Inside Intervention: Candy Finnigan on Alcoholism, Family, and Recovery
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What inspired Candy Finnigan to become an interventionist?
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Candy Finnegan. Richard Tate. How are you?
Well, I think I'm okay.
So everyone... Candy Finnegan is a world-renowned interventionist, but not just a world-renowned interventionist. She is, what, the first or one of the first?
One of the first three women interventionists.
One of the first three. How long have you been doing this for?
32 years.
32 years. And we do it completely differently, but we'll talk about that later. But what I want to hear is, did you have a drug problem yourself?
No. I would say it was leaning towards more alcohol. But if you had some drugs, I'd probably use them. But I'm a good Irish alcoholic.
How did Candy's personal experience with alcoholism shape her career?
Knee-walking, tongue-chewing alcoholic, as I used to say. I stopped drinking Jameson's. And because people told me I was obnoxious. I don't think so. But I tended to be more maudlin, like, I love you so much. One of those which people didn't enjoy. And I went to become a wino. And so... I think if I detoxed off of anything, it was sugar because there's so much sugar in wine. Right. I was still high functioning. My mother-in-law was a social worker from Ohio. My husband was from Ohio. And she came to visit and busted me. I hid my wine in the back of the toilet tank. It was always cool. No one could see it. And she caught me. And so she was going to take my kids away. And I'm adopted.
Your mother-in-law.
Taking my kids away.
Your mother-in-law. Good woman.
Never, ever said anything to my husband, her son.
Right.
Because he wasn't raising the kids. Right. So that's where the journey started. What a great woman.
What pivotal moment led Candy to seek sobriety?
She was 6'1". My husband, you know, was 6'7". I'm 5'2". Well, I'm probably 5'1 now, but, you know, she... She just wasn't messing around. She was the bailiff, the welfare participant, the divorce investigator. Oh, yeah. You were finished. I mean, she's in a small town. Good for you. Good for her. Yeah, of Dayton, right outside of Dayton. And she was not messing around.
How are your kids today?
My kids are spectacular. My daughter is a nurse and she just moved back last week.
I needed a nurse.
Why didn't you call me? From Portland, Oregon. And she moved home with me and my son is another musician.
That's fantastic. Yep. That's fantastic.
And neither one of them belonged to my club because I would have had to kill them.
Well, also because when you have a mother... That, you know, you got your shit together when your kid was six, six and three. Right. So the three year old doesn't even remember you drinking. And the six year old has an idea, but doesn't really remember. So you got there in the nick of time.
What powerful stories does Candy share from her time on the show Intervention?
Well, and I think the other thing, too, for me, Richard, is that. I was so frightened to ever relapse because I'm the egomaniac and, you know, Wonder Woman. And I knew I would never go back.
Yeah.
Because I thought, I'm not getting another one of those poker chips. Are you out of your mind?
Yeah, that wasn't my, as you know, that wasn't my thing. I've had more sobriety dates than there are dates on the calendar. But I want to hear the funniest stories about your interventions, the ones you've done. No names. Oh, no. But I need to hear it.
Well, I'd have to say memorable much more than funny. Okay. I had some funny things happen, but... One of them was on the show Intervention that I had a privilege of being on. And he was a lightweight champion. And he was at this point living in New Canaan, Connecticut at the 7-Eleven. Actually, I think it was the Circle K. And the mailman is the one who asked the show if they would intervene.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What inspired Candy Finnigan to become an interventionist?
0:00–1:52
2
How did Candy's personal experience with alcoholism shape her career?
1:52–3:20
3
What pivotal moment led Candy to seek sobriety?
3:20–4:31
4
What powerful stories does Candy share from her time on the show Intervention?
4:31–6:44
5
How does trauma impact individuals struggling with addiction?
6:44–8:13
6
What emotional weight do interventionists carry after a failed intervention?
8:13–10:39
7
What is the core philosophy behind effective interventions?
10:39–12:57
8
How can listeners support those struggling with addiction?
12:57–22:48
Speakers
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