Sonia Does The Steps: Step Two - A Higher Power

About this episode

Sonia explores Step Two of the 12 steps with guest Arlina Allen, discussing skepticism, spirituality, and personal interpretations of a higher power.

In this episode of Sisters in Sobriety, Sonia takes on something she has circled for years: the 12 steps. After years of attending meetings here and there, interviewing addiction experts, and seeing the way the steps have changed people’s lives, she is finally stepping in. Joined by recovery coach, One Day at a Time podcast host, and The 12 Steps for Skeptics author Arlina Allen, Sonia explores Step Two through the lens of skepticism, spirituality, language, and lived recovery. The conversation opens with Sonia’s honest reaction to Step Two: “Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.” Together, Sonia and Arlina unpack why words like sanity, insanity, God, and character defects can feel outdated or loaded, especially for people who understand addiction through trauma, mental health, coping mechanisms, and neuroscience. They also explore how to “take what you like and leave the rest,” why looking for similarities matters, and how a higher power can be understood in a way that feels personal, flexible, and grounded. Arlina helps reframe Step Two as less about dogma and more about willingness, support, outside perspective, and access to something…

People in this episode

Hosts: Sonia Kahlon, Kathleen Killen

Guest: Arlina Allen

Topics covered

• 12 steps
• addiction recovery
• spirituality
• mental health
• language
• personal growth

Keywords

• Step Two
• higher power
• sanity
• addiction
• spirituality
• mental health
• recovery
• trauma
• neuroscience

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: One Day at a Time, The 12 Steps for Skeptics

More episodes of Sisters In Sobriety

• Sonia Does The Steps: Step 3 - From Willpower to Willingness · June 8, 2026 · 57 min
• Sonia Does the Steps: Step One, Powerlessness, and the 12 Steps for Skeptics · May 25, 2026 · 50 min
• The Recovery Conversation That Challenges Everything With Richard Taite · May 18, 2026 · 52 min
• What Do You Do for Fun When You Stop Drinking With Amy Tangerine · May 11, 2026 · 51 min
• Powerless or in Control: Rethinking Addiction Recovery with Dr. Daniel Hochman · May 4, 2026 · 54 min
• The Hungry Ghost Effect: Why Nothing Ever Feels Like Enough in Addiction With Jeremy L · April 27, 2026 · 1h 11m