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Are Gray Area Drinkers Addicted To Alcohol?
There are no criteria or diagnostics for drinking because THERE IS NO SAFE OR HEALTHY INTAKE LEVEL OF ALCOHOL. So, if you drink, you will have to self-select a term or description that you’re most comfortable with to describe where you believe you fall on the drinking...
Scrolling social media is the new day drinking
I've noticed similarities recently (for me) between scrolling my phone and day drinking. When I drank I would often do weekend brunches with friends. The hours before meeting up were productive - early morning meditation, a walk or other exercise, maybe catch up on...
Your Brain Will Rewire In 30-Days, According To NASA
If you're thinking about or in the process of stopping an unhealthy coping mechanism like drinking alcohol, try ADDING something into your life instead of focusing on what you're taking away. According to NASA, when you are consistent and follow through on a new...
But Guys Will Think It’s Weird If You Don’t Drink
It was a Sunday. I didn’t know the day before would be my last day of drinking, but it was. I felt sick until Tuesday and I knew I was done with alcohol forever. I had been through too many drinking stops and restarts and I knew I had come to the end of my drinking...
Alcohol Is No Longer An Option For Me
Giving up alcohol is not a guarantee or protection against hurt, pain, discomfort, anger, grief, feeling rage etc. Expect those feelings. Expect that life will continue to happen after you quit drinking and it can be/feel really hard at times. It can also be/feel...
Can We Just Let This Sink In For A Minute?
One drink is defined as: —5 ounces of wine. —1.5 ounce of liquor (shot). —12 ounces of beer. Clients say this to me all the time, “I don’t really drink that much, one or two glasses most days." The reason it’s gray is we collectively agreed a long time ago that...
Four Things No One Tells You About Your Craving Brain
Have you ever stopped drinking for a couple of weeks or months and then fallen off the wagon, beaten yourself up, and wondered why you can’t stick with it? Or, have you stopped drinking, but use other addictive substances or behaviors in place of alcohol? One or more...
My Gray Area Drinking Coming Out Story
In 2016 I emailed Holly Whitaker and Laura McKowen and I said, I love your podcast. I discovered it in December 2015 when you interviewed Sarah Hepola, the author of Blackout. I’m a functional nutritionist. I quit drinking in 2014 and I believe there are so many...
Drinking Amnesia: I Drank For The Effect
Let’s be honest, the effect was good, for the first 20-minutes into the first glass of wine. But the second glass (plus more) never delivered the same effect as the first glass. Ever! The effect never lasted, but I’d order or pour more because once that first glass of...
You Can Make A Different Choice At Anytime!
"Historically this topic has been discussed in black and white terms. Either you're absolutely fine with alcohol or you have this horrific problem that requires some kind of intervention. But my experience and something a lot of women are experiencing is this vast...
No Rock Bottom Required
The last day I drank was uneventful and insignificant to my overall drinking story. Nothing bad or out of the ordinary happened that day that forced me quit. I simply chose to quit. Clients tell me all the time - “I function really well.” They say, “My spouse,...
Alcohol Is The Only Drug In The World That You Have Have To Justify Why You’re Not Taking It
You don’t have a problem with alcohol! You are definitely not an “alcoholic” and your drinking is not that bad. These are things gray area drinkers often hear from others. As a society, we measure “problem drinking” against an ambiguous bar (no pun intended) that...
There Will Never Be A Good Time To Stop Drinking
There will always be something — in the winter there will be holiday parties, family gatherings, New Year’s Eve celebrations. In the summer there will be pool and beach parties, backyard BBQ’s and school will be out so “your routine will be off.” In the spring there...
How To Get Through A Social Situation Where *Everyone* Will Be Drinking
First of all, pause. Look around the event and notice if everyone is actually drinking alcohol. Not everyone drinks all the time! 1. Focus on the people, conversations, connections, activities, place, event, instead of alcohol! 2. Always have something to drink in...
The Day I Knew I Was Done Drinking Forever
When I made the decision to stop for good. I knew I was done forever. I knew I was done because I had so many stops and starts prior to that. I knew that no matter what happened in the future (good or bad) alcohol was no longer an option and I haven't had a drink...
Here’s What I Know To Be True
1. There are really cool people (celebrities, people I meet every day) who don't drink. 2. Most people don't care or notice whether you drink alcohol or not. Don't assume the worst before going into an interaction or an event. Some people will surprise you, others may...
Can You Stay With Yourself Here?
This is what one of my favorite yoga teachers and somatic coaches says to me often. "Can you stay with yourself here?" - Jay Fields. Notice what you feel - anxiety, sadness, anger, pain, hurt, excitement, joy, pleasure, whatever...Can you stay present and not...
The Thing I Found That Replaced The Feeling I Got From Drinking Wine
When I quit drinking there were times — weeks, months after my decision to quit for good that I'd think, "I'd love to find something that gives me that same feeling I used to get 20 minutes into the first glass of wine." I loved what wine did to my ruminating, worried...
My Gray Area Drinking Manifesto
There's a collective drinking and anxiety story that is happening all around us. I call it gray area drinking and I used to be a gray area drinker. I wasn't an end-stage, lose everything kind of drinker, I also wasn't an every now and again drinker who would have a...
One Simple Tool That Helped Me Stop Drinking
Have you heard the Jerry Seinfeld story about not breaking the chain? Someone once asked him how he got to be such a good comedian and he said, "I sit down and write jokes every day. Some days I don't feel funny, I have writer's block, I'm tired, or I have other...
My Decision To Stop Drinking Was Not Made On A Whim
I'm proud of my alcohol-free decision. Proud to stand up, speak out, and shake the stigma that we don't have to "hit rock bottom" in order to stop drinking. I have no crash and burn story. Nothing "bad" happened. I didn't have to stop. I wanted to stop. The decision...
Why Would You Go To An All-Inclusive Resort If You Don’t Drink?
There was a guy sitting at the table in front of me as I was drinking my alcohol-free mojito at an all-inclusive resort in Mexico. He turned around and said, "Out of curiosity, why did you just order an alcohol free drink?" I said, "Because I don't drink." He said,...
What I Would Have Told Myself If I Knew Then What I Know Now
1. You are stronger than you think. 2. Your “I knew in my bones” resolve to get off the drinking merry-go-round will be just as strong on day 1,000 as it was on day 1. 3. You’ll have hard days and hard times. You’ll go through some of the hardest sh*t in your life...
The ACE Study: Creating A Trauma Informed Society
I just watched Oprah’s report on 60 Minutes about the ACE (adverse childhood experiences) study. I have been very interested in this study for a couple years now. The study began in a weight loss clinic in San Diego in the mid-’90s. I believe it’s the most important...
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