Have you ever wondered how to stop drinking after relapse—especially when life keeps throwing you curveballs? For Bonnie, drinking was part of the scenery growing up, something that accompanied dinners, parties, and social rituals. But what began as a normalized background habit spiraled into something darker, especially after she entered the entertainment industry in Hollywood. Despite stopping for years, a return to alcohol during a new relationship pulled her back in. What she found through This Naked Mind, though, changed everything. This is her powerful story of resilience, healing, and hope.

Trigger Warning: This story includes references to sexual violence, substance use, and trauma. Please take care while reading.

Jump To:

• Drinking Seemed Normal Growing Up
• Drugs, Fame, and a Dangerous Industry
• How I Fell Back Into Drinking After Sobriety
• Finding Hope Through This Naked Mind
• My Life Today: Recovery, Purpose, and a New Family
• What I Wish I Knew Then

Drinking Seemed Normal Growing Up

I grew up around alcohol, but not in the way that you might expect from a dramatic story. My parents had cocktails, mostly on weekends, usually when they played cards with friends. Wine wasn’t even a thing back then in our house—except for the giant jugs of Blue Nun and other cheap wine my German grandmother kept hidden in her closet. I remember sneaking a sip once and getting incredibly sick. You’d think that would’ve been enough to steer me clear for life. Spoiler: it wasn’t.

Drinking always seemed tied to socializing. If people were together, they were drinking. That belief followed me well into adulthood. It felt harmless. Expected. Normal.

Drugs, Fame, and a Dangerous Industry

Things shifted quickly when I landed a job in Hollywood. I worked as a production manager and model. The environment? It was the 1980s—drugs and alcohol were absolutely everywhere. My boss used cocaine. I worked closely with celebrities, musicians, and artists who were deep into addiction. John Belushi was one of them. He died of an overdose while I was working in that scene.

The most ironic part? I was responsible for keeping certain artists sober before they went on stage. The hardest client? The Who—especially John Entwhistle. Let’s just say it was an impossible task.

One of the darkest moments of my life happened during that time. I was working on a sound stage when someone slipped mollie into my drink without my knowledge. I was raped. That moment changed everything. But I didn’t yet have the tools to understand just how deeply it would affect my relationship with alcohol and my sense of safety and self-worth.

How I Fell Back Into Drinking After Sobriety

At one point, I managed to stop drinking. For years, I stayed sober. But then, I met someone—someone who also drank and used drugs—and I fell right back into those old habits. That’s the thing about relapse. You don’t always see it coming. You think you’ve outgrown the danger, that you’re “cured.” And then—bam. One relationship. One season of stress. One hard year.

If you’re asking yourself how to stop drinking after relapse, trust me when I say: I’ve been there. You don’t have to spiral. You don’t have to stay stuck.

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Finding Hope Through This Naked Mind

Eventually, I started researching how to change. I hadn’t touched drugs in eight years, but alcohol was still a problem. I stumbled across This Naked Mind while searching for answers. I didn’t want judgment or shame. I’d had enough of that. What I wanted was compassion, science, and real support.

That’s exactly what I found.

Books like This Naked Mind and The Alcohol Experiment gave me a new way of thinking. They taught me that I wasn’t broken or weak. I was human. And my brain had been trained, over years, to seek alcohol as a solution—even when it was the cause of my pain.

My Life Today: Recovery, Purpose, and a New Family

Today, I’m 65 years old and recently married—to a man nine years younger than me. I never had children, but now I have a 16-year-old stepson with special needs who I homeschool. We volunteer together at a scientific preserve. He’s learning about wildlife management and we’re preparing him for a job in that field. It’s beautiful, meaningful work.

My husband still drinks, which isn’t always easy. But I know who I am now. I know what I need—and what I don’t.

I never thought this would be my life, but here it is: full of love, purpose, and forward momentum.

What I Wish I Knew Then

If I could talk to my younger self, I’d tell her this:

Always be true to yourself. Celebrate life while you’re here. Don’t destroy it.

You don’t need to numb your past to build a future. You don’t need to drink to belong, to cope, or to connect. And if you’ve slipped up—if you’re in a place where you’re googling how to stop drinking after relapse—know that it’s never too late to begin again.

Share Your Story

Did you learn how to stop drinking after relapse through our books, the app, the podcasts, or another program at This Naked Mind? We want you to share your story here and inspire others on their journey!

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