Patrick Fox
Patrick Fox
122. The Difference Between Using Willpower and Unlearning Desire for Alcohol with Tony Richardson
122. The Difference Between Using Willpower and Unlearning Desire for Alcohol with Tony Richardson
122. The Difference Between Using Willpower and Unlearning Desire for Alcohol with Tony Richardson
Friday 27th October 2023
Tony Richardson discusses moving from willpower struggles to rewiring his brain for lasting sobriety on 'The Alcohol ReThink Podcast'.
Explicit
49 minutes
Inspiring
Empowering
Informative
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Author:
Patrick Fox
Overview:
Categories:
Sobriety Toolkit
Sexual Empowerment & Identity
Creative Recovery Journeys
Understanding Addiction & Recovery
Body & Mind
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Get the buttons here!Tony Richardson's Path: From Willpower Struggles to a Sober Mindset
Episode Overview
- Tony's early experiences with alcohol during his time in the Royal Australian Air Force shed light on the influence of cultural norms.
- His eight-year struggle with willpower and the subsequent relapse underscored the challenges of maintaining sobriety through sheer determination.
- The impact of secret drinking and the internal conflicts associated with hiding drinking behaviour were candidly discussed.
- The journey towards sobriety was framed as an opportunity to reprogram desires and embrace radical humanity, allowing individuals to reclaim a life unburdened by the numbing effects of alcohol.
- Tony's insights shed light on the importance of addressing emotional triggers and seeking alternative coping mechanisms to navigate the complexities of alcohol recovery.
The only way that I can fix this was the only way I knew how was basically to take a drink and it was march 2016 and I sort of uh went down to the local liquor store I bought some cans of stella 500 mil cans and I took one back into my shed little shed here and i opened it and i drank it and i thought i'm going to get struck by lightning you know i'd done all this work and it was like a house of cards just imploding and i felt like shit
Picture this: you're 16, joining the Royal Australian Air Force, and suddenly, alcohol is everywhere. That's how Tony Richardson's journey with booze began. On this episode of 'The Alcohol ReThink Podcast', host Patrick Fox chats with Tony, a sober life coach who has seen it all. Tony opens up about his early days of binge drinking in the Air Force, where alcohol was part of the culture, and the spiral into addiction that followed.
He shares the grueling eight years he spent trying to stay sober using sheer willpower and some principles from AA, only to find himself in a constant battle with his own desires. The turning point? The devastating loss of a close friend that shattered his willpower and led him back to old habits. But then, a chance encounter with the book 'This Naked Mind' changed everything.
Now in his second and final stint of sobriety, Tony talks about how he moved from relying on willpower to rewiring his brain to lose the desire for alcohol altogether. He dives into the emotional triggers that drive drinking and how understanding these can lead to a life free from alcohol's grip. This episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to break free from the cycle of addiction and reclaim their life.