Join Wayne Giles as he reads and expands on the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, offering deeper understanding and practical advice for those on their recovery journey. In this Step 1 AA session, Wayne discusses the moment when the mask of pretense finally becomes too heavy to wear. He reflects on the endless spree of addiction, where day after day is filled with the same destructive behaviors, until the effort to pretend that life is anything but drug-filled becomes unbearable.

“There came a day when it was too much work to even pretend that I was doing anything but living this drug-filled life. I asked this group of friends that I had when I got out of prison the first time—they were all about the age I am now, which is weird to say but middle-aged—and we were getting high and doing all this. I asked them, ‘How do you justify cont ...