On this episode of One Last Hit, Austin sits down with Barb Varcl-Smith, a UK-based trauma and PTSD recovery specialist and creator of the Ascendance Method. Barb's own path started with a childhood marked by her mother's hospitalization, chronic fatigue syndrome that left her bedridden at 17, and losing classmates to addiction — experiences that pushed her to understand why people turn to drugs and alcohol in the first place.

Barb breaks down addiction as a trauma response (not a moral failing), explains the four trauma responses (fight, flight, freeze, fawn), why 12-step recovery often stops short of the root cause, and how subconscious tools like hypnotherapy, body coding, and quantum healing can release stored trauma that talk therapy can't reach. She also shares her reframe on victimhood ("the best revenge is to live your life fully") and why even high-achievers secretly numb out through workaholism and hidden drinking.

One Last Hit Podcast — real stories of addiction, survival, and coming back from the edge.

CONNECT
One Last Hit Podcast: https://onelasthitbook.com/podcast 📖 Get the Ebook: https://shop.onelasthitbook.com/product/ebook/ 🎧 Get the Audiobook: https://shop.onelasthitbook.com/product/audiobook/ 📚 Get the Paperback: https://shop.onelasthitbook.com/product/one-last-hit-paperback/ 🎵 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033tfN9DNibexvEaMuTIX8 🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/one-last-hit-podcast/id1896886126 📲 Instagram: https://instagram.com/onelasthitbook 📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OneLastHitBook 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@onelasthitbook ▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@OneLastHit 🐦 Twitter/X: https://x.com/austinrampt

#addiction #recovery #sobriety #podcast #onelasthit #OneLastHitPodcast #addictionrecovery #soberliving #realstories #mentalhealth #trauma #ptsd #traumarecovery