Untoxicated Podcast – Insecurity-Instinct-Evolve: Relationships in Recovery

Ep208 – The Developing Story Writing Workshop for Teens

Sheri and Matt welcome the most special of guests, their daughter, Cathryn, for a return visit to the podcast. This time, instead of working through the heart wrenching experiences of Cathryn's childhood, like they did on Ep200, they talk through all the details about their newest program: The Developing Story Writing Workshop for teens who have been impacted by alcohol abuse in the family. Cathryn shares how writing her story has helped her process the trauma, they discuss possible writing prompts, and Sheri reveals how stuffing down her father's alcoholism has caused her lingering challenges in adulthood. If you are considering The Developing Story as part of your family's healing process, tune in for all the details and check it out at TheDevelopingStory.org. Sheri, Matt and Cathryn start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask them something too? if so, send your question to [email protected].

Ep207 – Happily in the Middle

Sheri and Matt discuss the personality type that often underlies high-functioning alcoholism. Removing the alcohol doesn't change the personality, and for Matt, and millions of others, the work of recovery is understanding their discomfort with contentment. Confused much? Give this one a listen. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Ep206 – Surviving and Thriving with Kim Augustus

Kim's nervous system, her mental health and her marriage were all suffering from the trauma of addiction. A happy ending seemed woefully unlikely. But with persistence, fortunate timing and openness to consider different alternatives, Kim's husband has found lasting sobriety, and theirs is a story of redemption and hope - a story Kim thrives from telling. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Ep205 – The Addiction Triangle

Addiction sucks so much of the air from any relationship. Then in early sobriety, recovery work replaces alcohol taking priority over the alcoholic's family. As recovery continues, that third energy intruding on the relationship morphs into replacement addiction and other family issues. Having something there, the third side of the triangle, becomes a compulsive need in and of itself. In this episode, Sheri and Matt talk about how this has manifested in their marriage, and what they are doing about it. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Ep204 – Love, Loss & Forgiveness with Bhavini

It's the story of a romantic courtship and the rekindling of a spark felt when they were in their youth. Bhavini loved him and wanted so badly for it to work that she ignored the red flags that she recognizes only now in hindsight. As she processes her whirlwind experience as the spouse of an alcoholic, she pays tribute to love, learning and a deep thoughtfulness woven through her emotionally moving story. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Ep203 – Bravery

Bravery is not just about what you do or say or refuse to tolerate. There is another component. Bravery is also about what you are up against. In this episode, Sheri and Matt discuss his relentlessness as a tyrannical protector of their family secret, and what bravery was in Sheri's circumstances. Sometimes, often really, survival is a remarkable display of tremendous bravery. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Ep202 – LIVE from the Echoes of Recovery Retreat

Who has the right to tell the story and seek support? When you are involved in an alcoholic marriage, your stories are woven together, and opening up means shame and anger. But it also means relief and healing. How do you find balance? That's the topic that ten very experienced loved ones explore LIVE from our Echoes of Recovery retreat in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Ep201 – Alcoholic Parenting: Teaching Dishonesty, Fear & Hatred

Ep200 was Cathryn's story. Sheri's and Matt's insightful and intelligent daughter shared her experiences of growing up with high-functioning alcoholism, and she revealed things on that episode that shocked Matt and confirmed Sheri's sadness. On this episode, Sheri and Matt react. This is not about defensiveness. This is about the very start of coming to grips with the destruction. Alcohol has no respect for what we want for our children. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.

Ep200 – Our Daughter, Cathryn

What better way to honor our bicentennial episode than with the most special guest in the history of the podcast, Sheri's and Matt's daughter. Cathryn describes in painful detail what it is like to grow up in a house with a high-functioning-alcoholic parent. It is amazing how many similarities they discuss between the defense mechanisms of the children and the defense mechanism of the spouses. It is equally eye opening how and why Cathryn kept her truth hidden from Matt for so many years. If you think you have done a good job of protecting your kids from the ravages of alcoholism, you should listen. If you have a teen who could benefit from exploring our newest program, a writing workshop, led by Cathryn, for teenagers who have been impacted by the drinking of someone close to them, we encourage you to check out The Developing Story.

Ep199 – Relapse

There are short-term relapses that last a day or a weekend or a week, and there are long-term relapses that last weeks or months. Can you guess which type of relapse Sheri and Matt have come to believe is more dangerous? Like everything else related to addiction and recovery, the answer is counterintuitive (and worth a listen). Also, Matt guesses right. Kelly Miller's awesome new podcast is called The Addiction Nutritionist Podcast. Sheri and Matt start the episode by answering a listener’s question Do you want to ask the couple something too? if so, send your question to [email protected]. If you love or loved an alcoholic, and your recovery could benefit from connection with people who understand, please check out our Echoes of Recovery program.