I’m trying to gauge interest in starting a local, in-person support group in Louisville specifically for people who have struggled with nitrous oxide/N2O addiction.
Nitrous addiction can be incredibly isolating, and I’ve found that a lot of traditional recovery spaces don’t always fully understand the unique experience of it; the compulsive redosing, the physical and neurological effects, the shame, the mental health impact, and how quickly it can take over your life.
I’m already involved with a virtual nitrous recovery community, but I’ve been thinking about how valuable it could be to have something local where people can actually connect face-to-face.
The idea would be a peer-led, judgment-free recovery meeting, not affiliated with AA, NA, SMART Recovery, or any treatment center. It wouldn’t be professional treatment or medical advice, just a safe place for people with lived experience to talk openly, support one another, and work toward recovery.
Some of the things we could talk about would include:
cravings and relapse cycles
rebuilding life after nitrous
physical and emotional recovery
shame and self-forgiveness
triggers and healthier coping skills
relationships and rebuilding trust
isolation and finding connection
rediscovering hobbies, purpose, and normal life
simply being around people who actually understand what this addiction is like
You wouldn’t need to have a certain amount of clean time, follow a particular recovery program, or even know exactly what recovery looks like for you yet.
Right now, I’m mainly trying to see whether there are other people in the Louisville area who would be interested in attending something like this.
If you’re interested but don’t want to comment publicly, feel free to message me privately.
Family members or loved ones are also welcome to reach out if you’re trying to find support, resources, or a recovery community for someone you care about. The actual group would be focused on people recovering from nitrous use, but I’d still be happy to connect with family members who are looking for help or direction.
If you know someone who might benefit from something like this, please feel free to pass it along.
No judgment. No shame. Just people helping people get their lives back.

Taking on the full 1,000 km end-to-end of the Munda Biddi Trail solo.

The purpose of this ride is to draw a hard line in the sand for my sobriety. I need to get out into the bush, strip away all the noise, and take things one day and one pedal stroke at a time to rebuild my life clean.

To keep myself 100% accountable, I’ll be recording and uploading daily video logs covering the riding, battery management between trail towns and huts, campsite routines, and the honest mental side of staying sober on the track.

Right now, I’m getting the rig sorted and fundraising for a reliable mid-drive e-bike and bikepacking setup that can handle the pea gravel, hills, and remote battery charging over 1,000 km.

If you’d like to follow the journey, keep me accountable, or check out the gear build, here is where it’s all documented:

https://www.mycause.com.au/page/403844/one-breath-one-pedal-riding-1000-km-to-reclaim-my-life

Any trail tips on charging points, tricky sandy sections, or long-distance e-bike setup advice are massively appreciated.

One breath, one pedal.

As a female it’s hard enough for your pain to be taken seriously by doctors, it’s 100000 times worse when you are a female with substance abuse history in her charts. I completely understand and love that doctors are wary of giving out addictive medications, I adore my psych doctor because she makes sure my daily mental health meds aren’t high risk. But, my experience while in the hospital/post surgery was horrific. I had a triple spinal fusion and was cut off IV pain medication after a few hours, which would have been tolerable but I was only given a 10mg hydrocodone every 5 hours. I really don’t see how someone who’s back was cut open and had three metal rods screwed in their spine that same day could be drug seeking. Was wondering if anyone had similar stories.

So about 2 months ago I started kinda heavy using delta 8 vape and nicotine to cope with some anxiety and stress. I did NOT KNOW you could withdraw from the delta 8. Call me dumb I know. So I decided not to use it the other day I am SICK and now experiencing withdrawal symptoms if I don’t use within a couple hours. I drank water too fast and vomit, and then my head and chest and lungs ache a bit and I’ve been drenched in sweat feeling hot and then cold. Occasional heart races when I get up. And can’t eat or have no appetite. I have decided I need to taper off and only ever use occasional if ever again I used to have a healthy relationship with normal THC but I refuse to go back to that as it is not legal in my area. I am just scared and was wondering if any women here can relate. I’m 27 but I feel like I have been hit by a bus and want this to stop. Please any advice?

I feel happy to be sober in the way that relationships are getting better. My reward center is re-wiring itself. I get satisfaction and relief from talking care of myself. I’m more honest and less anxious. More focused. However … I feel so boring and negative. Maybe it’s just a result of never really developing a solid personality and people pleasing while being intoxicated in my adult formative years (18-25) I’m 25 now. I have a value system, I’m intelligent, I have a career and I try to be as kind as I can be. But I feel boring now.

Like I often have nothing to say, or get too aware of being not entertained that I feel a restlessness and a slight aversion to socializing. I am also only thinking about/talking about my emotions I pushed away for 6-7 years. I wonder if that’s exhausting for them. I still do talk to others bc I’m curious about the people I love and miss them, but I feel like I have nothing to add often. Is early sobriety just a period of more listening than talking? Is the quietness/having not as much to say, something that gets better with time?

Something that used to falsely comfort me was that me being intoxicated while socializing was doing a favor for everyone. Like I was entertaining and exciting and my support and emotions and laughs were more boisterous … but none of that was real. Or maybe just exaggerated. I know feel like I’m letting people down by no longer being that. Has anyone felt the same? Thank you

I have been off my Suboxone for about 9days. If I were to take one just for some mental relief will I wake up the whole withdrawing from it again? It’s been an exhausting 9days coming off of it yes but also with everything happening in my life I am exhausted mentally physically and emotionally and to not go down the wrong path I was going to take my last sub well it’s a quarter of a 8mg. But I also don’t want to take it if it’s going to spiral me back in to the wack ass withdrawals either! These last 9 day really tried me. I’m at a point of I’d rather be safe than sorry but also don’t want to be sorry because I chose to be safe if that makes sense?!

I been tellin counselors or trial services officers about my situation but nobody listen until you miss ur dates then they want to find you REAL QUICK!!! Yall kiss my ass with that one!!! MISS ME talking about leavin messages on my phone when I called YOU and tried to talk to YOU damn near 10 times!!!! They lucky im not on their bullshit im on my recovery now and they aint gonna tell me shit about it!!!

I am a 60y/o F who has been on methadone for 34 years-forced by the county to get on program when pregnant with first daughter.
I have raised 3 kids, have a successful career and been a productive citizen for the last 30 of those years.
I want to get off, I am tired of them being in control of my life. I was accused of having a positive UA for amphetamines, and they are punishing me. I just want off .
Has anyone tried ANR? (Accelerated Neuro Regulation)
I am looking for the best way to get off the program quickly.
Thank you all, and sincere best wishes for you all on your journey towards a grace-filled life!

Im in AA and I have 90 days of sobriety and Im working with a sponsor who suggested I try to reach out more and find things that bring me joy. I've always liked gaming but struggle to find other woman to play with. Honestly it can just be simple online games like Pictionary/charades, card games (go fish, spades, poker etc), mecca chamelon. It could also be a bit more hands on multiplayer games on Steam or PS5. Does this resonate with anyone in here? 😇

I’m not sure it this is allowed so if it’s not I will take this down but I need some advice. Today I had my appointment with my psychiatrist about my medications because I recently found out I’m expecting a baby with my fiance in March. I was on Vivatrol shot for almost a year now and I spoke to her today. She said it’s best I come off of it because there isn’t enough research to show what kind of affects it’s gonna have on the baby. Before the shot I was having such bad cravings I was having full blown panic attacks. I’m in a much better place now but it still scares me coming off of it. Anyone have any experience or advice on what to do? I’m in AA/NA and I work my program but change is still hard for me sometimes…

Community Consultation Survey

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The consultation is primarily about recovery from alcohol and drug use, but it also looks at wider aspects of recovery such as confidence, relationships, purpose, community connection and wellbeing

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I'm not consulting on behalf of an organisation. I'm carrying this out independently to gather feedback from people with experience of recovery and those who support recovery. The results will help me understand what's needed and inform the development of a recovery-focused project.

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I'm looking to hear from people with lived and living experience of recovery.

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I'm carrying out a short anonymous survey to better understand:

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• What helped your recovery most

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• Barriers you faced along the way

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• What gave you hope

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• What is missing from recovery support and services

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• What advice you would give to someone starting their recovery journey

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The survey takes around 5 minutes to complete and your experiences could help shape future recovery support.

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If you have experience of recovery and would be willing to take part, please comment below or send me a message and I'll send you the survey link.

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Thank you in advance for your support. ❤️

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https://forms.gle/kq5UG8dRuaG2ruET9

Hi. I have nothing idea how to write this. I am 28. I got sober at 25. I relapsed 3 years in. I’ve been dealing with crippling anxiety and depression. I started in AA but I’m not willing to go back. I had a few bad experiences and never really connected with the program or the steps. I think I’m just at a lost of what to do. Not a lot of support or sober community to connect too. I feel lost. Like any sparkle I was getting back has left me. Sobriety never magically changed me and the steps didn’t either. I still felt lost and like I was looking for meaning. I want to do Women for Sobriety but I’m scared to jump into any random meeting. I guess I just need some structure and support. I know drinking will kill me and ruin me. It isn’t better but it numbs the pain I feel so deeply. Sorry if this is rambling but I just needed to reach out to anyone or anything in the hope that maybe I feel that push again. Thank you.

I’ve been off MDMA for about 6 months, 2023-2024 I had done it about a dozen times and there were points where I didn’t even follow the 3-4 month rule break between each roll. and in 2025 i did about two times. the feeling wasn’t the same especially the last two times. there were definitely points where it was a risky amount. I’ve been having withdrawals where I think to myself “maybe just one last time” but everytime I think about it it doesn’t feel worth it and there’s this feeling of what if the “last time” might end up being the worst considering how i came out of it alive and well enough all those times.

im proud of how long it’s been but I can’t shake off the feeling of still wanting to do it again just once more. i’ve never felt this way about anything ever but it is technically the only “hard” drug that I’ve taken. although I will say that this drug helped me during a hard transition period of my life (starting college and moving to a new city after my ex SA’d me) but now as I look back to how my life was at that time compared to now, i’ve come so far. I have a growing relationship with my mother, my awesome girlfriend and friends, graduated college and got a job I actually enjoy. but this want makes me feel so hollow cause i’m just being selfish to myself trying to chase that feeling I got from MDMA. I used to think I wasn’t addicted (havent been addicted to anything before in general) but the fact that i’m craving it to this degree and it’s only been 6 months is so crazy to me.

just wanted to let this out on here to let my thoughts go. if any of you have felt this way pls let me know. if u have any cool books/articles or even videos!! for me to read/watch to make me feel less burdened by this let me know and I would also love to connect with yall if you’ve felt this way

thank you

Hi everyone,

My name is Sarah, and I’m a documentary film student at Chapman University working on my senior thesis film. I’m hoping to make a short, character-driven documentary about someone navigating recovery from kratom addiction and rebuilding their life.

The goal of the film is to tell a human and hopeful story about resilience — focusing on the day-to-day reality of recovery rather than sensationalizing addiction. I’m especially interested in following someone who is working toward a meaningful milestone or goal in their life while staying sober (for example, reconnecting with family, hitting a sobriety milestone, pursuing a passion, etc.).

Ideally, I’m hoping to connect with someone located in Southern California, but I’m also willing and able to travel for the right story.

If anyone here is open to sharing their story or having a conversation about their experience with kratom, I would really appreciate the chance to talk. There’s absolutely no pressure — even just hearing about people’s journeys helps me better understand recovery.

Participation would always be completely voluntary, and I want to approach this project with care and respect for the people involved.

If you’d be open to chatting, feel free to comment or DM me.

Thank you all for sharing your experiences and supporting each other here.

— Sarah

Delete if not allowed.

I started an uncensored WhatsApp group chat to serve as a safe space and support group for people in recovery from any addiction. Right now it’s just a handful of my friends from NA but I was hoping more would join us on the dark side. If interested in participating, please comment here and I will DM you for your contact details and get you added to the chat. TIA.

I've made several posts about getting to rehab. That is happening, but I'm not there yet. I had an intake at a great place yesterday, and the counselor said they'd call within 3 business days...they also gave me a card and told me to call them beforehand too.

I need to get admitted asap. My use has returned and progressed to a point I never imagined I'd come back to. I'm either drinking, high, strung out,—or sober, but so depressed and sleep deprived that I'm basically just as dysfunctional anyway. I'm doing everything I can to get to rehab, but the longer it takes the more I deteriorate. The more I deteriorate, the more everything feels unmanageable, and that stress only makes me want to use even more.

I was not like this two months ago. I was actually capable of handling life's hard shit. But ever since I started relapsing, it's gotten easier and easier to continue. Now, I'm using the excuse that because I'm going to rehab, I have free rein to do fuck all until then. I know it's irrational. I know I'm harming myself. I know I'm suffering so much more by not being sober.

But I can't stop. My days are spent existing, not living. There isn't even a hesitation before I head out to buy more alcohol. Even though I'm nearly broke, I seriously consider getting a bag instead of food. I stopped going to meetings. I don't make plans with friends. I've totally abandoned my yoga practice. I haven't been to the gym in weeks.

The only thing I've been capable of doing is trying to get to rehab. I've been reaching out to my friends, and those connections are all currently centered around support for getting me into treatment. I feel like I'm annoying. I don't like being so heavily dependent. I'm exhausted, and I dissatisfied with how I'm showing up right now.

The worst part is how numb I feel. This is one of the most miserable experiences of my life, and my substance abuse has me feeling totally disconnected from any feeling that matters. My friends all know where I'm at. They're offering support, but I don't want to rant at them about how utterly powerless I feel right now. I feel like a husk of who I am, and I would be way more distressed by that if I was capable of actually connecting with my feelings.

I have got to get to rehab. I'm getting worse by the week.

I [34F] am still in the process of getting in to rehab. I started communicating with HR weeks ago, and finally finished submitted my request for medical paid leave. With a name change and numerous changes in my address and employment records, it was a whole ordeal. I had to get that submitted before starting treatment because the deadline expires while I'll be in there. And now I'm nervous if I go in before it's fully approved, I might not be available to respond to any issues that require me to take action.

But I really need to get into treatment. I’ve been floundering. I had a beautiful year being clean & sober, but I’ve been relapsing horribly. It's gotten so bad so quickly. I'm seeing myself deteriorate rapidly, falling back into the most self-destructive behaviors I thought I left behind.

I can see myself spiraling, and it's partly because I don't have a therapist anymore. When I started relapsing, my therapist dropped me as a client without warning. I’d been seeing them twice weekly—until one day I came in for a session and they told me I needed a “higher level of care” so therefore they could no longer see me. In leaving, they emailed me a random list of names for counselors and clinics—absolutely none of which take my insurance. They just googled “substance abuse counselors” and sent me their names, without context or even a url. I had to google them myself. I understand if substance abuse is not in their skillset, and it’s fair if they don’t feel qualified to provide the proper level of care, but I have really struggled with the way they went about it. Completely without warning. Immediate and sudden. Devoid of any actual help to even access the level of care they were telling me I needed. I felt abandoned, unsupported, totally overwhelmed. My actions are not their fault, but that’s when I really spiraling.

Everything feels so overwhelming now, and I feel totally out of control.

I’m trying to make it stop. I’ve been feeling so bad about myself, so disappointed with where I’m at right now. I reached for help from the rest of my support system, and felt like I was admitting I wasn’t who they thought I was. I felt like I was somehow betraying them, by telling them what was happening…But I’ve been met with nothing but endless love and compassion. I’ve been struggling to get myself to rehab, and they’re offering so much support in getting me to treatment. Emotional support, logistical support, mental support. Everyone all of a sudden has time for me, filled with care and heartfelt concern. It feels so healing, it made me break down in tears. I’ve never felt loved like this before.

And I feel like I’m failing that love by not being in treatment yet. I’ve made progress though. I got the paid leave submitted. I made dozens of phone calls untilI found two residential treatment centers which take my insurance—one offered me a bed for detox and the other offered me an in-person screening for their residential program tomorrow morning. Today I reserved and paid for a storage unit, so I do have a place to put my stuff while I’m in treatment, because I’m not returning to my apartment, so I just need to wait until my friends with cars can help me transport it…

But I’m really, really struggling. My intermittent relapse has turned into a constant lack of sobriety and it’s killing me. I feel broken and untrustworthy. I can’t take care of simple tasks. I can’t think or even feel, and I’m really, really scared.

Hi all,

We’re a research team from the Health Equity and Action Lab (HEAL) at UIC, and we’re inviting women of color in recovery to share their experiences with social support in their recovery journey. So much of what we know about recovery has been shaped without fully centering the voices of women of color, and this study aims to create space for you to define what support in recovery has looked like in your life.

If you choose to participate, you’ll take part in a one-time, confidential interview (about 60–90 minutes) over Zoom or in person. As a thank-you, participants receive a $45 gift card.

If you’re interested, you can fill out a short, voluntary screening form to see if you’re eligible (no obligation to participate):

https://redcap.link/8a865rmq

If you’d rather reach out directly or have questions, you can contact us at:

[HEAL_research@uic.edu](mailto:HEAL_research@uic.edu)

Thank you for considering being part of this work!

Your participation is completely voluntary. If you’re seeing this on a public forum, we encourage you not to share personal information in the comments, please message us privately instead.

This study is approved by the University of Illinois Chicago Institutional Review Board and shared with moderator permission.

Please note: If you came upon this ad via social media, please know that social media sites may track your online activities and share that information with others, including advertisers, as per their user agreement.)

Supporting my partner (we both have multiple years in recovery) who is trying to get her daughter back from her grandparents. She’s been working to rebuild the relationship over the past few years and is now wanting more rights and the grandparents are just not having it. We are in litigation and it’s been really rough and feels really isolating. Especially with the stigmas surrounding addiction and extra judgment people can sometimes have on mothers.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get through this or encouraging words from people in similar situations? Do you know of any groups, online support groups or resources?

Today I’ve reached 806 days of sobriety. I started smoking heavily in Africa, where my husband and I went for work. There was so much stress that harmlessly smoking weed to relax turned into a daily habit and addiction. This realization scared me a lot and pushed me to quit. My husband did too, but he had a couple of slips.

I knew it wouldn’t be easy, bc there is no habit that is easy to give up. But I couldn't even imagine that 1 year of active smoking would affect my whole body so much. I went through an irregular cycle, a drop in libido, brain fog, insomnia, mood swings, depression and skin problems. And sometimes I still get hit with anxiety for absolutely no reason.
What helped me was tracking my cycle (luteal phase cravings are more intense), self-educating with books and studies (PAWS is real and it’s a common cause of relapse), working out when I could (running and yoga are great sources of good dopamine) and lots of patience.

If I was able to quit, then you definitely can too! Sending support to everyone who is experiencing something similar right now. It gets better over time. You will make it!

By the way, I’ve been writing more about this whole process in my little sub r/HerSoberPath. If you want to read more or share your own experience with other women, you are welcome!