Addiction Recovery and Fr. Rocky on the Rosary

Kathy (0:00)

The issues that matter most, right here.

Drew Mariani (0:03)

The Drew Mariani Show.

Larry (0:05)

On Relevant Radio.

Kenneth Craycraft (0:09)

My sobriety journey. Well, on December 15th, 2002, I had consumed way too much alcohol. I put people in danger. I put my life, myself in danger, my children's lives in danger, and my livelihood in danger.

And on December 16th, 2002, I decided that I just couldn't do this anymore.

And that after years of rationalizing, sometimes good faith efforts to try to moderate my drinking, a lot more time trying to rationalize my drinking, I decided that the only solution for me was to stop drinking.

SPEAKER_5 (0:42)

It's The Drew Mariani Show on Relevant Radio.

Drew Mariani (0:50)

This is the voice of my next guest, Dr. Ken Craycraft. He's a brand new book out about his sobriety journey. If you have somebody who is struggling with addiction, turn up the radio and feel free to join the conversation. First, welcome. It is good to be here with you today. I'm Drew Mariani. I'll be with you for the next three hours. We've got a lot to get into today. It's going to be a fun show today. We've got a lot of different topics that we will explore together. But before I begin this conversation with Dr. Craycraft, you know my story because I've shared it many times. My father, he struggled with two different addictions. His first addiction was gambling. He was a compulsive gambler. And we'd wager just about everything. And sometimes addicts, and you might know this in your own family, they trade addictions, right? He conquered that. He went to GA, one of the founding chapters, I think, in Philly at the time, and he ended up becoming an alcoholic. And for years, he struggled with it. And you'll know this if you have some of your family who's an alcoholic. I mean, they're very clever. They can hide their addiction well. I have to honestly say, my father was a nonviolent man. Not once in my entire life, from the time I was a child to an adult, did the man ever raise a hand, ever lay a hand, you know? Not even spank. I was more terrified of my mother. But my father, a gentle soul who struggled with an addiction.

My mother prayed nonstop for him. And she prayed the rosary. And it took her years, like Monica. She never gave up on her spouse, never. And for any spouse out there, I just want to say this to you, because Dr. Craycraft has a similar story, I think.

There is a special bond, a special grace, that comes through the sacrament of matrimony. And if your spouse is struggling with an addiction, maybe it's porn, maybe it is alcohol, maybe it's drugs, maybe it's some other proclivity.

The most powerful weapon you have is prayer. There is nothing more. Prayer and sacrifice for that soul will liberate them.

So what do you do when somebody you love struggles like this?

Of course you pray, you encourage them, you forgive them, but at what point does helping become enabling? And this is another aspect we'll get into with Dr. Craycraft. How many people, I have a cousin who had struggled with addiction, too. He was, he was, he had dealt with drugs. And his brother, you know, oh, he'd pay the bill so he wouldn't get kicked out of the apartment, or he'd call in sick to the employer for him so he wouldn't lose his job, or whatever. That's called enabling. So where do you draw that line, you know? And how do you love somebody without protecting them from the consequences that might finally wake them up? They often say you need to hit rock bottom, right? My guest lived on both sides of that question. For 15 years, Dr. Craycraft was a high functioning alcoholic. Today, nearly 24 years sober, he's written a remarkable book about addiction and about faith, about grace, and why sometimes the most loving thing you can do for somebody is to refuse to help them continue to destroy themselves. And it is a real honor to have him join me today. Doctor, good afternoon.

Kenneth Craycraft (4:10)

Gosh, Drew, that was such a great lead up to the introduction. Thank you so much. It's good to be with you today. And thank you for having me on to talk about my journey and about my new book.

Drew Mariani (4:20)

Well, your message is going to resonate with a lot of people. I don't think there's anybody who's listening does not have a family member or relative or a friend or somebody who is in this fight and in this battle in some way. Tell us your story. Take us through your struggle and your victory.