years, moments that can't

be undone, and the kind that quietly stay with him for years, moments that can't be undone,

and the kind that quietly stay with you long after they happen.

It's an incredible honest conversation about regret, grief,

and the realization that sometimes the biggest consequences of alcohol aren't the ones

people see on the outside.

They are the ones we carry on the inside. And it's a story about

choosing to finally face those things and start living differently. And this is John's story

on the Sober Motivation podcast. Welcome back today. We've got John with us. John, how are you?

I'm great, man. Thanks you. Appreciate it. Yeah. Thanks for being willing to jump on the podcast here and share your story with all of us.

What was it like for you growing up?

Growing up was great. I was extremely fortunate and privileged to be born to two wonderful parents.

I had two awesome siblings in a beautiful house in a little rural area outside of a very safe, cool, upstate New York City.

We had a yard, a lot of forests, a lot of friends, my age, wiffle ball, kickball, riding bikes, you know, real ideal childhood. I am the baby in my family, though,

...