Learn to level out. Take the peaks and valleys and turn them into something steadier. In this one we interrogate Jake. Then talk urges, boredom, living amends, the weight of grief, and what it takes to let the inside finally match the outside.
00:00 – Dinosaur debates and Jurassic Park theology
02:09 – “Have you craved alcohol in the last month? Walk me through the first 90 seconds.”
03:11 – Sunday triggers, boredom, and how naps and batting cages became tools
07:28 – “The deepest part of sobriety for me is being the same on the outside as I feel on the inside.”
08:54 – Learning to share feelings instead of lashing out — and how unfair it still feels
18:14 – “What do you do with the pain you caused?” Grief, repair, and new tools
31:02 – From peaks and valleys to moguls: character defects shrink, gratitude grows
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
Paul spent 23 years in addiction, reached the point of loading a gun on the beach, and chose life instead. Almost two years clean, he’s wrestled with isolation, brain fog, losing his job, nearly losing his home, and still finding the courage to start again. We talk through what it feels like to abstain versus recover, how faith and community keep him going, and what surrender really looks like when everything falls apart. If you’re stuck, scared, or slipping, Paul’s story shows you’re not alone—and it turns out, you can be okay.
00:00 – Brian cracks open a LaCroix behind his wife 4 days after sobriety
04:11 – Paul loads a gun on the beach and chooses life instead
07:56 – “I had everything going for me… but none of that mattered.”
15:17 – Paul admits he was doing the bare minimum: clean but not in recovery
25:03 – “I didn’t get sober to feel this crappy.”
34:58 – Job loss, legal fight over his house, and his dad’s health scare
45:35 – Fresh haircut, a smile, and new actions after hitting bottom again
56:59 – “Turns out… you can be okay.”
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
This one is special. Paul joins us for a long, honest look at a life shaped by surrender, relapse, grace, and growth. He sobered up at 18. Fell hard in mid-life. Came back through the doors with nothing left but willingness. And over the decades he has become someone we all look to for wisdom.
We talk about blackouts, bottoms, the stubbornness that almost killed him, and the miracle that pulled him back. But we also talk about the calmer, quieter work. The sixth and seventh step. The ego. The anger. The peace he never thought he could find.
If you’ve ever wondered what long-term sobriety actually looks like, this is it. A man who has rebuilt his life again and again. A man who still asks God for help every single morning. And a man who has helped more people than he’ll ever know.
00:00 – How God Guy would dispatch a goose
05:07 – The table fills with four decades of sobriety
08:36 – Sobering up at 18: strict home, early bottom, and young fellowship
11:33 – Leaving AA, discovering alcohol for real, and going off the deep end
15:29 – Treatment, halfway house, and the five-month reset that saved his life
17:22 – What is an alcoholic? Bottoms, loss, and why only you can decide
18:59 – Why treatment alone doesn’t keep people sober
20:51 – God, meetings, sponsorship, and what “doing the deal” really looks like
23:43 – Meditation enters the picture and changes everything
27:06 – Therapy, adoption, abandonment, and deeper emotional work
31:29 – When “you’re not an alcoholic” becomes dangerous permission
36:49 – Bars, cocaine, blackouts, and near arrests
39:18 – Parenting through addiction and the long road back to his daughter
42:37 – The 12th step that didn’t “work” and the power of this disease
45:52 – The third DWI, flashing lights, and the moment of surrender
47:49 – The millionaire friend, the paid-for treatment, and a flat-out miracle
53:14 – Why Paul still chooses traditional AA and one main meeting
56:08 – Shrinking his network and finding peace in a smaller life
57:37 – Steps six and seven, ego, anger, and character defects
01:03:02 – God as friend, habit, and daily anchor
01:10:36 – The real secret to long-term sobriety: change and humility
01:15:18 – The most surprising part of this season: peace
01:16:31 – What Paul hopes his inner circle understands about him now
01:24:43 – Turns out… I’m a really good person
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
Guest Len has a phrase he says all the time. “I’m not that guy anymore.” He got sober later in life after 58 years of running from God, seven failed treatments, and a life built on self-determination. Today, he’s a steady presence in our recovery group, showing up week after week with humility and hope. In this episode we talk about what it takes to truly change, what’s lost and what’s gained, and how to keep moving forward when the old version of you still tries to show up.
00:00 – Bumper-sticker rants and baby-on-board debates set up Len’s arrival
05:59 – God Guy recalls being welcomed by Len’s wife, the “mother figure” he needed to stay
10:45 – Len reflects on Jake’s early skepticism, drinking on the way to meetings, and the eventual turn toward willingness
21:02 – Len shares how Brian’s faith foundation gave him both hope and concern in early recovery
31:15 – Len’s “screaming surrender” moment in treatment that changed everything
39:53 – The roots of arrogance, baseball, and why old patterns took so long to break
54:29 – How Len catches himself when the “old Len” shows up and why pausing makes all the difference
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
It’s easy to focus on the wreckage. But recovery brings quiet, powerful wins.
This one wasn’t planned. We wrapped one episode and Jake threw out, “what about recovery highlights?” So we hit record again. What came out was a string of stories we don’t want to forget... making amends with kids, seeing life more clearly, learning to listen, finding calm, and living with gratitude.
A reminder that sobriety isn’t about what we’ve lost... it’s about what we’ve gained.
00:00 – Traffic jams, lotion hands, and a midnight beef jerky breakdown
06:29 – God Guy shares the quiet pride of raising kids who’ve never seen him drink
07:57 – Making long-delayed amends to a daughter and the healing that followed
16:44 – Seeing family with fresh eyes after years of shame and distance
18:14 – Learning how to talk instead of shut down
21:09 – Turning awkward honesty into connection, even when it makes people uncomfortable
22:01 – The guys reflect on how far they’ve come—and how much further there is to go
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
Jake hits his first real bump in the road since getting sober, and it shakes him more than he expected. We talk about how recovery isn’t a straight path, what it feels like when a setback threatens your momentum, and why there’s no finish line to cross. The journey keeps going, and the only way through... is through.
00:00 – A fly torments Brian for 200 miles and survives every murder attempt
03:01 – Jake’s first big rattle in a year
08:14 – Finding peace through a 7-day devotion
13:40 – A simple nighttime image that calms the mind
16:36 – The ATV loop and why recovery never ends
21:54 – Making recovery a habit and liking the new you
32:59 – Reframing embarrassment in sobriety
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
Fun used to be easy. We’d drink and the night took care of itself. Sober, it’s different. We’ve had to relearn what joy looks like without a buzz, stumble through awkward starts, and figure out who our people are now. And then there are the moments we laughed so hard it felt like the old days... only better.
00:00 – Fireworks: how have any of us made it this far?
05:13 – Brian’s first time finding joy sober
09:42 – The awkward starts and dead ends
14:10 – Why planning fun matters now
19:27 – Learning to laugh like the old days
25:16 – Making room for joy in recovery
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
When is a drink just a drink and when is it something more? In this episode, Pete joins the crew to unpack his story: a late-onset spiral into alcoholism that began only after decades of “normal” drinking. But beneath the surface was always something deeper: childhood trauma, shame, and a relentless chase for belonging. Together, the group opens up about rock bottoms, secrets, habits, and the surprising moment each of them realized… alcohol wasn’t the real problem. This one hits deep.
00:00 – Pete teaches us about the tongue. Organ or body part?
02:27 – Pete shares how he “became an alcoholic in his 50s” after decades of normal drinking
05:53 – The moment the CEO title lost its potency and the shame surfaced
10:13 – How self-deception masked the pain for decades
13:08 – Pete realizes for the first time: “I didn’t even know I was in pain”
27:14 – Jake relives the trauma of losing his brother to alcoholism
34:18 – Brian confesses the secret drinking patterns he thought were harmless
44:38 – Jake describes the “in-between” year before real recovery began
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
A raw post-launch debrief. The guys reflect on what it feels like to finally hit publish, how vulnerability lands with family and friends, and the fear of slipping once your story is out in the world. What follows is honest, funny, and deeply human—a reminder that recovery isn’t about perfection. It’s about courage, connection, and doing the work anyway.
00:00 – We finally hit publish. People have opinions, and our stories are out.
01:05 – Gratitude for the work behind the scenes and what it took to get here.
04:26 – Old friends, unexpected messages, and the fear of relapse after going public.
07:50 – Permission to air it out—why we shared the mess anyway.
10:52 – The courage of men and the evolution toward vulnerability and faith.
14:04 – Wives, parents, and kids: how honesty ripples through family.
18:48 – What we’d tell anyone listening.
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
Quitting drinking doesn’t magically make you patient, disciplined, or kind. We talk about the flaws that stuck around after the alcohol was gone, the ones we didn’t see coming, and what it takes to actually change them. Sobriety gave us the chance to do the work—turns out, the work is a lot bigger than just not drinking.
00:00 – God Guy tells an overshare-worthy pee story
01:25 – When sobriety feels like a switch—but the habits remain
05:35 – Brain fog lifts, but control issues creep in
09:03 – What’s the difference between abstinence, sobriety, and recovery
17:20 – Relapse fears and redefining failure
26:12 – Slipping into old roles without drinking
44:52 – Spiritual condition check-in: “I’ve gotten sloppy”
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com.
An empty bottle in a three-year-old’s hand and the look on his wife’s face that said everything. What follows is the unraveling—intervention, confession, leaving home—and the long walk through chronic pain, a father’s surgery, and a son’s Type 1 diabetes diagnosis. At a borrowed kitchen table in winter, Brian finally surrenders: pages of truth, a whisper of forgiveness, and a new way to live.
Turns out… grace is what holds.
00:00 — The day everything cracked open
00:58 — Three days later at Quest180
05:18 — Pain and fear stack up
10:13 — Mercy in the living room
13:36 — Finally surrendered
16:18 — The guys unpack Brian’s story
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com
Brian N. (aka God Guy ) opens up about growing up in faith, losing control to alcohol, and finding grace through surrender. His story isn’t about hitting a dramatic rock bottom, but about finally letting go of quiet control and realizing that strength isn’t toughness — it’s vulnerability. When he shares his story for the first time, emotion floods the room, and what unfolds is one of the rawest, most sacred moments of the podcast so far.
Turns out… humility is stronger than control.
00:00 — I’m Brian, alcoholic, God guy
04:54 — The fall and foundation
08:29 — Three years of prayer
11:14 — Rock bottom and rebirth
22:00 — The silence that said everything
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com
Jake traces the quiet build of an ordinary life. Then, the shocks that cracked it open. A best friend’s cancer, a brother’s spiral, a father’s death. He drank to outrun grief until there was nowhere left to go but a meeting and a prayer to a God he didn’t know. What follows is a simple, stunning arc: community, daily action, and a faith that reframed death itself.
Turns out… every moment led here on purpose.
00:00 – “Every moment led here.” Jake opens with a monologue on fate, design, and finding peace through hardship.
01:59 – Loss and collapse. A friend’s death, a brother’s decline, and the spiral that followed.
04:00 – The first prayer. Crying out to a God he didn’t know, Jake steps into his first AA meeting.
05:22 – A higher plan. From despair to discovery, Jake recognizes purpose in his pain.
06:36 – Conversation begins. We unpack faith, fear, and the moment he finally let go.
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com
Protecting sobriety can look like turning your back on people you love. We’ve said no to friends, jobs, and even family to keep this thing. We wrestle with the guilt, the pride that had to die, and the moments that proved putting recovery first was the most loving and selfless choice we could make.
01:13 - Why “selfish” can be the healthiest thing you do
03:55 - Letting relationships go to protect sobriety
08:24 - The slow death of pride in recovery
12:02 - How boundaries make space for healing
20:49 - Sobriety’s ripple effect on the people around you
27:37 - Choosing recovery over comfort, every time
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com
In a meeting, a newcomer shows up and rewinds everyone back to Step 1, sparking raw conversations about humility, belonging, and why it’s harder to return after you’ve drifted away. Sometimes the hardest part is walking back through the door a second time. One Tuesday night can change an entire week.
00:00 - Roll call
02:01 - A powerful meeting sparks the idea to record raw, in-the-moment stories
04:31 - The impact of hearing long-term sobriety from those ahead of you
07:21 - Why newcomers shift the focus back to Step 1
10:15 - Bringing faith into AA spaces without holding back
16:04 - Why we keep going to meetings when others drift away
25:01 - The deeper the bottom, the more likely the commitment
29:15 - Why the second meeting can be harder than the first
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com
We don’t drink anymore but that doesn’t mean we’re done being alcoholics. You don’t cross a finish line and get a diploma in sobriety. This road keeps going, and the work never stops. We share the moments that blindsided us, the guardrails we had to build, and the hard truth that staying sober isn’t the endgame. Becoming someone worth being... that’s the work.
00:00 — Roll call
01:34 — The first time each of us said “I’m an alcoholic”
05:23 — The surprises that come with actually working the steps
07:17 — How pain can be purposeful in recovery
09:41 — Why sobriety eventually becomes less of the focus
14:03 — A close call that put new guardrails in place
31:38 — Choosing selfishness to protect your recovery
Need help? Find your local AA or Celebrate Recovery group. Or email us at turnsoutpodcast@gmail.com
Turns Out: A Sobriety Podcast isn’t a lecture, a book report on the Big Book, or some influencer’s rebrand of recovery. It’s a few people in a room talking honestly about what it takes to stay sober.
We laugh, we break, we tell the truth about selfishness, fear, faith, and the fight to keep going.
Whether you’re a week sober, ten years sober, or just circling the drain, you’ll find real stories and real hope here. Because it turns out the road keeps going, and the only way to walk it... is together.