For part I, check the episode out here (https://the-ebbs-and-the-flows.simplecast.com/episodes/s2-e3a-ebbs-with-pat-kennedy-a-candid-conversation-about-alcoholism-love-letters-to-the-things-that-are-destroying-us-crying-in-the-toilet-and-taking-vulnerable-risks-in-recovery)

Pat Kennedy joins The Ebbs and The Flows for episode 3 (Part II) of Season 2. This was initially supposed to be a discussion that fit into one episode, however things took a turn for the better and what has been produced is two parts of a candid and open conversation about the respective struggles of two people connected by one season of footy in 2017. Pat Kennedy is a political staffer-cum-small business owner who has been sober for two and a half years after an exhausting and painful battle with booze ending in two visits to rehab and he is now a proud advocate for Alcoholics Anonymous. The second part of the conversation focuses on Pat's life post-alcohol - the consistent meetings, the breakthroughs, the heartaches and the struggles that come with sobriety, but also the supreme feeling of being 'there' and seeing people in colour for the first time in years.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect, as the Pat I knew the last time we meet in person was a long way from the Pat who walked into the studio for this discussion. The second part features 'The 90 second nugget', 'Me and the World on a Page', 'A note to Self' and of course, 'Weird Fishes', alongside a couple of interludes for a conversation about 'rock bottom'. This has to be one of my favourite episodes so far, simply because I felt like I was in the company of a completely different person from the Pat I knew in 2017. I don't mean that offensively, because Pat has always been an intelligent, well spoken guy, but he really has found a part of himself he felt he had lost in the insidious battle with alcohol.

Weird Fishes:
Film: Oppenheimer
Book: Matthew Perry's Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing
Album/Song: I'm Still Standing - Elton John
Local Recommendation: Canteen - Cafe

The Ebbs and the Flows is an emotional health movement focused on openness and transparency about the light and the shade of the lives we led and journeys we encounter. The Ebbs and the Flows is not a licensed mental health service and therefore if you are seeking mental health advice, assessment or treatment, you should seek expert advice with a GP, psychologist, psychiatrist or call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

For The Ebbs and The Flows Instagram page head to https://www.instagram.com/theebbsandtheflows/

At the end of the day, we are all just a work in progress.

The Ebbs and the Flows is an emotional health movement focused on openness and transparency about the light and the shade of the lives we led and journeys we encounter. The Ebbs and the Flows is not a licensed mental health service and therefore if you are seeking mental health advice, assessment or treatment, you should seek expert advice with a GP, psychologist, psychiatrist or call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

For The Ebbs and The Flows Instagram page head to https://www.instagram.com/theebbsandtheflows/

At the end of the day, we are all just a work in progress.