I come from a long line of highly educated, professionally successful, depressed, and anxious alcoholics. Even as a teenager, I knew my excessive drinking was a problem, and I could feel it taking root in ways that scared me. I got sober for the first time at 19 and stayed clean for 12 years, building a life I was proud of. But at 32, I relapsed and spent the next 15 years drinking and smoking pot, even as I managed to maintain a home, a full-time job, and raise two healthy, thriving children. On the outside, it looked like I was holding it all together, but inside, my life had become completely unmanageable. In March 2017, I checked myself into detox and returned to AA, where I found the community and tools I needed to start over — for real, this time. I’m so deeply grateful for my sobriety today and the peace it’s brought me.