197 A Little Spark of Willingness Is All It Takes with Amy Liz Harrison

On today’s episode, Duane speaks with Amy Liz Harrison, host of the Eternally Amy podcast and author of several amazing books “Eternally Expecting” and “Eternally Awkward.”

Amy shares her story of struggling with alcohol, being a mom of eight, and how finally, in one very difficult moment, she had to face herself and the consequences of her drinking. She unveils her whole story from the beginning, all the way to the end, and finally, to where she is now, living a fulfilling life that is meaningful, connected, and authentic.

Growing up, Amy felt she didn’t belong. She built a life and a foundation around faith so she was conditioned that she should be able to get through anything because she’s got God. And so, there was this thread of shame as an overarching theme in her life, thinking she didn’t have the right to feel that way. She was concerned about where to find this manual to life, because it was not showing up in her mailbox. Eventually, she found herself addicted to drinking and faking her way through rehab – until that one fateful day when she was left with no other choice but to surrender.

Learn more about Amy’s inspiring story today and how one little spark of willingness is all it took for her to finally come to healing and light.

In this episode, you will hear:

Her first experience with alcohol and how her alcohol use progressed
Getting into rehab through the help of her husband
The mental gymnastics involved
The pivotal moment getting a DUI
Going through recovery for yourself and not for anyone else
The importance of having someone to hold space for you early on
Finding empowerment and realizing you have power in the situation

Key Quotes:

[18:13] – “The alcohol was like pouring gasoline on a fire. It just didn’t help at all, if anything, it completely inflamed the situation.”

[22:11] – “I faked my way through rehab… I spent the next two weeks telling all those neighbor friends and everybody I knew that rehab had taught me how to drink normally.”

[25:07] – “Before I understood the disease of addiction, I had no tolerance at all, no empathy for any of these stories.”

[28:17] – “I’m going to have to try and do this for me… I just had a little tiny spark of willingness at that point. And that was what I needed.”

[30:03] – “The onset of the crazy and wildly wonderful part of recovery is that so many things were the opposite of what I thought.”

[38:23] – “What is my part in all the resentments that I’ve developed over the years and all of the things that I’ve wanted to blame somebody else for?”

[41:47] – “I realized it was okay to be a human being with feelings. To walk through those feelings and to process them was so much better than trying to numb them out.”

[46:09] – “Consider the possibility that maybe – just maybe – it could be better on the other side.

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