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Interview

Oct 24
4 min

An alcoholic researcher's perspective on alcohol research

Most researchers have a habit of putting themselves under the microscope. “Mesearch,” it’s called. It’s when the person with an eating di...

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Anna Jolliff

May 15
4 min

I tried AA on Zoom

On March 16th, I attended my last in-person AA meeting. In the month leading up to that, meetings had grown progressively empty. We sat s...

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On the urge to "get productive" in quarantine

Anna Jolliff

Apr 17
3 min

On the urge to "get productive" in quarantine

Lately I've been posting here a little less. The reason is not that I haven't been writing. Rather, I simply haven't been writing the typ...

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On belonging and the miracle of choice with Chris

Anna Jolliff

Mar 20
6 min

On belonging and the miracle of choice with Chris

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Anna Jolliff

Mar 13
4 min

What does COVID-19 mean for alcoholics?

To be clear, I’m not asking what COVID-19 means for practicing alcoholics. I’m assuming that, for people who still drink, the virus won’t...

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Anna Jolliff

Feb 14
2 min

Sober on Valentine's Day

Maybe Valentine's Day stress you out. Maybe you can’t imagine a sober one. Or maybe it's no big deal for you; maybe you'd even forgotten ...

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Anna Jolliff

Feb 7
4 min

How to quit drinking in 10 steps

The other day, my girlfriend asked if I ever thought I would make it to four years sober. That’s a harder question than you might think. ...

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Anna Jolliff

Jan 24
3 min

I'm four years sober today

This morning I woke early to stomach pains. These are the natural result of a body in transition. About four months ago, I began to recov...

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Anna Jolliff

Jan 17
3 min

How I know I'm alcoholic

Some days, my alcoholic mind plays tricks on me. “You never drank every day," my mind says. “You never had withdrawals.” “You haven’t bat...

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Anna Jolliff

Jan 10
3 min

Responsibility after relapse

These days, my home group is a women's newcomer meeting. I suppose it’s meant for those early in sobriety. With four years, I attend anyw...

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Anna Jolliff

Dec 27, 2019
4 min

I went to 90 meetings in 90 days

A little over three months ago I moved home to Oregon. My Wisconsin sponsor suggested that, upon arrival, I attend 90 twelve step meeting...

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Anna Jolliff

Oct 30, 2019
3 min

More boring drunkalogues

You’ve probably heard of imposter syndrome. That’s when you don’t feel like you deserve your seat at the table. You glance nervously arou...

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Anna Jolliff

Oct 16, 2019
3 min

The newcomer

Yesterday in a twelve step meeting, I sat across from a girl who felt like home. When she introduced herself to the group, I saw that she...

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I'm an alcoholic and I moved states. Now what?

Anna Jolliff

Oct 4, 2019
3 min

I'm an alcoholic and I moved states. Now what?

On September 16th, I began the drive from Madison to Newberg, Oregon. Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Washington, Home. I was moving ho...

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6 things it's hard to say aloud
(part 1)

Anna Jolliff

Sep 17, 2019
3 min

6 things it's hard to say aloud (part 1)

On Sunday, I had the opportunity to share my story in a women’s recovery meeting. These days I rarely get nervous, largely because of th...

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Anna Jolliff

Sep 6, 2019
3 min

Getting selfish to get sober?

In recovery, we’re always flirting with the idea of selfishness. There are the worried mothers wondering if it’s “selfish” to leave their...

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Anna Jolliff

Sep 2, 2019
4 min

All about drinking dreams

In the last few nights, my dreams have been wild. I’m going through a lot of changes in my life, and any modicum of control I’ve managed ...

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Anna Jolliff

Aug 23, 2019
4 min

How to sober wedding

Last Sunday, I lost a close friend to the institution of marriage. I’m sure some of you had the same experience; it’s wedding season, and...

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Anna Jolliff

Aug 20, 2019
3 min

The beginning of the bottom

Fifteen days before I quit drinking, I saw a dinner invite on my then-boyfriend’s calendar. At the time, we worked at one of those creepy...

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Anna Jolliff

Aug 16, 2019
3 min

Can moderate use be part of recovery?

I’ve mentioned before that I read a lot of sobriety memoirs in early recovery. What I didn’t mention is that searching for these memoirs ...

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