Embracing Sobriety: A Musician’s Journey to Self-Discovery and Resilience

Hi, this is Casey Abrams, aka Casey Basey. And today I am two years sober. It feels really good. I don’t think I’ll ever go back, because I feel like I am the better version of myself. It’s been a very epic journey to get to this point in my life. As many of you may know, I got my whole colon removed in an emergency surgery to save my life. I’ve had five surgeries in all. One to get rid of the colon, one to create a J pouch, one to detangle my small intestines from itself. I want to complete the J pouch surgery. And then just a couple months ago, to get rid of a couple of hernias. It’s definitely been a rough ride, and if I was drinking and smoking, I don’t think I could have gotten through it with such a positive attitude. I remember my last drink. It was pretty nice. It was at a comedy club, and I was watching a friend perform. It was a nice pinot grigio. And I just woke up the next day, and my gut was telling me, why did you do that? You’re in pain. I had been going to the bathroom and seeing blood for the last month before that and just felt weird. Here’s what I’ve Learned in my journey. I always felt like I needed a couple beers or a whiskey shot or something to go on stage and perform a little bit better. Because it would calm the nerves. Not drinking alcohol, I feel like I can do anything. Everything that we want is on the other side of fear. And I always feared being sober on stage because I might get scared. But guess what? You’re going to get scared on stage. So you have to overcome this fear by just going up there and almost being naked in front of everyone. I’ve noticed that my voice is feeling a lot better as well. I’m hitting higher notes and my vocal stamina has gone up times three. I’ve Learned to really intake the moments on and off the stage, cause my mind is fully capable of perceiving all the amazing things that are happening to me. Alcohol just wasn’t good for my body, it wasn’t good for my stomach, and it obviously wasn’t good for my colon. So it’s good to just take away all the things that make you feel bad. Easy as that. I feel a lot less tired these days. I don’t need anything to wake up and stay energized. I can just be energized just based off of the food I eat and having a good time. I feel like I’m just doing the right thing. I’m not paranoid that anyone is looking at me thinking, this guy is doing something really stupid. And if I am doing something really stupid, then it’s on my own volition. All my decision making skills and my organization has just gone Up exponentially. And it feels really great to just be confident in all my decision making. Despite going through all those crazy surgeries, I still feel like I’m on top of the world right now. I just think it’s because my mind is so clear, and I just know what I want. I will keep creating music, performing music, and just being a musical dude. I’m doing this all for me, but I’m doing it for all of you as well. No matter what obstacles get in your way, just be positive, and you’re going to get through them no matter what. Thank you so much, everyone, for sending your love and your support, especially in my time of need. I can’t thank you enough, and I’m gonna keep doing fun things for you.