Season 2 Episode 1 with Ryan Weltz

Stoicism | 12 Steps | Sobriety | Recovery | Giving Back

Ryan and I discuss our love of mountains, hiking, outdoors, national parks, and the healing power of those pursuits.

Ryan shares his story of powerlessness, although not as early on in life as many who have been on the path of addiction and/or alcoholism.

The drinking really started to escalate after the first couple of years in college.

The signs of really having problems started to show up and after law school, and by having a mom who had alcoholic tendencies, the mirror of what Ryan was becoming was reflected back at him.

Several years into Ryan’s marriage, he was confronted by his wife who found out just how much Ryan had been drinking. 

Through jail, hospital stays, and wrecked relationships, Ryan didn’t contemplate stopping drinking until his wife appeared as though she was mourning a relationship that had not even ended …

Ryan reports that the desire to drink vanished at that moment and, after checking with a couple of friends who verified that it was probably a great idea to stop drinking, Ryan has embraced sobriety ever since.

Ryan now embraces change, getting better, developing the life skills that remain undeveloped as we continue chasing our addiction(s).

His focus is now on continual improvement, being present for his family, and helping others.

Ryan attributes his early success to working the 12 Steps and remaining serious about improvement and sobriety.

Ryan’s initial introduction to Stoicism was met with a visceral hatred because it illuminated all of the things that Ryan was not at that point in his life.

When it was discovered that many of the stoic philosophies mirrored the principles and values outlined in the 12 Steps, Ryan was sold.

Now he studies, writes, and embraces these philosophies and it has become an undertaking of both he and his wife of now, 15 years.

Being grateful is a cornerstone of Ryan’s recovery and life, which also helps him, “keep it between the ditches.”  

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