Betty Guadagno shares her journey from generational addiction and trauma to a spiritual awakening in recovery. We talk about worthiness, community, and reclaiming creativity in sobriety. Her story is powerful, raw, and full of hope.
In this special episode of The Creative Sober, Mei is joined by storyteller and recovery advocate Betty Guadagno. Betty shares her raw and powerful journey from growing up in generational cycles of addiction and trauma, to surviving an overdose that became a spiritual awakening, and how she has rebuilt her life in recovery.
Together, Mei and Betty explore:
✨ This conversation is about worthiness, resilience, and the courage to reclaim your story.
🎧 Listen now and connect with Betty at
Bill Taylor, Director of Music Programs & Strategy at The Phoenix, shares his powerful journey of recovery within the music industry. He discusses the unique challenges musicians face, the vital role of community support, and how music can be a transformative healing tool. Bill emphasizes creating safe spaces at festivals, shifting self-talk, and the importance of organizations like The Phoenix in providing accessible resources.
Key Takeaways:
Learn more about The Phoenix:
https://thephoenix.org/
Episode Summary:
We chat with Bonnie Rue, a talented artist and creative director at Austin's Original Apothecary. Bonnie shares her inspiring recovery journey and how sobriety has fueled her creativity. We discuss the power of nutrition and herbs in early recovery, the importance of overcoming perfectionism, and the benefits of mindfulness and kindness in the creative process. We also explore the role of community, holistic wellness, and self-care in maintaining sobriety.
Key Takeaways:
~ Sobriety can enhance creativity and personal growth.
~ Nutrition and herbs can support early recovery.
~ Overcoming perfectionism is key to unlocking creativity.
~ Mindfulness and kindness are essential tools for navigating the creative process.
~ Community and self-care are vital for maintaining sobriety.
~ Holistic wellness can bring balance and purpose to life.
About Bonnie Rue:
Bonnie Rue is a talented artist and creative director passionate about holistic wellness. She is the inspiration for Savoring Sobriety, a holistic approach to food and tea to support those in early recovery. Bonnie's work at Austin's Original Apothecary combines her love of plants, creativity, and community.
Connect with Bonnie Rue:
We dive deep into the inspiring journey of Kady's a vibrant pop artist from Austin, Texas. Kady shares her personal experiences of surviving an abusive relationship, finding her purpose in music, and embracing sobriety. Her story is a testament to the power of creativity and resilience in overcoming adversity.
Discover:
About Kady Rain:
Kady is a talented pop artist known for her catchy melodies, vibrant energy, and diverse musical style. She has performed at prestigious festivals like ACL Festival and has received critical acclaim for her music and music videos. Her songs often explore themes of self-expression, resilience, and finding one's voice.
Connect with Kady Rain Williams:
*This episode contains discussions of suicide and mental health challenges that some listeners may find triggering. If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, please seek professional help immediately. You can call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
In this episode, Host, Mei McIntosh shares her journey of being alcohol-free for five years and the challenges she faced over the past year, including a big move, health challenges, and the loss of a beloved pet. She discusses the importance of self-care, alternative medicine, and setting boundaries.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Five Years Sober Milestone
06:29 The Big Move and Adjusting to a New Environment
08:22 Mental Health Struggles and the Journey to Healing
11:35 Exploring Alternative Medicine: Ketamine-Assisted Therapy
15:28 Health Challenges: Cancer Scare and Loss of a Pet
21:21 Lessons in Self-Care, Boundaries, and Cherishing Life
Struggling to balance partying and your art? Could ditching the scene unlock your creative potential? J9 shares their inspiring pre-pandemic sobriety choice, piloting adventures, and music debut "Pleasure & Pain" – a taste of their album "Colt 45." Discover how transformation fuels their '90s-infused sound. Listen now!
Connect with J9:
🎧 Listen to Previous Episodes: Immerse yourself in more transformative tales of sobriety and creativity by exploring our past episodes.
Produced by: Mei McIntosh and Joel Swift
Join Our Podcast Community: Dive deeper into the world of sobriety and creativity, and connect with like-minded souls at our online community: www.thecreativesober.com.
In a heartfelt and introspective episode with the remarkable Suki Jones. As a San Francisco Bay Area-based writer, Suki has become synonymous with resilience and literary brilliance, especially with 23 years of sobriety under her belt. This episode places a special spotlight on her memoir, "Sea, Swallow Me," providing listeners with a deep dive into its raw narrative, exploring Suki's tumultuous journey through addiction and the tranquil resolution she finds in recovery.
Resources Mentioned:
Connect with Suki Jones:
🎧 Listen to Previous Episodes: Immerse yourself in more transformative tales of sobriety and creativity by exploring our past episodes.
Produced by: Mei McIntosh and Joel Swift
Join Our Podcast Community: Dive deeper into the world of sobriety and creativity, and connect with like-minded souls at our online community: www.thecreativesober.com
From Los Angeles, author Hannah Sward peels back the layers of her journey as a writer. She navigates the turning point of publishing her memoir, "Strip," and the serendipitous alignment of her deeply personal experiences that brought her to this present moment. Sward delves into the wellspring of her creativity, exploring the delicate balance between her thirteen years of sobriety and the success of her book.
Connect with Hannah:
🎧 Listen to Previous Episodes: Immerse yourself in more transformative tales of sobriety and creativity by exploring our past episodes.
Produced by: Mei McIntosh and Joel Swift
Join Our Podcast Community: Dive deeper into the world of sobriety and creativity, and connect with like-minded souls at our online community: www.thecreativesober.com
Nathan James ("Nate the Dreamer"), is a young Orlando creative, entrepreneur, and founder of Not Your Narrative Apparel. Nathan, a mental health advocate for marginalized communities (and 3.5 years sober!), uses his platform to challenge negative stereotypes and empower others. He believes vulnerability is key to breaking down barriers and helping others.
TW: Bullying, self-harm, alcohol abuse, blood, cannabis use, internalized racism
Connect with Nathan James:
🎧 Listen to Previous Episodes: Immerse yourself in more transformative tales of sobriety and creativity by exploring our past episodes.
Produced by: Mei McIntosh and Joel Swift
Join Our Podcast Community: Dive deeper into the world of sobriety and creativity, and connect with like-minded souls at our online community: www.thecreativesober.com
Alcohol abuse in the music world is not sustainable, and it is possible to sober up and have a successful music career. We learn about Danny Coburn's story of when he found his passion for music at an early age, fell into alcohol abuse at 21 years old, to lose his band and way of life. Danny got a wake-up call on his journey towards deciding to stop drinking, and took early steps in recovery to reach 30 days sober, only to find himself thriving again, and making a living as a touring musician with 6 and half years of sobriety. Connect with Danny:
🎧 Listen to Previous Episodes: Immerse yourself in more transformative tales of sobriety and creativity by exploring our past episodes.
Produced by: Mei McIntosh and Joel Swift
Join Our Podcast Community: Dive deeper into the world of sobriety and creativity, and connect with like-minded souls at our online community: www.thecreativesober.com
Hi, it's your host here, Mei! It's that time again to warm up the podcast mic for the new season and check in with where I am at on my creative journey as I'm approaching three years of sobriety!
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Episode Produced by: Joel Swift and Missing Mei
Producer and DJ are just a couple of Tommie Sunshine's passions that lead his life. Also, count on him being involved in activism, teaching at NYU, being a husband, and sober for the last 16 years! Tommie takes us through some of his journeys as a world-traveling DJ, what convinced him to get sober, and what he is doing to contribute to making a difference for the greater good.
Tommie Sunshine Official Bio: Tastemaker to tastemakers, curator, and shapeshifter, Tommie Sunshine is renowned for his reputation of being consistently ahead of the curve bridging the worlds of Rave, Disco, House, and EDM while still standing firmly in the zeitgeist. Establishing his name throughout the American Rave scene during the '90s, he became one of the most recognizable figures of the Electroclash movement during the early 2000s and helped set the stage for the EDM boom of the 2010s. 29 years as a DJ and 35 years as a clubber gives Sunshine his unique perspective on the business & informs his present Rave Revival sound.
Set apart by his iconoclastic productions, he is regarded as one of today's most prolific remixers providing club-ready makeovers for countless household names, including Billie Eilish, Bob Marley, Katy Perry, Dua Lipa, Sofi Tukker, Lenny Kravitz, Elvis Presley, Lizzo, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Kelly Clarkson, Major Lazer, Santana, and Fall Out Boy. Tommie's original production career spans collaborations with artists such as Oscar-nominated and Grammy winner Junkie XL, Chocolate Puma, Grammy winner James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem, legend Arthur Baker, House Music pioneer Felix da Housecat, Peaches, The Disco Fries, and many more. His music has been released on all of the biggest dance labels in the world including Spinnin', Ultra, Armada, Musical Freedom, Heldeep, Size, Mixmash, Dim Mak, and Mad Decent amongst others.
Tommie wrote and recorded 9 tracks for several editions of Konami's classic arcade game Dance Dance Revolution (DDR). Approaching its 600th release, his label Brooklyn Fire provides a platform to young producers just getting started in the business giving their music mass exposure, DJ support from the biggest in the game & streams into the millions. Sunshine, also known as a social media provocateur, has been known to cause an uproar in his firm stance on many issues most won't dare talk about & his activism has landed him on TMZ for gun control. Tommie served as an entertainment surrogate for the 2016 & 2020 Presidential campaigns of Bernie Sanders.
Connect | Follow ▷ Tommie Sunshine
www.thecreativesoberpodcast.com | Produced by Missing Mei and Joel Swift
S.C. Jensen is a Canadian fiction writer, sci-fi and horror enthusiast, and literary advocate. She lives with her husband, children, and various fuzzy friends on an acreage in The-Middle-of-Nowhere (a.k.a. Northern Saskatchewan). She spends most of her days crafting stories about ordinary people forced to act in extraordinary situations and is perpetually rooting for the underdog.
That’s because she used to be the underdog in her own story.
Since quitting drinking on August 31, 2018, she’s come into her own as a sober creative and hopes to share her experiences with fiction lovers from all walks of life.
Jensen dabbles in horror, thriller, mystery, and contemporary literary fiction but her first reading and writing love has always been science fiction. Recently, she’s attempted to mash all these interests together—drawing from American pulp noir detective fiction of the 1930s-1950s and from cyberpunk sci-fi of the 1980s—to create a pulpy sci-fi thriller series called Bubbles in Space.
She’s used this series to play with all the toys in the genre fiction sandbox, dress archetypes up in the wrong outfits, flip tropes upside down, and generally make a mess of conventions and expectations. One big trope she’s decided to do away with is that of the alcoholic detective.
As a sober writer, it has become a personal goal for Jensen to focus on telling the stories of sober characters—both those in recovery and those who maintain abstinence for other reasons—as a way to normalize abstinence, sobriety and recovery in pop culture. She wants her books to be a safe, validating place for members of the sober community.
Bubbles Marlowe, a sober cyborg detective, marks Jensen’s first foray into writing sober characters, and she’s been extremely well received. Readers agree that Bubbles in Space is an absolute rollercoaster of fast-paced action, irreverent humor, larger-than-life characters, and plots that keep you guessing until the very end. But above all, they’re rooting for their favorite underdog, Bubbles.
You can join S.C. Jensen’s VIP Readers Club to stay up-to-date with freebies, sales, and new release info.
Website: http://www.scjensen.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scjensen.author
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/scjensen.author
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/scjensen_author
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Produced by: Joel Swift and Mei McIntosh
Meredith earned her Bachelor’s Degree from ULL in Cultural Anthropology with a minor in English. Her work has been featured in Poets Choice, Anti-Heroin Chic, and the anthology “Storealities.” She is the subject of an Artist's Feature in Hatchlings Publishings.
She headlined and produced the event, A Night of Poetry, created and produced the Flood Relief Fundraiser with Paige Daye to raise over $5K for victims of the 100 Year Flood in Acadiana, has shared her work in readings at The Warehouse, Feed N Seed, Glide Dance Studio, The Warehouse Project, (Lafayette, LA) Readings on the Pike (VA), Poetry in the Brew (Nashville), Radio Coffee Bar, Buda Mercantile, Sans Bar, Native Hostel and Red Light Lit (Austin, TX).
She hosts and produces the podcast “Remarkable Voices” with her husband.
Connect with Meredith J. Flanagan:
Instagram: @_thisismeredith
Website | Booking: www.thisismeredith.com
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Produced by: Joel Swift and Mei McIntosh
Laura Silverman has been a booze-free babe since July of 2007. Founder of sober lifestyle blog The Sobriety Collective, wellness travel site Booze-Free in DC, and Zero Proof Nation, a community celebrating nonalcoholic beverages and the people who drink/create them, Laura is passionate about #thesoberlife. When not tasting delicious new booze-free bevs, she's a karaoke rockstar, roller derby girl, nature lover, #mentalhealth advocate, and treasures spending time with her close friends and family.
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Radio Personality and DJ, Dan Amsden, aka Huggie, thrived on boldness, charisma, and intensity on and off the mic when it came to his radio career of 10 years to DJing as 'TVTV.' To keep up the momentum and party life, he turned to cocaine which eventually led him to rehab. After a year of being clean and sober, Huggie is grounding his creative passions by leaning into music, producing, and keeping an open mind towards what makes him grow into 'the artist way' of living while inspiring others around him to recover out loud. Follow HUGGIE on Instagram: @itsmehuggie Connect + Follow The Creative Sober Official Site: The Creative Sober Podcast Produced by: Joel Swift and Missing Mei
Originally from the west coast of Canada, singer and songwriter Michelle Reid blends dark soul-baring honesty in her lyrics with glitchy electronic production and catchy pop melodies. She releases original music under her solo artist project, “Sorcia”, where she also advocates for mental health awareness, specifically in terms of OCD, eating disorder, and alcohol recovery.
Michelle got her start as a singer, dancer, and actress in the theatre, touring Canada, the US, and Europe with shows such as Jesus Christ Superstar, Superman, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. She writes music for film and TV placements as well as songs to be released by other artists, including the single "Fight Like A Woman” by Marisha Wallace in 2019, which has been performed and major venues around the world, including The London Palladium while on tour with Todrick Hall.
Aside from consistently working on a variety of collaborative music projects, Michelle is also currently working on a memoir about her experience with bulimia, OCD, and sobriety.
Ref: NOCD - https://www.treatmyocd.com
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Produced by: Joel Swift and Mei McIntosh
Josh James, a career bartender, took a year off drinking to see what would happen. His result was realizing his full potential and reviewing NA Beverages as Josh the Non-Alcoholic on YouTube and Instagram. After creating 30 videos, he walked into a deli establishment that happened to be closing in 1 week. 3 months later and 11 months into being a non-drinker, Josh opened Ocean Beach Cafe to build the largest non-alcoholic beverage selection in the country! The response has been massive in the booming industry as he continues to take this ride to the moon!
Instagram: @joshthenonalcoholic
Website: oceanbeachcafe.com
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Produced by: Joel Swift and Mei McIntosh