Welcome to shamelessly sober! Remember when you were a child and thought, "When I grow up, I want to be addicted to alcohol!"? No? Me neither, but that is exactly what happened to me. My name is Kris and I suffered with addiction for years. shamelessly sober was born of my desire to help eliminate the stigma that is associated with chemical addiction. I started this podcast to help others with addiction and family members understand substance use disorder and eliminate the stigma that is associated with it. Addiction is not simply a symptom of weak people. It is an overwhelming obsession that consumes every aspect of the addicted's life. It will take the love and compassion of society to help end this epidemic. As long as the addicted are forced to live in silence, tens of thousands will needlessly die every year. I firmly believe that the shame surrounding chemical addiction is costing lives. Society looks down on people with addictions and treats them as criminals, losers, bums, etc. I am living proof that many, if not most, people with addictions are normal. I have been married for over 20 years. I have a family. I have a Masters Degree and a great job. If I did not tell you, you would never guess that I was addicted to alcohol. However, because of my fear of being ostracized from friends and family, I was letting my drug of choice slowly kill me. shamelessly sober will consist of interviews, topics surrounding addiction, spotlights on resources I used to get sober, etc. If you find this podcast useful, please subscribe and share with others. Additionally, visit www.shamelesslysober.com for articles, resources, and other media appearances.