Tom Catton has been in long-term recovery since October 20, 1971. His story appears in a twelve-step fellowship text with more than seven million copies in circulation around the world. Tom is invited to speak in the US and internationally several times a year at twelve-step conventions in front of audiences ranging from 500 to 10,000 people. He has been taking twelve-step meetings into the prison system in Hawaii since 1984. He has been active in service positions over the years, including serving on a committee that met for over three years to write a recovery text for a twelve-step fellowship.
Tom is author of The Mindful Addict: A Memoir of the Awakening of a Spirit
Tom is on the advisory board of the Buddhist Recovery Network, and is also trained in Tibetan singing bowl therapy. He leads a Buddhist recovery meditation group that meets twice a month in Hawaii. Trained in MBSR Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction; also initiated in several schools of meditation and has practiced daily for 40 years.
Summary and transcript of this interview
Interview conducted 7/27/2013
YouTube Video Chapters:
- 00:00:00 – Tom Catton: A Journey of Awakening
- 00:02:55 – Volunteering for Addiction, Becoming a Guide
- 00:06:15 – Addiction as a Gift
- 00:09:34 – The Possibilities of Expanded Consciousness
- 00:12:02 – Addiction and the Search for Fulfillment
- 00:15:01 – The Journey of Self-Discovery
- 00:18:11 – The Strange allure of addiction
- 00:20:36 – The Birth of the 12-Steps
- 00:23:25 – Seeking Something Different
- 00:26:06 – A Guided Journey to Recovery
- 00:28:29 – The Profound Intuition of a Wise Woman
- 00:31:23 – Following Intuition and Guidance
- 00:34:29 – Finding Guidance in Recovery and Meditation
- 00:37:29 – The Cessation of the Thought Process
- 00:39:58 – The Twelve Steps of Recovery
- 00:43:04 – Freedom from Suffering: Handing Over to a Higher Power
- 00:45:41 – Recovery and the Role of a Sponsor
- 00:47:54 – Enlightenment through Service
- 00:50:49 – Spreading Love in India
- 00:53:24 – Becoming a Conduit for Love
- 00:55:59 – Dark Nights of the Soul
- 00:58:43 – The Illusion of Self and the Planet’s Need for Help
- 01:01:13 – The Bodhisattva’s Vow and the Limitlessness of Enlightenment
- 01:04:20 – The Beauty of the 12 Steps and the Dharma
- 01:07:03 – Still Climbing the Ladders
- 01:09:38 – The Importance of Spiritual Practice in Daily Life
- 01:12:30 – Finding Strength in Weakness
- 01:15:12 – Positive Obsessions for Recovery and Meditation
- 01:18:00 – Learning to Write by Writing
- 01:20:29 – Concluding Remarks
- 01:22:57 – Upcoming Interview with Eric at my House
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