Jim R. at the 4 For Recovery XI – 2020

About This Speaker Tape

4 For Recovery XI - 2020

Born with spina bifida and surviving 55 surgeries Jim R. spent his youth as the 'cute little crippled kid,' using a class-clown persona and a 'pain face' to manipulate the world around him. He climbed the heights of the music industry signing a $7 million record deal in 1988 but found that professional success only fueled a lifelong habit of postponing happiness. His descent began with prescribed pain meds and culminated in a blackout-drinking haze during his college years where he graduated summa cum laude while barely functioning. After a brutal wake-up call from a friend and a stint in a Cleveland clinic Jim R. discovered that his intellect was his biggest barrier to recovery. He spent two decades as a counselor helping others navigate the gap between medical treatment and actual sobriety before eventually stepping away from the industry to reclaim his voice in music and service.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Opening reading from the Big Book regarding the miracle of neutrality toward alcohol.
• 5:15 Jim R. discusses his birth defect, spina bifida, and the early shame of wearing diapers.
• 12:40 The first drink: Arnie, a WWII vet, gives him a Genesee Cream Ale to 'make a man' out of him.
• 18:20 The $7 million record deal and the trap of postponing happiness.
• 24:10 The 'pain face' and the use of prescribed medications to feel 'normal' while touring.
• 31:45 The 'Gelinex disease' story and the introduction to AA via Dr. J.
• 38:10 The bottom: A confrontation with John and the decision to seek help in Cleveland.
• 45:30 Meeting Steve, the MD/PhD, and the lesson on not 'thinking' one's way out of the program.
• 50:15 Laughter: The story of the white Cadillac and the bowel accident.
• 56:40 Reflecting on a 20-year career as a counselor and the difference between the treatment industry and recovery.
• 62:10 A story about his late sponsor Jerry and the danger of focusing on the 'I, I, I' of meetings.