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The Addict Who Still Suffers

 Brothers and Sisters in Recovery 🙏 Yesterday was sobering — no pun intended. I learned that my very good friend’s stepbrother passed away from an overdose. It hit hard. Real hard. Because every one of us knows the truth deep down… this disease does not play fair. Addiction does not care about age, family, intelligence, kindness, or potential. It steals sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, and friends. It leaves empty chairs at dinner tables and broken hearts that never fully heal. And the hardest part? Most of us know that person could have been us. Some of us have overdosed and somehow made it back. Some of us woke up in hospital beds. Some of us were brought back with Narcan. Some of us buried friends we laughed with just weeks before. We’ve watched addiction turn beautiful souls into statistics. That reality should shake every recovering addict to the core. But here’s what I also know: recovery gives us a responsibility. We are not just staying clean for ourselves anymore. We ar...
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Start Today With a Smile 😁

Brothers and Sisters in Recovery 🙏


I’m starting today with a smile. It’s shaping up to be one of those charged-up days where life shows up on its own terms—and yeah, I’m not exactly thrilled about it. So what do I do? I lean into dad jokes. Why? Because sometimes the simplest, corniest things are exactly what break the tension and remind us not to take everything so seriously.


Laughter and smiling aren’t just nice ideas—they’re tools. In many Hindu traditions, laughter is seen as a form of healing energy. There’s even a practice called “laughter yoga,” built on the belief that intentional laughter can reduce stress, calm the nervous system, and restore balance to the mind and body. The idea is simple: the body doesn’t always know the difference between forced laughter and real laughter—either way, it releases the same feel-good chemicals. That’s powerful when you think about it. Even when we don’t feel like it, choosing to laugh can shift something inside us.


That ties directly into recovery. We don’t always get to control what hits us during the day, but we do get a say in how we respond. Sometimes the best response isn’t to fight harder—it’s to soften up, crack a smile, and take the edge off. Laughter can break the grip of anger, fear, and frustration long enough for us to get grounded again.


And because I said I would…


QUESTION: How do you make a tissue dance?

ANSWER: Put a little boogie in it!


Yeah… I know. Terrible. But if it got even a half-smile, it did its job.


So today, when life is “lifing,” give yourself permission to smile anyway. Stay in the moment, keep it simple, and remember—this too shall pass, one day at a time, easy does it.


With love and gratitude,

Gary G

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