“Alcohol erases a bit of you every time you drink it. It can even erase entire nights when you're on a binge. Alcohol does not relieve stress; it erases your senses and ability to think. Alcohol ultimately erases your self."
Annie Grace
Author of This Naked Mind, Control Alcohol, Find Freedom, Discover Happiness & Change Your Life
Hi, I'm Tammy. I'm so glad you're here. I'm many things— a coach's daughter, an ancestry buff, a podcast guest and a retired Pinot Grigio expert. I'm an average American woman who became addicted to alcohol after four decades of "social drinking." I'm on a mission to share my story of recovery in the hopes of helping others find their way out of the prison that alcohol can become. I believe you're never too old, and it's never too late to write a new story.
WHEN THE WINE STOPPED WORKING
A Memoir
Release date: Early 2027 by Acorn Publishing, LLC
Growing up in the orbit of locker rooms, Friday night lights, and the high expectations of a football coach's family, Tammy learned early on to perform, please and persevere, using beer and wine as both social glue and emotional escape. When the Wine Stopped Working traces how alcohol became Tammy's steady companion as she navigated the public scrutiny of her father's career, frequent moves, and the high-stakes world of college and professional sports. Alcohol was a constant at tailgates, team parties, and family celebrations—both a reward and a way to cope with anxiety, transitions, and the relentless drive for success.
As Tammy grew older, drinking evolved from festive fun to a coping mechanism for life's mounting challenges: motherhood, marriage strains, career changes, financial crises, and ultimately divorce. A turning point comes in her 50s, as Tammy confronts the toll alcohol has taken on her health, relationships, and sense of self. Inspired by her family history and the strength of the women who came before her, Tammy embarks on a journey of sobriety, unsure if she will be able to sustain it, but determined to give it her best shot.
Tammy's story ultimately offers hope and encouragement for anyone questioning their relationship with alcohol, especially those who have grown up in the shadow of achievement. When the Wine Stopped Working stands as both a cautionary tale and a celebration of the courage it takes to break free from old patterns and write a new story, now matter how late in the game.
The Robles Girls
Historical Fiction, Release date TBD
Tentatively titled The Robles Girls, this novel will tell the ancestral tale of Tammy's four-time great grandparents, Don Secundino and Doña Maria Robles and their twenty-nine children, all born in "Alta California" in the early 1800s, a time in history known as The Days of the Dons. After discovering a mercury mine and selling a portion to investors, Don and Doña Robles bought a 6,000 acre rancho they named Rancho Santa Rita on land that would one day become the city of Palo Alto, California.
Trained by their father, the Robles girls became expert riders before they could sew. Since none of the Robles boys lived to riding age (accidents and illness were common causes of childhood death), Secundino's daughters were an essential work crew on the rancho, especially during the annual rodeo, an cattle roundup that included branding and slaughtering the animals and preparing the meat, hides and tallow for trade with Yankee ships.
The sisters were also responsible for the day to day labor in the household, caring for their younger siblings, growing, harvesting and preparing the food, wine and aguardiente (alcohol made from fermented fruit), making soap and candles, washing, scrubbing and mending their dishes, clothes and linens, and feeding, watering and milking the livestock.
Although the family was well versed at preparing for the birth of a child each year, the joy of new life was never taken for granted at Rancho Santa Rita. Only eight of Secundino and Maria’s children would live to full-fledged adulthood. Ten babies lived just long enough to be named. Eleven died between the ages of eight days and eight years. The family was engulfed by the sorrow of losing a child twenty-one times.
Burying their grief became a means of survival.
A Year In Ink, Volume 18
I was thrilled to have my essay selected for this annual literary anthology published by San Diego Writers, Ink, 2025
ROCK BOTTOM WAS CALLING MY NAME
After surviving our first Covid Christmas, it dawned on me that I was absolutely exhausted. ALL THE TIME. Every. Single. Day.
Something about my drinking had changed. The buzz I got from a couple glasses of wine was short and the repercussions I felt the next day were so much worse. Every morning, until happy hour rolled around, I was in misery.
(But did I do Dry January? Heck no, that’s for amateurs!)
I wanted to blame my exhaustion on the stress of living with Covid and the changes that it brought to our household. The uncertainty of lockdowns, schools closing and our young adult “kids” moving back home. The bummer of postponing our wedding.
And of course, the actual virus that was lurking, skipping and morphing around the globe. But in my gut I knew there was another reason I felt so terrible.
As the months of the pandemic dragged on and the news got scarier, wine o’clock at our house started earlier. More Pinot Grigio became my way to numb the stress of living in a world in panic mode and a home now bursting at the seams.
Every one of our six children came home to live with us during the pandemic at one time or another. The two youngest already had their own rooms, but the four oldest had been living on their own for years. There were breakups, roommate changes, leases ending, homes bought and sold. Two of those four brought their dogs.
We don’t have a dog. There’s a very good reason we don’t have a dog.
WE HAVE RAISED SIX KIDS AND WE ARE TIRED!
Luckily, we loved their sweet and adorable pups, but it took awhile to adjust to all the stuff that went with them. For example: slobbery windows and poo in unexpected places.
Our kitchen was ALWAYS open. Everyone ate at different times and there was a wide range of work, school, sleep and lounging schedules.
Some cleaned up after themselves better than others. Many mornings I awoke to a sink full of dishes after a late night jacuzzi party and nosh fest—the plates, bowls and wine glasses stacked, Tetris-style in the sink—six inches from the dishwasher.
Both sets of washing machines and dryers were continually spinning something or at the very least, full of someone’s damp and forgotten load of sports bras, leggings and 37 microscopic thongs.
Need Help? A Few of My Favorite Resources
01.
Quit Lit
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ALCOHOL EXPLAINED, William Porter
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ALCOHOL LIED TO ME, Craig Beck
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ALCOHOL IS SHIT, Paul Churchill
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BETWEEN BREATHS, Elizabeth Vargas
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BLACKOUT, Sarah Hepola
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DRINK: THE INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WOMEN AND ALCOHOL,
Ann Dowsett Johnston -
DRINK? Professor David Nutt
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DRUNK MOM, Jowita Bydlowska
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DRINKING, A LOVE STORY, Caroline Knapp
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DRY, Augusten Burroughs
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GIRL WALKS OUT OF A BAR, Lisa F. Smith
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GLORIOUS ROCK BOTTOM, Bryony Gordon
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GUTS, Kristen Johnston
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HAPPY ACCIDENTS, Jane Lynch
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HIGH ON ARRIVAL, Mackenzie Phillips
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MRS. D IS GOING WITHOUT, Lotta Dann
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NOTHING GOOD CAN COME FROM THIS, Kristi Coulter
02.
More Quit Lit
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QUIT LIKE A WOMAN, Holly Whitaker
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SMASHED, Koren Zailckas
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SOBER ON A DRUNK PLANET, Sean Alexander
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STASH: MY LIFE IN HIDING, Laura Cathcart Robbins
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SUNSHINE WARM SOBER, Catherine Gray
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THE LIFE CHANGING MAGIC OF QUITTING ALCOHOL, Sharon Hartley
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THE SOBER DIARIES, Clare Pooley
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THE UNEXPECTED JOY OF BEING SOBER, Catherine Gray
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THE WINE O’CLOCK MYTH, Lotta Dann
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THIS NAKED MIND, Annie Grace
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THIS SIDE OF ALCOHOL, Peggi Cooney
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A THOUSAND WASTED SUNDAYS, Victoria Vanstone
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UNWASTED, Sacha Z. Scoblic
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WE ARE THE LUCKIEST, Laura McKowen
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YOUR SECOND ACT, Patricia Heaton
03.
Sober Podcasts
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Over The Influence
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Recovery Elevator
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Sober Awkward
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This Naked Mind
04.
Multi-Topic Podcasts
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Behind the Smile
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Heart of the Matter
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Hello Someday
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To 50 and Beyond
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We Can Do Hard Things
05.
Groups & Information
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SAMHSA Hotline (US): 1-800-662-HELP (4357)
Get in Touch with Tammy
Email me with questions, comments, queries about speaking, or just to say hi.
