Can you have rock bottom moments when sober and IN recovery? Today, I sit down with actor and content creator Issy Hawkins, who has been sober for a decade, to talk about burnout, identity, and the side of recovery no one likes to admit. We explore what it’s really like being diagnosed as an adult with ADHD in sobriety, the truth behind the “addict voice,” and why even years into recovery, the mind can still turn against you.

Issy first joined the podcast in episode 33, sharing her journey through alcoholism, rehab and how she got sober at 21, but this episode goes further into what happens when recovery itself feels overwhelming.

In this conversation, we explore into what it means to confront the “addict voice,” how ADHD interacts with addiction, and the ways that burnout and self-judgment can sneak into recovery. Issy shares how she stepped back from everything to reconnect with herself, exploring meditation, self-reflection, and facing long-buried shame. We discuss the complex interplay of identity, impulse control, and emotional regulation, and why sobriety doesn’t automatically solve the deeper challenges of the mind.

This episode is for anyone in recovery, whether you’re new or have been sober for years, and for anyone interested in the human experience of coping with trauma, mental health, and the constant negotiation between external achievement and internal wellbeing. It is honest, reflective, and a rare insight into the real work that continues long after alcohol is gone. The twist is that through this new dark period came an unexpected present - a spiritual awakening.

More on Issy -

Issy Hawkins is an actor and content creator with over 150,000 followers on social media.

After graduating drama school into the pandemic in 2020, Issy decided to focus on her advocacy work as a means of encouraging other young people with addiction issues to ask for help, taking to social media to share her experience and she hasn’t looked back since. Issy navigated nearly her entire 20's sober after a stint in rehab at age 21 and is passionate about dismantling the stigma. She is also the child of a recovering alcoholic.

Issy is an Ambassador for Alcohol Change UK and most recently won The National Diversity Awards for the category Role Model for Age.

Oliver & Issy are ambassadors for Alcohol Change UK and you can access support here - https://tinyurl.com/5dt5773e

Thank you to Gavin Sisters for sponsoring this episode! Visit -

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and use promo code SCHOOLOFROCKBOTTOM for 10% off!

Podcasting is an expensive passion. To help me keep going, I'd really appreciate it if you could buy me a coffee, thank you!

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Topics -

0:00 Trailer & Intro

5:45 Issy's sober rock bottom moment

11:45 Is the "addict voice" you?!

14:30 Is severe addiction different?

19:30 What is the addict voice?

21:30 Is it all about survival and self love?

27:45 Recovery tools in tough moments

30:45 Replacing alcohol with other unhealthy things

33:15 Fear of abandonment?

34:45 ADHD

39:00 Dropping the ADHD mask

39:45 WhatsApp & DM's!

42:45 ADHD, dopamine and addiction

45:00 Low impulse control and no long term consequences

45:45 Emotional dysregulation

47:39 Sponsor

48:40 ADHD diagnosis

52:45 A spiritual awakening during the rock bottom?

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