Meditation v. Self-Medication with Biet Simkin

When spiritual teacher Biet Simkin and I created "sober curious" event series Club SÖDA NYC, our goal was to extend the invitation of sobriety beyond 12-step or recovery circles to anybody questioning their relationship to booze. Three years later, these events have played a pivotal role in helping shift thinking about drinking—as noted in a 2019 write-up in the NY Times on "The New Sobriety"!

Now nearly 11 years clean from alcohol, cocaine, and heroin abuse, in this episode Biet shares the story of the "awakening" that led to her getting sober, as well as some signature rock 'n' roll teachings and insights from her new book, Don't Just Sit There! In this conversation, which contains STRONG language and a few trigger warnings (beware!) we also discuss:

-The lies we are telling ourselves when we're numbing with drugs & alcohol

-Why not drinking is a shocking and rebellious act

-Why tragedy and loss can be calls to a personal awakening

-Why it is impossible to shut down the "negative" parts of being human, and how to accept them

-Why doing cocaine off toilets with celebrities is NOT a sign that you have "made it"

Discover more about Biet Simkin and her work HERE, follow her on Instagram, and get a copy of her book HERE. You can also check out a video playback from our last Club SÖDA NYC event, titled Psychedelics & Sobriety, HERE.

This episode was created in partnership with DRY Sparkling.