This week on Sober Champs, we're switching it up. No guest, no table — just Pete and Aidan in a laid-back, unscripted conversation about life, recovery, and everything in between.
They open up about what it’s been like creating this podcast, how far it’s come, and why it’s more than just a space for stories of struggle — it's also about connection, humor, growth, and building something real. From reflecting on their own sober dates to speaking candidly about mental health, relapse, working in recovery, and even social media addiction, this episode pulls back the curtain and lets listeners see the heart behind the mic.
It’s funny. It’s honest. It’s personal.
Whether you’re deep in recovery, just getting curious, or have been riding with us since episode one — this one’s for you.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete and Aidan sit down with Allison, who opens up about her journey from a seemingly "normal" childhood in North Seattle to full-blown addiction by her teens. Despite coming from a supportive home and academic-focused parents, Allison shares how her restless energy and untreated ADHD led her to chase chaos at an early age.
From acting out in middle school to introducing harder substances into her friend group in high school, Allison paints an honest picture of how addiction doesn’t always stem from trauma. It can also grow quietly in the spaces where we feel unseen or misunderstood.
The conversation dives into early recovery, the illusion of “figuring it out” after rehab, and the dangers of relying on self-knowledge alone. Now over a decade sober, Allison reflects on the importance of community, humility, and the power of learning from others’ experiences before having to hit every wall yourself.
This episode is for anyone who thought they could outsmart addiction… and learned the hard way that healing requires more than just understanding. It requires surrender.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete and Aiden sit down with Cicio. Someone who takes us deep into his story of addiction, identity, and transformation.
Growing up in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood, Cicio always felt like he didn’t quite belong. He was funny, social, and surrounded by friends, but never truly comfortable in his own skin. What started as weed and keg parties in middle school quickly escalated into a dangerous mix of Xanax, benzos, opiates, and cocaine, all driven by a desire to escape the deep discomfort he carried inside.
This episode pulls no punches. Cicio talks about blacking out for days, gaslighting loved ones, and chasing that fleeting high with everything he had, even when it meant destroying everything around him. From selling pills and getting robbed to waking up in strange places with no memory and no money, his addiction took him to the edge more than once.
But the turning point came when the hustle stopped working. After burning bridges and hitting emotional rock bottom, Cicio found himself in rehab in Arizona. Not because he wanted to, but because there was nowhere left to run. That decision marked the start of a slow, uncomfortable, and deeply real recovery journey.
Now over two years sober, Cicio opens up about what healing really looks like. From learning how to feel feelings without numbing them to building back trust and rediscovering who he is, his story reminds us that recovery is not a straight line. It is work. It is honesty. And it is worth it.
This episode is for anyone who has lied to themselves or others just to keep using. Anyone who has felt broken and unlovable. And anyone who needs to hear that it is never too late to change.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete and Aiden sit down with Devon, who’s nearly six months sober and proof that hitting rock bottom doesn’t always look the way you think it will.
Devon’s story starts in Edmonds, Washington, where she grew up in a Christian household, stayed active in sports, and was a standout student who went on to graduate from the University of Washington. On paper, everything looked perfect. Behind the scenes, she was blacking out nightly, hiding bottles under bathroom cabinets, and convincing everyone, including herself, that she had it under control.
This episode digs into the tricky nature of high-functioning alcoholism. Devon opens up about juggling two jobs, including a remote consulting position she handled while drinking on Zoom calls, and working her way up the wine world in New York City. As a sommelier in the fine dining scene, she was surrounded by alcohol, praised for her performance, and privately unraveling.
Devon shares how she tried everything to manage her drinking — limiting it to weekends, switching to wine only, keeping a calendar with fake sobriety milestones. But the reality was darker. She describes the moment she saw a text on her sister’s phone that read “I think I need to get Devon into rehab,” and how that broke through years of denial. She booked treatment the same day and boarded a plane to California.
Now in early recovery, Devon talks honestly about what the past six months have looked like. From facing difficult emotions without alcohol, to learning how to show up for family and friends with integrity, to rediscovering her passions and rebuilding her life one step at a time, her story reminds us that recovery is about progress, not perfection.
This episode is for anyone who’s ever questioned whether their drinking was “bad enough,” anyone navigating early sobriety, or anyone who just needs to hear that healing is possible, even when you’ve been lying to yourself for years.
In this powerful and deeply raw episode of Sober Champs, Pete and Aiden sit down with Ali to unpack his incredible story of transformation.
Born in Turkey and raised in Federal Way, Ali shares what it was like moving to the U.S. as a kid, battling culture shock, and eventually finding community and purpose through sports. From basketball dreams to varsity championships, sports became his first escape, but soon drugs and alcohol took over as his way to cope with pain at home and the struggles of fitting in.
Ali’s story spirals from college party days at the University of Washington, fraternity life, and chaotic nights to full-blown addiction to meth, crack, and alcohol. He opens up about losing everything: his marriage, family relationships, career as a high-profile trainer, and even his own sense of self.
But the story doesn’t end there. Ali talks about hitting rock bottom, living on the streets, running from the law, and feeling completely lost. A final push from his higher power and a moment of surrender led him to treatment and ultimately into the rooms of recovery.
Today, Ali lives a life of service and connection. He’s rebuilding relationships, showing up for his community, and learning to love himself in ways he never imagined possible.
This episode is packed with moments of humor, heartbreak, and raw honesty. It’s a must-watch for anyone struggling, anyone who loves someone battling addiction, or anyone looking for proof that recovery is possible.
👉 Tune in now to hear Ali’s full story and get inspired to believe in second chances.
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This week on Sober Champs, Pete and Aiden sit down with Patrick Arni, a community leader with over a decade sober who went from sleeping in a closet to becoming the Executive Director of a thriving reentry nonprofit in Seattle.
Patrick’s story starts on the Eastside of Seattle in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, where he found himself getting high before he even hit high school. Diagnosed with ADHD as a kid and bouncing between schools, Patrick describes how he slipped through the cracks early, masking his struggles with weed, alcohol, and a deep love for books — his one constant escape.
The episode dives into the layers of Patrick’s addiction: from a violent head injury in his teens that introduced him to OxyContin in the early days of the opioid epidemic, to multiple arrests, treatment attempts, and years on and off Suboxone. He shares with raw honesty what it felt like to lose everything — his health, his relationships, and most of all, trust in himself.
But Patrick’s turning point came after a terrifying overdose in 2013, when a moment of desperation sparked a surrender: a prayer, a call to his dad, and a one-way drive to Idaho that eventually led to treatment. From there, he chose to face his wreckage head-on — court dates, jail time, and the long, humbling path of early recovery.
Now 11 years sober, Patrick shares how he rebuilt from the ground up: becoming a father, reconnecting with his parents, marrying the love of his life, and leading a team that provides housing, job training, and support for people reentering society after incarceration. With over 30 full-time staff, Patrick’s organization isn’t just saving lives — it’s changing the system.
This episode is a testament to what long-term recovery can look like: not perfect, but full. From stealing steaks to securing millions in public funding, Patrick’s story proves that redemption isn’t just possible — it can become your platform to lift others.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete and Aiden welcome Seth, a true legend in Seattle's recovery community celebrating over 16 years sober since February 13th, 2009. Pete opens with heartfelt gratitude, sharing how Seth was the person he looked up to during his own early struggles with addiction, representing hope that sobriety was possible.
Seth takes listeners through his journey starting at Nathan Hale High School, where he went from saying no to drugs on a school tour to daily use within weeks of freshman year. What began with marijuana quickly escalated, derailing his sports participation and academic performance. After multiple treatment attempts and six-month stretches of sobriety, Seth accumulated four DUIs in five years, culminating in a near-fatal crash with a semi-truck on I-90 that became his rock bottom.
The conversation dives deep into the challenges of early recovery - from severe depression and dark thoughts to the crucial moment when Seth realized his own thinking couldn't be trusted. He found salvation in 12-step meetings, discovering a thriving underground community where people were genuinely happy about their sobriety, not just surviving it.
Seth's story takes an inspiring turn as he returned to school, became a substance abuse counselor, and eventually helped create Seattle's Interagency Recovery Academy - Washington state's only public recovery high school. Along with co-host Aiden, who's a graduate of the school, Seth explains how they've built a community where abstinence-based recovery is the cool thing, not the exception.
The episode highlights their work with Bridges, an after-school program providing structure and adventure for teens in recovery. From camping trips to pottery classes, they're creating the peer groups and experiences these young people need to thrive. What makes their approach powerful is watching students transform from newcomers to leaders, creating a culture where sobriety becomes attractive to incoming students.
Seth's message is clear: solutions can't be secrets. These resources only work when people know they exist and can access them without shame or stigma.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete and Aiden chat with Kelly, who's closing in on five years sober since November 2020. Growing up near Seattle, Kelly doesn't hold back about her first drinking experience – a party where she ended up blacked out.From there, things escalated quickly – drinking between high school classes, finding the "burnout" crowd, and eventually smoking heroin in a park bathroom at 17. Kelly talks about how she didn't even know withdrawal was a thing until a friend explained her "flu symptoms" meant she was dopesick.As her addiction deepened, Kelly lost friends, made using her life, and eventually faced her parents' intervention that landed her in California treatment. Kelly speaks honestly about her failed attempts at moderation, believing she could still drink since her "real problem" was heroin. These days, she's all about helping others, meditating (though she admits it's not easy to quiet her mind), and building actual friendships instead of relationships based on getting high.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete and co-host Aiden welcome Keagan, celebrating an impressive five years clean. Originally from Johannesburg, South Africa, Keagan shares how his family immigrated to the Seattle area when he was six, settling into a life that looked good from the outside but was filled with chaos behind closed doors.
Keagan opens up about his angry childhood years, getting kicked out of school for fighting, and how his dad's heavy drinking created a volatile home environment. The conversation gets real when he describes losing his best friend in a car accident at 17 – the moment he calls flipping his "alcoholic switch" that led him to reject any belief in a higher power.
The episode doesn't shy away from the progression of Keagan's addiction – from weed and alcohol to that first opiate high he chased for years, leading to heroin use and multiple arrests. With raw honesty, he walks us through his prison sentence in Arizona, where even behind bars he continued using until March 4, 2020, when everything changed through what he describes as a spiritual awakening.
Pete and Aiden create space for Keagan to share how rebuilding happened – the family who wouldn't bail him out but flew down to ensure his safe return home, finding sober housing through WELD, attending Zoom recovery meetings during the pandemic, and eventually becoming a house manager to help others.
There's something powerful about hearing these three men talk candidly about transformation – from prison cells to helping professionals, from broken family relationships to the joy of being a trusted uncle, from hopelessness to finding peace. This episode isn't about perfect recovery stories – it's about the real work of finding gratitude even in the darkest places and building a life worth staying sober for.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete sits down with Ashley for a powerful and emotional conversation about her journey to sobriety. Born in Seattle during the crack cocaine epidemic of the late 1980s and sober since July 5, 2017, Ashley doesn't hold back as she shares her story of trauma, transformation, and ultimate redemption.
The episode takes us through Ashley's challenging childhood in Seattle, where she lost her father when she was just six months old—a casualty of the crack epidemic that devastated many families during that era. Raised primarily by her grandmother while her mother struggled with her own challenges, Ashley opens up about becoming a mother at 15, enduring cycles of toxic relationships, and the heart-wrenching experience of being separated from her children.
What makes this conversation particularly compelling is how Ashley reveals both the darkest moments of her journey and the unexpected miracles of recovery. From professional advocacy work to personal breakthroughs, her story illustrates how sobriety creates space for authentic joy and connection that once seemed impossible.
This episode isn't about perfection—it's about resilience, healing, and finding purpose through pain. Ashley leaves listeners with a powerful message about setting boundaries and reclaiming your life: "Set your intentions free. Liberate yourself. Break them chains off and go get your life."
Whether you're in recovery or just appreciate authentic human stories, this conversation between Pete and Ashley offers inspiration without sugar-coating the difficult realities of addiction and healing.
This week on Sober Champs, Pete sits down with Eli who's rocking 10 months clean. Born in Seattle to a Moroccan dad and American mom who met at a local bakery and had a one-night stand that led to his birth, Eli opens up about growing up in Woodstock, NY and how his life took some hard turns.
Eli doesn't hold back when talking about his teenage years and how substance use gradually took over. He takes us through his college days at Boston University where freedom, identity struggles, and a passion for hip-hop mixed with increasing substance use that eventually derailed his education.
The conversation gets real about the cycle of getting sober, thinking you've got it figured out, then sliding back into old habits – from weed to alcohol, Adderall, and eventually harder drugs. Eli shares the rock-bottom moment that came with his kratom addiction and how it finally clicked that no amount of success or good relationships could fix what was happening inside him.
There's something powerful about hearing two guys just talking honestly about the tough stuff – the missed opportunities, the family tension, and eventually the healing that comes with genuine recovery. Recorded at Color Studios in Pioneer Square, this episode isn't about perfection – it's about progress, honesty, and finding your way back home to yourself.
In this long-awaited return of Sober Champs, Pete welcomes back special guest - 19-year-old Aidan, who's pushing 1,000 days clean. After some technical difficulties (third time's a charm!), these two finally get to share the kind of raw, honest conversation that makes Sober Champs what it is.Aidan takes us back to his first high, and how things quickly spiraled into a full-blown fentanyl addiction by age 14. Through multiple overdoses and a family intervention that landed him at treatment in Montana, he shares how getting clean young opened up a life he never knew was possible.Aidan now spends his days crushing it in recovery - from snowboarding trips and NBA games to helping other young people find their way through Bridges and Family Centered Services. Between working multiple jobs and studying social work, he's proving that age is just a number when it comes to building an awesome life clean.This episode shows that sobriety isn't just about staying clean - it's about discovering a life beyond your wildest dreams.
🔔Overcome, recover, and triumph. Join our community of resilience and hope. Hit that subscribe button: / @soberchampspodcast✅ Stay Connected With Us.👉Instagram: / Soberchampspodcast👉Tiktok: / Soberchampspodcast
Pete Cadigan is joined by a very special guest—his father, Shakey. For the first time, Pete and Shakey sit down together to candidly discuss their personal journeys and the profound impact of addiction on their lives.
Shakey opens up about his relationship with alcohol as Pete reflects on how it shaped his own experiences growing up. The conversation takes a turn as Shakey shares a tragic event that claimed the life of one of his closest friends, forever changing his perspective and affecting many others around him.
In a powerful moment of vulnerability, Pete talks about an amends he's currently working on with his dad. Over the years, Pete stole over $100,000 from Shakey, a mistake he's now dedicated to rectifying.
This episode serves as a moving reminder that our parents were individuals with their own struggles and lives before and after becoming our caregivers. It emphasizes the importance of grace, forgiveness, and taking every opportunity to right our wrongs to achieve stability and peace within ourselves.
Join us for this emotional and inspiring conversation that highlights the power of understanding, healing, and family.
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Join us for an intense and candid journey as Carolyn shares her remarkable life story on this episode of our podcast. From her turbulent upbringing in Seattle's projects to navigating the highs and lows of addiction, Carolyn's resilience and raw honesty shine through. She takes us through pivotal moments, including her struggle with substance abuse and the unexpected turns that led her to surviving on her own from a young age. Throughout the conversation, Carolyn reflects on the influences of her environment, family dynamics, and personal choices that shaped her journey. Her story is a testament to the human spirit's capacity for growth and transformation. Join Pete Cadigan and our guest Carolyn as they delve deep into her experiences, offering insights and perspectives that resonate with anyone who has faced adversity and sought redemption. Don't miss this gripping episode where Carolyn's courage and candor inspire hope and understanding. 🔔Overcome, recover, and triumph. Join our community of resilience and hope. Hit that subscribe button: / @soberchampspodcast ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Audio Podcast is currently on your favorite platforms: 👉Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1mRm1Pn37XvkOW9XGa3BGc 👉Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sober-champs/id1688794211 ✅ Stay Connected With Us. 👉Instagram: / Soberchampspodcast 👉Tiktok: / Soberchampspodcast ===================== ✅ About Sober Champs Welcome to the official YouTube Channel of Sober Champs Podcast featuring Pete Cadigan! 🎧 Our host, Pete Cadigan, understands addiction firsthand, having battled through his own struggles. After overcoming challenges with substances, Pete found his path to sobriety and purpose. ➡ On this podcast, Pete delves into heartfelt interviews with individuals who have faced similar battles—sharing raw, vulnerable, and unfiltered stories. These narratives are deeply emotional, recounting trials that could have been fatal or kept them trapped in their personal hells. Instead, they found their way out and embarked on journeys of redemption. For Collaboration and Business inquiries, please use the contact information below: 📩 Email: Soberchamps@gmail.com Subscribe to Sober Champs now! / @soberchampspodcast =====================
