Sam’s Journey to Recovery

Name: Sam Garcia Where are you from: Anchorage, Alaska How long have you been sober? No mind-altering substances since April 8th 2016 What inspired you to find recovery? The feeling of waking up in prison and not recognizing the man I saw in the mirror anymore. I was a shell of the person I once was. My addiction had robbed me …

Britney’s Journey to Recovery

Name: Britney Maureen Baier  Where are you from: Nikiski, Alaska  How long have you been sober? Almost 6 years my sobriety date is 12-22-14  What inspired you to find recovery? I hit my bottom, got my kids taken away by OCS and got to that point of desperation. I found myself being trafficked in California and lost it all. I …

Ralph Sara’s Recovery Journey

Name: Ralph Clement Sara Where are you from: Born and raised in Bethel Alaska. How long have you been sober? Since 01/18/2020. What inspired you to find recovery? At first it was me being selfish. I was so tired of this revolving door of alcoholism I was in. I was only thinking of myself. Then while I was in the …

How to Find Contentment in Sobriety

As a woman in recovery who happens to have a generalized anxiety disorder and is an Enneagram 4, contentment isn’t exactly something that comes naturally to me. After getting sober in 2009, I felt like I had to make up for the time I wasted while drinking. Without the veil of alcohol standing between me and my goals, I thought I needed to …

Why You May Want To Consider Nonalcoholic Beer For The Health Perks

This morning, I had a beer with breakfast. It had 31 mg of caffeine, 105 calories, and zero alcohol. This is the eighth day in a row I’ve opened my day with this variety of morning beverage. I’m not the only one embracing nonalcoholic beer—the alt-drink is steadily rising in popularity and proving to be much more than a trend. The explanation …

How Does Social Media Affect Teen Substance Use?

Social media have changed how we engage with the world. They have reshaped how we engage with politics, seek out information, maintain relationships, and make decisions. The impact has been even greater for individuals who are growing up with access to social media access. How is social media affecting teenagers’ mental, emotional, and physical well-being? Specifically, how has teenagers’ use …

How to Reach Emotional Sobriety & Why It Matters

When we think of sobriety, it’s usually in terms of no longer using alcohol or recreational drugs, but it’s more complicated than that. According to the definition in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), sobriety means “not being intoxicated,” then goes on to explain that sobriety is more about the absence of drinking problems, not about total abstinence. There’s also …

UAA professor develops app to help people stop drinking habits

Studies suggest people are drinking more as they work from home due to COVID-19. A timely app developed by a University of Alaska Anchorage professor is aiming to help people manage their drinking simply by looking at their phones. Step Away was created by Patrick Dulin 10 years ago and he has worked to revise and improve it ever since. The app can …