The Functioning Addict Nobody Questioned: Lee's Recovery Story

Bianca desperately wanted to quit drinking. But when she tried, the alcohol withdrawal symptoms became so severe that she ended up in hospital. After surviving cancer and chemotherapy, Bianca never imagined that alcohol dependence would become one of the most frightening experiences of her life. Growing up surrounded by alcohol, she started drinking at 14 to cope with difficult emotions and feel accepted. Over the years, childhood trauma, an abusive relationship, and isolation contributed to her increasingly unhealthy relationship with alcohol. Eventually, drinking was no longer about enjoyment. Her body had become physically dependent on it. In this emotional conversation with Dave, Bianca opens up about her terrifying experience with severe alcohol withdrawal, why she filmed herself during her darkest moments, and what it really took to stop drinking. Now more than a year sober, she shares how life without alcohol has helped her rediscover herself, rebuild her confidence, and experience genuine happiness. This episode is a reminder that alcohol addiction is not simply a matter of willpower, and recovery is possible. Bianca on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biancacriaco/ Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@soberdaveonefortheroad

Jessica Wilde started drinking around the age of 12, growing up in South London surrounded by music, creativity, and a street culture where alcohol and partying became part of life early on. What began as drinking with friends eventually developed into years of binge drinking, destructive relationships, drug use, and a cycle of self-sabotage that followed her into adulthood. Even as her music career began taking off and she landed a record deal with Sony, Jessica was struggling behind the scenes. She believed alcohol gave her confidence, especially when performing, but slowly began to realize that the very thing she thought was helping her was holding her back. In this episode of One For The Road, Jessica joins Sober Dave to talk openly about her experiences with alcohol, addiction, and the long journey toward sobriety. She shares how an abusive relationship affected her self-worth, why she kept returning to drinking even after long periods without alcohol, and how yoga, Muay Thai, meditation, and reconnecting with herself helped change the direction of her life. One of the biggest challenges wasn’t simply giving up alcohol. It was wondering who she would be without it. Would she still be confident? Would she still be creative? Could she still enjoy music, dancing, and going out without drinking? Now six years sober, Jessica has discovered that the parts of herself she feared losing were never dependent on alcohol in the first place. Her music has taken on new meaning, her relationships have changed, and she’s found a different kind of freedom in living authentically. This is a conversation about breaking old patterns, rebuilding self-worth, and discovering that sobriety doesn’t mean losing who you are. Sometimes it’s how you finally find yourself.

For years, Adrian appeared to be holding his life together. He was progressing in his career, running marathons, maintaining relationships and taking on physical challenges. Behind closed doors, alcohol had become something he structured his life around. Two bottles of wine a night became normal. He hid how much he was drinking, crashed his car after drinking and even called AA the following day to admit that he needed help. But he never went to a meeting. Then came acute pancreatitis. Adrian was hospitalized because of his drinking, discharged himself once he began feeling better, and eventually started drinking again. When pancreatitis put him back in the hospital a second time, even that wasn’t the immediate end of his relationship with alcohol. In this deeply honest conversation with Sober Dave, Adrian looks back at the years he spent trying to change everything around him without addressing what was happening inside. At one point, he becomes emotional reflecting on the younger version of himself: “I want to give that guy a hug… that person was very, very lost.” Adrian also opens up about later discovering ADHD and autism, the role he believes alcohol played in quieting his mind, the shame and secrecy surrounding his drinking, and why connection with other sober people ultimately became such an important part of his recovery. Today, Adrian is more than five years sober. This is a conversation about the warning signs we can ignore, how easy it is to appear functional while struggling privately, and why sometimes even serious consequences aren’t what finally creates change. Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@soberdaveonefortheroad

Malin’s alcohol addiction progressed to the point where she was drinking more than 30 beers a day. She stopped eating, gained more than 90kg, vomited blood regularly, and eventually a doctor warned her that if she continued drinking, he didn’t expect to see her the following year. Then her body shut down. In early 2020, Malin was hospitalized with multi-organ failure and just 11% lung capacity. She was placed into a medically induced coma and wouldn’t fully wake up for nearly two months. When she did, surviving was only the beginning—she had to begin the long process of rebuilding her body and learning to walk again. Today, Malin is 6 years sober and works with people struggling with addiction, using her experience to challenge the stigma surrounding alcohol addiction and recovery. In this episode of the Sober Motivation Podcast, Malin shares the progression of her drinking, the warning signs she ignored, what happened when alcohol nearly took her life, and what she’s learned rebuilding her life in sobriety. Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@soberdaveonefortheroad

For years, Kev’s life revolved around drinking, DJing and nightlife. Behind the parties and packed clubs, his relationship with alcohol was becoming harder to control, and the anxiety, shame and mental health struggles that followed were getting harder to ignore. In this episode of One for the Road, Kev shares how drinking became wrapped up in his identity, why he repeatedly questioned whether he had a problem with alcohol, and what happened when he tried to moderate or take breaks from drinking. He opens up about the night he broke down crying in the bath and realized, “I can’t keep living like this,” his repeated attempts at sobriety, and the frightening moment in Lisbon that became another wake-up call. Kev eventually realized he didn’t have an off switch. He shares what finally helped him quit drinking, why this attempt at sobriety was different, and how life without alcohol has changed his mental health, relationships, confidence and sense of self. Information on Coaching with Dave: https://www.soberdave.co.uk/ Connect with Kev: https://www.instagram.com/shiftwithswindells/ Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@soberdaveonefortheroad