Fat, Flawed, and Unapologetic: Why I’m Done Explaining Myself I’ve spent a good chunk of my life carrying around other people’s opinions. For a long time, they weren’t wrong—I was a mess, caught up in drugs, lying, doing things I’m not proud of. I was that person people warned you about. I own that. But what people don’t see—what they don’t want to see—is that I’m not the same person now. Thing is, a lot of people just see your past. They remember the worst version of you and pin it to your chest like a name tag. And if you’re overweight like me, there’s a whole other layer of judgment that comes with it. People treat you different when you’re fat. Some won’t say it out loud, but they look at you and see “lazy,” “gross,” “irresponsible.” Even people who have their own struggles with weight can be the harshest critics—I know, because I used to be one of them. What nobody wants to admit is that it’s never as simple as “just lose the weight.” That’s like telling someone with an addiction,...

Navigating Intimacy in Early Recovery: Sex, Sobriety, and the Art of Not Burning Down Your Life (Again) Let’s be honest—recovery is weird. First you have to learn how to live without your substance of choice, then suddenly everyone expects you to become a model citizen who drinks green smoothies and journals about gratitude. As if not drinking/using isn’t hard enough, you’re supposed to figure out what to do with all these feelings. Enter: sex. Or, if you’re like a lot of us, maybe it’s a question of whether you should enter sex, or just run in the opposite direction and lock the door. If you’re in early recovery and thinking about sex, congrats: you’re alive, your body works, and you’re having normal human thoughts. But here’s the thing—sex in early recovery isn’t just about sex. It’s about everything you ran from, everything you stuffed down, and every awkward, half-baked feeling that’s been hiding under the pile of your former vices. The Good: Sex, when done right, can be wonderful!...

  Self-Worth, Forgiveness, and the Art of Not Loathing Yourself (All the Time) Let’s just say it: self-worth in early recovery is about as common as a unicorn with a gym membership. If you’re reading this, you’re probably somewhere between “I’m trash” and “Maybe I’m not total trash, but I’m definitely not recycling material yet.” Trust me, I’ve been there, and I park my car there sometimes just to remember how bad the neighborhood is. Here’s the thing nobody tells you: the hardest forgiveness isn’t forgiving the people who wronged you. It’s forgiving yourself for all the stuff you did while you were out there, or in the thick of it, or just...human. And before you roll your eyes so hard you sprain an eyelid, hear me out. Why We’re Our Own Worst Enemies I don’t know who needs to hear this, but most of us are way meaner to ourselves than we’d ever be to a friend. We carry around this running commentary that would get us kicked off most social media platforms. “You’re a screwup. You’l...