Hi, you. 

I’m Holly Whitaker, the author of the New York Times Bestseller Quit Like a Woman, the audio guide 30 Days to a New Relationship with Alcohol, the founder of Tempest, Inc. (acquired by Monument, 2022), and most recently the writer of the column Recovering.

I’m a person in long-term recovery (I’ve recently discussed that I now use cannabis and some psychedelics) who thinks that the key to everything we’re looking for, both individually and societally, comes from the work we do on ourselves and that our global liberation depends on our individual liberation. Hurt people hurt people, and a core part of my work is to extend compassion, charitable assumption, and grace to all.

If I had to choose professional labels for myself, I’d choose writer, researcher, teacher, and student. I prefer laptops to pens, cats to dogs. I enjoy gardening, piles of books, creating stuff, talking on the phone for hours, doing absolutely nothing with people that fit like old sweaters, and napping. I love coffee, Topo Chico, and trail running. I find life to be excruciating, but I also am thrilled by the mystery of it, the way it never stays the same. I swing left; equity, equality, and social justice are core to me and the alleviation of addiction. I believe all humans are inherently and basically good, even the worst of them, even people I strongly dislike. Love ethic and non-violence are my north stars and I am constantly interrogating myself and biases; I’m willing to be wrong, and admit it.

The older I get the fewer answers I have, and the more I learn the more I’m convinced I know nothing at all. My work is personal and subjective and how I make sense of the world and my place in it.

I’m currently working on my third book, trying to write regularly, mostly in my newsletter, because writing is what I like to do the most. I work 1:1 with a handful of individuals who are going through major life transitions, and this is also one of my favorite things to do.

I don’t know you, but I care about you. You deserve a soft place to land. It is my sincerest hope that my work is of benefit to you.

xx,

Holly