A personal story of growing up as the family’s "black sheep," feeling criticized and overlooked, and the ways that treatment shaped a lifetime of seeking approval.

Through recovery, boundary-setting, and choosing a different path for their children, the narrator finds self-worth, peace, and pride in belonging on their own terms.

Host returns from vacation and admits struggling to get back into routine, then reflects on alcohol’s harms and their decision to stop drinking.

The episode explores how quitting alcohol brought a clearer mind, fewer dramas, better mornings, and the ability to face life instead of numbing it, with a brief mention of cannabis alternatives for some people.

In this episode the host explores identity and personal growth after a visit to their childhood cottage triggers old habits and feelings of unworthiness. They reflect on how places can reactivate past behaviors and memories, and how self-work has changed their responses.

They conclude that true growth shows up when you return to the places that shaped your old self and recognize you are no longer defined by those fears or others' approval — you can belong without needing permission.

After a two-week trip to Calgary and British Columbia, the host shares how the vacation served as a reset and helped them move away from daily drinking by using small cannabis drinks and CBD as alternatives.

The episode covers social moments with family and new acquaintances, provincial differences in cannabis retail, and the relief of no longer being controlled by alcohol.

In this episode the host reflects on using THC and CBD as intentional medical tools for emotional regulation and asks whether earlier access to cannabis-based treatment might have prevented a descent into alcoholism.

They discuss stigma, compare cannabis to prescription medications, acknowledge risks, and call for honest conversations about treating underlying mental health struggles instead of dismissing people who use cannabis as simply "relying on substances."

Black Sheep Addicts — Season 5, Episode 7. The host shares their first concert experience sober, using a tiny THC/CBD gummy for nerves, and watching a young man beside them get increasingly drunk.

As the night unfolds, they see their own past behavior reflected in the stranger: sloppy conversations, repeated apologies, and a relentless chase for a fading high. What begins as irritation shifts into grief and clear-eyed recognition.

The episode explores how recovery changes perspective, the discomfort of witnessing old patterns in others, and the quiet realization that your former self is no longer who you are.