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Laura is the author of the bestselling memoir We Are The Luckiest: The Surprising Magic of a Sober Life and Push Off From Here: Nine Essential Truths to Get You Through Life (and Everything Else).
Her work explores the intersection of addiction, recovery, emotional sobriety, and the complexities of relationships. She has written for The New York Times and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Atlantic, The TODAY Show, and more.
In 2020, she founded The Luckiest Club, a global sobriety support community, and she writes Love Story, a popular Substack newsletter about sobriety, relationships, and writing. She is currently working on her third book.
Laura lives with her daughter on the North Shore of Boston.

You can find Laura on Instagram at:
https://www.instagram.com/laura_mckowen?igsh=MjBnbDE5eHExbjY2

And all Laura’s other links on Linktree:
https://linktr.ee/laura_mckowen

We Are The Luckiest - Laura McKowen
https://amzn.eu/d/0gKzYmnJ

Push off From Here - Laura McKowen
https://amzn.eu/d/0hZASeMq

John O’Donohue - The Inner Landscape of Beauty
https://amzn.eu/d/0dQokDBM

Sentimental Value
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27714581/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk

Drinking: A Love Story - Caroline Knapp
https://amzn.eu/d/0dQokDBM

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My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/

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Nikki is a sobriety coach and the voice behind @mommyissober, where she shares raw, honest insights about what it really looks like to change your relationship with alcohol.

After years of struggling herself, Nikki realised that the problem wasn’t a lack of willpower, it was the need for relief. That understanding changed everything.

Her work now focuses on helping women, especially mothers, gently break the evening drinking cycle by working with their nervous system, not against it.

Through her coaching and her 6-week live program Unbound, Nikki supports women who are still drinking but know something needs to change, helping them uncover the root cause and build a life that no longer needs alcohol to cope.

You can find Nikki on instagram at:
https://www.instagram.com/mommyissober?igsh=MWh1Zno3ZXUyc2hlOA==

And Nikkis website is here:
https://mommyissober.live/

The Surrender Experiment - Michael A. Singer
https://amzn.eu/d/0fBHg276

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My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/

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Ashley Howard is a certified life and recovery coach with over 20 years of experience in the health and wellness industry. Now with over 3 years of sobriety, she works 1:1 with individuals to help them reduce or eliminate alcohol so they can live healthier, happier, and more aligned lives. Based in South Carolina, she is also a wife and mom of two young children, and brings a realistic, compassionate approach to sustainable change.

You can find Ashley on Instagram at:
https://amzn.eu/d/074zO5jE

And her website at:
https://www.ashleyhowardcoaching.com

Sober Motivation with Brad McLeod
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/sober-motivation-sharing-sobriety-stories/id1650658049

Annie Grace - This Naked Mind
https://amzn.eu/d/0bmEeE4O

Annie Grace - The Alcohol Experiment
https://amzn.eu/d/0hKgNiI1

Laura McKowen - Push Off From Here
https://amzn.eu/d/074zO5jE

Support the show

My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/

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“Retired party animal. Professional life-changer.”

My name is Dawn, although these days, many people know me as ‘Sober Fish’.

For most of my adult life, I lived the party lifestyle. On the outside it looked fun, but behind the scenes it was sleepless nights, extreme emotions, toxic relationshits, two-day hangovers and a growing sense that something wasn’t right.

By 2016, I was overweight, my eczema was out of control, and I felt stuck in a loop that was slowly draining the joy out of my life.

Something HAD to change so I decided to do a personal experiment: one whole year without alcohol or cigarettes, and I’d document the journey publicly on social media.

I drank my last alcoholic drink on 27 November 2016, fully expecting to return to my old lifestyle once the year was up.

But something unexpected happened.

That experiment didn’t just change my habits — it actually changed my life! What began as a one-year challenge became a completely new way of living, and I’ve remained alcohol and smoke free ever since.

Today, I support others who feel stuck in the same cycle I once did through coaching, mentoring and my private community, helping them change their relationship with alcohol and build a life they no longer feel the need to escape from.

🐟

Catch Dawn on Instagram at:

https://www.instagram.com/soberfishie?igsh=ZjVwbjJqaDJmczR3

or on Facebook at:

https://www.facebook.com/share/18vvijBris/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Dawn's Linktree:

https://linktr.ee/Soberfish?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAdGRleAQqhjhleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAadjo2U7bFrRAONzzbycrGG000G7TntaAHX6KJAa7Y141EdsrbGnDAFn3jmhLw_aem_NIEBd5DpI53j1Sa6L4HNPQ

Alcohol Explained - William Porter
https://amzn.eu/d/01rqPozm

Glorious Rock Bottom - Bryony Gordon
https://amzn.eu/d/014kt028

Rain in my Heart Documentary - BBC
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00793zq/rain-in-my-heart

Support the show

My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/

Send a text

On June 15, 2022, Mikey got clean and sober after years of battling addiction and multiple attempts to take his own life. His journey to recovery came only after reaching a place of deep desperation, when enough had been taken from him that he finally found the strength to fight back.

Through those darkest years, Mikey’s beautiful wife never left his side. She stood by him faithfully, even though watching him slowly destroy himself hurt her just as deeply as it hurt him. Her love and loyalty became part of the foundation he would eventually build his recovery upon.

Since becoming clean, Mikey’s life has been transformed. Recovery opened his eyes to beauty in places he once could not see. Today, Mikey considers himself rich not because of money, but because of the abundance of love, connection, and purpose in his life.

What was freely given to Mikey in his recovery, he now gives freely to others. It has become his personal mission to leave the world better than he found it, helping people one by one, bit by bit.


Find Mikey on Instagram at:
https://www.instagram.com/mikeybanksrr?igsh=cjdqbGVwcTY1YW0x

Mikey’s I AM movement:
https://ko-fi.com/s/08ce0f2ede?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAVERFWAQfukxleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAaeufUiTElMI_NykYbXbptQYoXX3jW8qHGmrEfdWwTPdsVqnctQH_vN_UxE89Q_aem_iwdJxxQaejNGs8CkjSgBkg

The Better Together Ball:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-better-together-ball-tickets-1981878757715?aff=oddtdtcreator&fbclid=PAVERFWAQfuphleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAac8fyV2wmls0UytOODHCIKo1bKuwHc6sgNLvqvs9_ni9Skk2ifuX2TvXbZmUA_aem_mkjXW3KvC70e598ed3yWuw

A Star is Born:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1517451/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk

The Realm of Hungry Ghosts by Gabor Mate:
https://amzn.eu/d/0d5xfdRI

Support the show

My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/

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Rachel’s story begins with neglect, resilience, and a whole lot of sadness. Her mother lost custody of her sister & her due to her own addiction, being raised by their father alone, A heartbreak that forced her to grow up fast. She lost her mom to an overdose at just sixteen, an even bigger heartbreak that forced her to grow up even faster. With a hardworking dad who was always trying to keep the family afloat and a younger sibling who depended on her, Rachel learned early how to survive chaos. But survival came with pain, and that pain eventually pulled her down a darker path.
By twenty, Rachel became a mom herself, trying to figure out adulthood while fighting battles she didn’t know how to name yet. Drinking led to blackouts, benzos numbed everything, and holding a job became almost impossible. Life felt like it was slipping through her fingers. Everything changed on April 11, 2024; the day she chose sobriety and never looked back. Since then, she’s lost over 70 pounds, rebuilt her life from the ground up, and become the steady, reliable version of herself she once never believed possible.
Today, Rachel is nearly two years sober, a co-host of the growing podcast Rock Bottom with Ryan, and a powerful voice for women & mothers in recovery. She is a present mother, a woman who shows up at work every day with pride, and the creator of a life she once only dreamed about. She’s also preparing to marry the man who stood by her through every breakdown and breakthrough on her two years of sobriety. Her passion now is helping other women see that healing is possible, no matter how far they’ve fallen, you can get back up and fight the fight!


Catch Rachel on Instagram at:
https://www.instagram.com/realtalkwithrachie

Rock Bottom with Ryan Podcast:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/rock-bottom-with-ryan/id1827151504

Mel Robbins - Let Them
https://amzn.eu/d/0d5hYimk

Dr. Anna Lembke - Dopamine Nation
https://amzn.eu/d/09Td17HH

Support the show

My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/

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Natalie is a sober mom devoted to recovery, spiritual awakening, and conscious healing. Through lived experience, deep self reflection, and radical honesty, she speaks about what it truly means to choose sobriety, face grief and loss, and rebuild a life rooted in self trust and inner peace. Her journey centers on surrender, resilience, and learning to live aligned with truth rather than survival. Natalie believes sobriety is not just the absence of substances, but the presence of self. One day, one choice, and one awakening at a time.

You can find her on Instagram at:

https://www.instagram.com/thesoberglowgetter

David Goggins - Can't Hurt Me

https://amzn.eu/d/06CVZCpY

Requiem For a Dream - Darren Aronofsky

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0180093/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk

Support the show

My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/

Send us Fan Mail

Ash’s relationship with alcohol began at sixteen, drinking Lambrini down the park with her friends. For many years, alcohol was her idea of fun. It led her into dangerous situations, and many of the negative experiences she carries would not have happened had she not been drinking.

As she got older, her drinking evolved. Park benches turned into sophisticated nights out and glasses of Whispering Angel on the sofa. But alongside this shift, her hangovers grew heavier and more debilitating. They began to affect her mental health and erode her self worth, leaving her feeling like a horrible person in the aftermath.

Around six years ago, Ash’s sober curious journey began. She picked up quit lit, educated herself, and started following sober accounts on Instagram. A quiet but powerful seed was planted, the idea that life could be lived differently.

After many ups and downs and several sober stints, at thirty three she decided to give sobriety a real try and see what life could look like without wine. Becoming a mum made the decision feel more meaningful. She wanted to take it seriously and be the best role model she could be for her daughter.

Ash realised she had been getting through life while drinking, but she wanted more than just okay. She wanted a life where she wakes up with a spring in her step and finds joy in the simple, booze free moments 🌱
You can find Ash on Insta at:

https://www.instagram.com/boozefreesparkle

Sober Stories From Everyday People - Sassy Sober Mum

https://amzn.eu/d/dR6xhhv

Lucy Rocca - How to Lead a Happier, Healthier, and Alcohol-Free Life : The Rise of the Soberista

https://amzn.eu/d/dR6xhhv


We are the luckiest - Laura McKowen

https://amzn.eu/d/g7QaCV5

Support the show

My Instagram is:
https://www.instagram.com/recovery_jimmy

And you can find all my other links at:
https://linktr.ee/jimmythistle

Buy me a coffee…
https://buymeacoffee.com/afterhourswithjimmyt

Donate:

https://motiv8.im/donate/

https://nacoa.org.uk/get-involved/donating/donate/