The Hello Someday Podcast For Sober Curious Women

Today my 9 year old daughter, Lila, is joining me on the podcast to chat about how I talk to my kids about alcohol, why I quit drinking and what she thinks about her mom being a sober coach (and a podcaster!) A lot of women in early sobriety wonder how to discuss their drinking or not drinking with their kids, and of course every family is different. But since I get asked this question a lot I decided to ask my daughter to chat with me about it. ​As we talk you’ll hear from Lila that she… ​ ✅ Knows that mom used to drink a lot and stopped and that dad still drinks a bit and both are OK ✅ Is aware that when mom was drinking she woke up at 3am and was anxious and sometimes it made her throw up because alcohol is poison to your body ✅ Understands that alcohol is addictive and how that works (using a metaphor that makes sense to her) ✅ Knows that sober milestones are a big deal and a “Soberversary” is something to celebrate ✅ Thinks it’s cool that I help women stop drinking ​Lila also shares that she thinks I can seriously up my TikTok and YouTube game, her take on the patriarchy, women getting paid less than men, Taylor Swift, diet culture + a whole lot more. 😊 I hope you enjoy this one. It was pretty special to record with my girl! 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

If you’re taking a break from drinking or quitting alcohol completely, how do you navigate friendships in sobriety that were created on barstools and cemented in boozy book clubs? Most women I know have a lot of fears around how their friendships and social groups might change when they stop drinking. And that makes sense when all your friends drink or your partner is your drinking buddy. Maybe you go on annual trips with a big group of friends where the booze is flowing all weekend or the dinner table is filled with wine bottles when you get together with your girlfriends. Maybe your entire family drinks and holidays are filled with endless toasts and cocktail hours. When you think of stopping drinking it’s normal to wonder what will happen to your friendships and your social life. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Do you feel lonely in your marriage? If you're a high-achieving woman, you're not alone. If you're a high-achieving woman, you're not alone. Many women who are kicking ass at work and home are also lonely and struggling to connect in their marriages. Maybe you're busy, overwhelmed and have gotten into the habit of putting family and work ahead of your own needs. You might feel guilty when you're at work, guilty when you're at home and try to avoid conflict (or intimacy) with your partner because you can't handle one more thing. And it's possible you're pouring yourself a big glass of wine to get through it all. This struggle real, so I joined forces with Veronica Cisneros, a licensed marriage and family therapist, to talk about why high-achieving women have a hard time connecting in their marriages. In our conversation Veronica and I dive into the challenges faced by women who are trying to do it all, relationship patterns that can develop, and how those are amplified when we get into the habit of drinking at the end of the day. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

What should you expect to feel and do and experience in your first year of sobriety? You’ve probably heard that the first 30 days sober are the absolute hardest and that hitting the one year milestone is big and important, but what comes in between? Your first year sober can be a complex, emotional rollercoaster. You'll feel immense pride and joy and also uncertainty and vulnerability. It’s beautiful and hard, tender and transformative. And it can be really helpful to know what to expect in your first year, from people who have been there before you. I asked my friend Lori Massicot, midlife sobriety coach and host of the To 50 And Beyond Podcast, to join me in talking about our own experiences and memories of our first year of sobriety. We dive into what we thought, felt and did between the last day we drank, the big 30, 60 and 90-day sober milestones, how we felt at 6 months alcohol-free and what we did to celebrate hitting one year of sobriety and our first “soberversary” (yes…that’s a thing!) 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

If you’re an introvert it's likely you’ve used alcohol in social situations to ease anxiety, be more outgoing and cope with large gatherings. So what do you do when you stop drinking? Most introverts gain energy from solitude and quiet and enjoy interacting one on one or with smaller groups. Parties and lots of social interactions can feel draining for introverts, and it’s common to use “liquid courage” to feel more at ease in uncomfortable social situations. If you’re an introvert socializing in a world without alcohol it can be challenging to figure out how to attend parties and business functions, spend time with extended family and interact with other parents at sports games without feeling completely drained or socially awkward. So I asked my friend Meredith Hackwith Edwards, host of the podcast Meredith for Real: The Curious Introvert, to share her tips for surviving and thriving as an introvert in a world that can feel made for extroverts. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

What you don’t know about breast cancer and alcohol can hurt you. Most Americans believe that “moderate” drinking (think 1 drink a day for women or 7 drinks a week) is “safe”, and many Americans believe that red wine is good for you. While most people know that you shouldn’t drink and drive or drink while pregnant, a recent study found that only 34% of the general population knew that alcohol is a risk factor for cancer. Compare that to the 78% of Americans who correctly state that smoking tobacco is a risk factor for cancer and the 66% who state that major sun exposure is a cancer risk factor. Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness month I sat down with Stacey Devine, MD, a triple board-certified physician in family, integrative and lifestyle medicine who has worked with many breast cancer survivors in her private practice and understands the impact of their treatments on their physical and emotional health. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

You don’t need to have a drinking problem for alcohol to keep you from breaking through to your best life. Sometimes, without even being aware of it, we’ve allowed alcohol to steal our time and energy, cloud our clarity, fuel self-doubt, reduce motivation and alter our brains and bodies. Our lives have been dulled by booze. I asked Amanda Kuda, author of the book Unbottled Potential: Break Up With Alcohol And Break Through To Your Best Life to talk with me about how alcohol keeps us stuck in “good enough”. Before she stopped drinking Amanda’s life looked really good from the outside. She was young, healthy, single and attractive with a successful career and an active social life. But she describes her life as “a shallow, repetitive merry go round of ladder climbing and elbow rubbing that was sold as “the dream”.” When she stepped back she saw that most of her friendships lacked depth, her romantic life was unfulfilling, she was working for someone else’s dream and her life was devoid of the spiritual connection she craved. What started as a 30 day break from alcohol became a transformational experience as Amanda committed the time, money and energy she had previously spent on partying to her own personal, emotional and spiritual development. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Sober October is the perfect time to take a break from drinking so you can look and feel your best going into the holidays. And I got some of my favorite sobriety podcasters together to talk about all things Sober October and share what helped us most in our first month alcohol-free. Join me, Suzanne Wayre from The Sober Mom Life, Amanda E. White from Therapy For Women, author of Not Drinking Tonight and host of the Recovered-ish Podcast, and Gill Tietz from Sober Powered for the Sober October kick-off you need to jump-start an alcohol-free life. If you’re looking for a fun conversation with helpful advice and a lot of laughs this is the one for you. We’ll give you the tips and tricks you need to rock Sober October but also dive into what therapists do when they don’t believe what you’re saying, what happened in our early attempts to take a 30-day break from alcohol, and the embarrassing stories that probably should not be shared on a podcast. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

“Let’s grab a drink” is a pretty standard invitation for a first date and in my drinking days almost every date with my husband involved a bottle of wine. So when you stop drinking it’s normal to wonder how sober sex, dating and relationships are going to work without alcohol as a social lubricant. The good news is that there are a lot of benefits to dry dating. When you take alcohol out of the equation you can be more present, evaluate if the person you’re with is a good match or if there are red flags you missed when you were drinking, connect with your partner more deeply, remember everything clearly and even have more satisfying sex sober. For resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/180 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

How do you handle an endless number of meetings in a single day and the pressure to constantly do more? Do you feel like you’re always behind, overworked and undervalued? What if you wake up everyday to head into a workplace that feels toxic and untenable but blame yourself for not handling it all with grace and ease? If you’re a high-achieving woman with an ambitious career, the pressures of corporate life can make it easy to buy into the idea that alcohol will help you cope. It's a story that resonates with many of us who have walked the tightrope between success and self-destruction, building a career while also struggling with drinking, thinking about drinking and recovering from drinking. In her book Exit Interview: The Life and Death of My Ambitious Career, my friend Kristi Coulter details her experience working at Amazon.com for 12 years. She writes about the challenge and excitement along with seven-day workweeks, burnout and a culture driven largely by fear. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

What’s the image that comes to mind when you hear the phrase “wine mom”? In popular culture she’s portrayed as a woman with small children, barely getting through the day and reaching for a glass of wine at night to ease the stress of parenthood. Or maybe she’s a soccer mom with a tumbler of wine on the sidelines or escaping the kids for the night at a book club meeting with girlfriends and lots and lots of wine. The idea that being a modern mom means you are “surviving motherhood one glass of wine at a time” is everywhere. As a mother, I know firsthand the immense pressures that come with the territory of parenting. From managing the household to juggling kids' schedules and addressing their emotional needs, the mental load of motherhood can often feel overwhelming. The truth is that moms need support for the physical and emotional labor of parenting, not an unhealthy coping mechanism of downing an addictive substance. 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Self-care is critical for setting you up for success in early sobriety. If you’re like most women who drink to reward yourself at the end of the day you’ve probably been going through life over-scheduling yourself, putting your head down to get through your endless to-do list, feeling like there’s never enough time in the day. You’re likely overwhelmed, overworked and overtired. And if you continue to feel that way you’re going to do what you’ve always done: drink to check out and tolerate your life and your schedule. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/177 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Are you caught in the relentless whirlwind of life, desperately seeking the off-switch for that ever-churning mental engine? In this podcast episode, we're peeling back the layers of burnout with the incredible Dr. Sharon Grossman. Dr. Grossman unveils the root causes and the early signs of burnout: emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and decreased productivity. She guides us through the stress burnout continuum, helping us recognize the signs of burnout and offering strategies to address it before it becomes overwhelming. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/176 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

When I first tried to stop drinking I couldn’t get much more than 4 days alcohol-free, so the idea of 90 days of sobriety seemed impossible. Looking back I now realize that part of why staying sober for 90 days felt so hard was that the first week was miserable and I had no idea what to expect for the next 3 months. So I want you to have the information I didn’t have when I was in the drinking cycle. I asked Courtney Andersen, a Sober Coach, Podcast Host, and Author of Sober Vibes, A Guide To Your First 3 Months Without Alcohol to help me break down exactly what to expect in your first 90 days of sobriety. For full shownotes and access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/175 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Once you’ve gotten a period of time alcohol-free, how do you protect your sobriety and avoid relapse? It’s a question I get all the time from my sober coaching clients and one I have personal experience navigating, both successfully and unsuccessfully. I know from personal experience and from working with hundreds of women in private coaching that coming back to sobriety after a relapse is not easy or guaranteed, so I want to give you the tools to prevent a relapse before it happens and to make it easier to get sober momentum again if you do start drinking. And so I asked Angela Pugh, a master life coach with 15 years working in addiction and recovery as an interventionist and trainer and the host of the Addiction Unlimited Podcast to explore the three stages of relapse: emotional, mental and physical, how to recognize each and how to utilize new coping skills to stay on the alcohol-free path instead of going back to drinking. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/174 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Have you ever wondered why you drink what you drink? Why is red wine best paired with steak and white wine the right choice in warm weather? Why is champagne the appropriate choice for weddings and beer is best for a ballgame? What does it mean about you if you order a cosmopolitan vs. a gin and tonic at a bar and why are there entire articles written about what a woman’s drink says about her? So many of our cultural beliefs about alcohol have been driven by the alcohol industry. Alcohol companies target women to affect our beliefs and choices through sophisticated marketing, influencer campaigns and precise social media placements. The wine, beer and spirits industry spends big bucks and a lot of time and energy to understand, reach and influence what we drink, how often we drink and our preferences for different types of alcohol. Companies pay for focus groups, influencer placements and brand sponsorships to drive our beliefs about what drinking does for us (and what it means about us) so that we will increase our consumption of a highly addictive substance. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/173 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Are you trying to do it all and losing yourself in the process? I know what that’s like. When I was drinking I was completely overwhelmed by my schedule and responsibilities and saw drinking as my one reward. I felt like I was barely holding it together each day with the demands of my career and my family, paying the bills and the mortgage, trying to maintain friendships and a strong marriage, along with the doctor’s appointments, camp schedules, figuring out what’s for dinner and all the rest. If your life feels like mine did, it’s no wonder we reach for the bottle of wine to try to smooth out the edges at the end of the day. Once I put down the wine glass I was able to finally see clearly that my love affair with drinking was making me more anxious and less able to manage my responsibilities. So today I want to give you the tools (and the permission) to stop doing all the things and start doing the right things. My guest is Melissa Leon, a mom who climbed the corporate ladder with three young kids and was drinking too much to escape it all, until she decided to stop. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/172 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Here’s something that I get asked about often but don’t talk about much: why I don’t use the term “alcoholic” to describe myself or anyone else. It’s funny because as a sober coach, the host of a popular sobriety podcast and a person who has been immersed in the world of addiction and recovery for the last 10 years, I should be the poster girl for being comfortable using the terms alcoholic and alcoholism. I have spent hundreds of hours talking about women and drinking, alcohol and our society, addiction and different paths to recovery. I’ve attended sober retreats, recovery conferences, Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and have participated in all kinds of online groups and in person gatherings of people going alcohol-free. I also have many friends in the recovery space who use the term alcoholic to describe themselves proudly. To access full show notes and resources mentioned in this episode, head over www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/171 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Sobriety can be a serious subject but it doesn’t always have to be. And I love to find real people talking about their drinking and sober journey with humor and honesty. One of my favorite podcasts to listen to to get a dose of relatable, engaging and seriously funny discussions of life on the sober side is Seltzer Squad with Kate Zander and her and former co-host Jes. So I invited Kate Zander from Seltzer Squad to have a real conversation about getting sober in the city and what happens once you decide to move off the barstool. If you’re looking for an engaging, relatable and funny conversation about sobriety this one’s for you. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/170 Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

How do you know if your relationship with alcohol falls into the category of being a “gray area drinker”? That muddy space existing between the two extremes of being able to ‘take or leave’ alcohol and becoming increasingly dependent on it in a problematic way? Before Gray Area Drinking was even a term I spent years debating if I was just a “red wine girl” who drank socially like most of my friends or if I had a serious problem with alcohol that I needed to control. It was a confusing place to be because not only did I love to drink but I also had a successful career, a happy family, friends who drank with me, no significant negative consequences from my drinking and no one telling me I should stop drinking. Many women find themselves in this ambiguous space where the line between social drinking and dependency becomes blurry. So if you’re unsure if your relationship with alcohol is healthy or problematic, or if you’re wondering if your drinking falls into the gray area, this episode is for you. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/169 Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Are you ready for an awesome Dry July and incredible sober summer? I’m betting you probably have a ton of drinking memories, rituals and events tied to the summer season. I know I did. It might be beer at ballgames or camping, drinks out on a boat or hanging out at BBQs with friends. Maybe you love dive bars on road trips or European vacations with the wine flowing. But right now I’m going to help you do something new, energizing and exciting: you’re going to rock Dry July and experience an amazing sober summer! To help you get started I’m sharing my best sober coaching tips, tricks and resources to help you navigate the summer season alcohol-free For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/168 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson Find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

What is Post-Acute Withdrawal Syndrome from alcohol and why is it important for you to understand it if you’re quitting drinking? PAWS or Post-Acute Withdrawal Syndrome, refers to a series of symptoms that can arise after quitting alcohol and after you successfully navigate your first few weeks of sobriety. Think of it as a secondary phase of withdrawal from alcohol, which can hit a few weeks or months into recovery, or even further along. There’s a lot of misinformation out there in the sober community about what exactly Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome is, when it happens, how long it takes for PAWS to go away, what are the symptoms you might experience or how do you know if you have PAWS. So today we’re going to clear that all up. Gillian Tietz, the sober scientist behind the Sober Powered podcast is here to help me unravel the mystery of PAWS. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/167 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Did you know some of the most common questions googled in early sobriety are related to how to improve your energy and mood and manage fatigue and irritability? It’s true. Here’s a sample of what people are asking as they stop drinking… How do you get energy in recovery? How can I be happy in sobriety? Why am I so tired now that I'm sober? Is it normal to feel depressed in early sobriety? How do you deal with anxiety in early sobriety? What are the hardest weeks of sobriety? Does giving up alcohol make you tired? What happens in the first few weeks of sobriety? Early sobriety fatigue and irritability are real. But there are ways to help your body heal through nutrition for recovery. Changing what you eat can improve your mood, give you more energy and help you feel better, more quickly when you stop drinking. I asked Dr. Brooke Scheller, a nationally recognized health expert and founder of Functional Sobriety, to share the principles of nutrition for recovery and how simple changes in what you eat can improve your mood, give you more energy and help your body heal more quickly when you stop drinking. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/166 3 Ways I Can Support You In Drinking Less + Living More Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

If you're ready to take control of your relationship with alcohol and embrace positive change, exploring a motivational psychology approach can be a game-changer. Motivational psychology can help you change your drinking habits by giving you a framework to understand the driving forces behind your drinking behavior, overcome challenges, and cultivate a positive mindset. Changing your relationship with alcohol is hard for so many reasons. You’re breaking long-standing habits, social rituals, go-to coping mechanisms and navigating daily cravings and temptations. But by identifying your causes of stress, self-doubt and negative thought patterns, you get to overcome them and stay committed to your goals to live a healthier and happier life. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/165 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Are you wondering why you should rethink your drinking, even if you're not "that bad"? Maybe you're sober curious or concerned about your relationship with alcohol, even if you don't consider yourself to have a "serious problem." Perhaps you find yourself in the "gray area" of drinking, where your consumption doesn't appear problematic to others, and you haven't faced external consequences, but deep down, you know it's holding you back and keeping you stuck. Or maybe you're simply tired of those dreaded hangovers, 3 am wake-ups, or not remembering the end of some nights. If you're contemplating whether an alcohol-free lifestyle could be better than your current situation, this episode is perfect for you. Today, I’m chatting with special guests Sharon Hartley and Ben Anderson, the hosts of the Over The Influence alcohol-free podcast. Sharon and Ben both live alcohol-free and enthusiastically advocate for the joys of sobriety because giving up alcohol has completely transformed their lives. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/164

If you are very lucky you’ll connect with someone further along in sobriety who takes the time to show you the way. For me that person was Dawn Nickel, the founder of She Recovers, long before it had grown into the powerful recovery movement it is today. Ten years ago, when I was 20 days alcohol-free for the first time, I shared in a group that I was nervous about going to Victoria BC for a long weekend with my husband and 5 year old son. I couldn’t imagine going out to dinner and being on vacation and not drinking. Dawn saw my post and reached out to me. She invited me to coffee in Victoria, picked me up at my hotel and took me to a beautiful beach to talk. Since that day she’s been a touchstone on my alcohol-free journey. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/163 How I can help you drink less + live more Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Are you craving sugar in early sobriety? If you are, you’re not alone. When I first stopped drinking I kept Peanut M&Ms in my bag so I could grab them if I really wanted to drink. It’s normal to crave sugar in early sobriety for the simple reason that alcohol contains a lot of sugar. Your body has gotten used to the regular influx of sugar from drinking. There are a lot of (very real) reasons your body is seeking sugar when you remove alcohol. Hunger is a huge trigger to drink and going on a diet or health kick at the same time that you’re quitting drinking is the most common way women self-sabotage their efforts to be alcohol-free. So I asked an expert to help me break down both why we crave sugar in early sobriety and how to optimize nutrition when you quit drinking alcohol to help boost your mood and energy. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/162 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

If you’re sober curious, worried about your drinking or want to take a break from alcohol this episode is for you. I’m going to share my story of drinking, why I stopped drinking when I turned 40 years old and what my life has been like since I went alcohol-free seven years ago. For years quitting drinking was my absolute worst-case scenario and it’s turned out to be the best decision of my life. Your life doesn’t end when you stop drinking. It’s actually the start of a beautiful new beginning. If you're curious about my journey and how I made the decision to quit, tune in to this episode. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/161 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

In this episode, we explore the topic of how to identify your personal core values and use them to reinforce your decision to live an alcohol-free life in a positive and meaningful way that sustains your sobriety over the long-term. Core values are fundamental beliefs that can guide our behavior and decision-making in life. They serve as a compass, giving us direction and helping us to prioritize what is truly important and meaningful in our lives. Once you know your own personal core values you can use them to evaluate how you’re spending your time, money and energy as well as using them to make decisions. For example, you can ask yourself “Does this move, job, habit, behavior, connection or decision bring me closer to my values or take me further away?” Identifying your core values is important personal development work to do when you decide to stop drinking. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/160 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with me for free sober coaching tips, updates + videos on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok @hellosomedaysober. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

When you’re ready to stop drinking it’s important to learn not only how to quit alcohol but also how to sustain an alcohol-free lifestyle over the long term. Because many of us drink to relieve feelings of discomfort, social anxiety or self-consciousness, the work to quit alcohol requires understanding the uncomfortable feelings that drive us to seek self-soothing through alcohol. Because drinking helps to numb emotions it’s often what we want, but it’s not what we need. If you’re ready to quit alcohol, understand the psychological and emotional factors that drive you to drink and develop healthy coping strategies to live a more peaceful and meaningful life, this episode is for you. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/159 Ready to drink less + live more? Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

When you stop drinking, recovering from drinking and thinking about drinking you might find yourself with an unsettling amount of spare time in your (usually) busy schedule. This is the perfect time to create new healthy habits to support your recovery. Today Sober Coach Casey McGuire Davidson and Yoga Teacher and Sobriety Podcast Host Ash Butterss share 6 healthy habits that will strengthen your recovery, help you process your emotions and navigate life without alcohol, improve your physical and mental health and reduce the risk of relapse. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/158 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Save your seat in my FREE MASTERCLASS, 5 Secrets To Successfully Take a Break From Drinking Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Parenting young children can be wonderful, fulfilling, frustrating and exhausting. People will tell you “the days are long but the years are short”, but when you’ve got a toddler melting down at the end of the day it’s easy to want to escape by opening a bottle of wine. Wine mom culture exists because being a mom is hard. For a lot of us pouring a big glass of wine is the “easy button” to numb out from overwhelming situations and responsibilities. I got into the habit of drinking to reward myself for getting through the day, to transition from work to home and to shut down once the kids go to bed before doing it all again. But since alcohol is easy to get, highly addictive and embedded in our culture it’s not difficult for a glass of wine to turn into a bottle. Parenting is hard, but alcohol isn’t the answer. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/157 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

If you've ever wondered whether alcohol helps you sleep, why you wake up in the middle of the night after drinking or how much alcohol messes up your sleep, this episode is for you. Some people believe that drinking helps them go to sleep. Since alcohol is a central nervous system depressant, it causes brain activity to slow down which can feel relaxing. But while alcohol may make you feel sleepy initially, it wreaks havoc on your sleep for the rest of the night. Drinking decreases the amount of time spent in deep sleep, which is the most restorative phase of the sleep cycle, and increases the frequency of awakenings during the night. Alcohol can also exacerbate or cause sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea, and interfere with the body's natural production of hormones and neurotransmitters that regulate sleep and wakefulness. If you drink nightly or even drink just a few nights a week, you probably have not had a good night of sleep in years. For full show notes and resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/156 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Get the guide on how to join my favorite Sober Facebook Group for women quitting drinking, The Booze Free Brigade (BFB). Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

10 years ago, when I was first questioning my relationship with alcohol and trying to stop drinking, I discovered The Bubble Hour Sobriety Podcast. On The Bubble Hour I heard real people, telling real stories about addiction and recovery. When I was first trying to get a handle on my nightly bottle of wine drinking habit, I didn’t know a single person who was sober. All of my friends drank, my husband drank, and I had so many fears about what people would think if I stopped drinking, what my life would be like and how I would relax, socialize and celebrate without alcohol. On The Bubble Hour sobriety podcast I found hope in the stories of women like me. Over the last 10 years the Bubble Hour released over 300 episodes about addiction and recovery from drinking and was downloaded 4.2 million times. And today my guest is the host of The Bubble Hour Podcast, Jean McCarthy. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/155 Ready to drink less + live more? Join The Sobriety Starter Kit, the only sober coaching course designed specifically for busy women. My proven, step-by-step sober coaching program will teach you exactly how to stop drinking — and how to make it the best decision of your life. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free. Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Why do so many self-described perfectionists, bright, ambitious and hardworking women, feel like something is wrong with them? Why are women taught that perfectionism is a flaw to be managed? Why are perfectionists so hard on themselves? And how can ambitious achievers, striving towards the ideal, find peace and self-compassion while continuing to embrace their perfectionism? I wanted to dive into all these questions with my guest today, Katherine Morgan Schafler, because I both identify as a perfectionist and work with a lot of perfectionists: high-achieving, successful women who use alcohol as a way to disconnect from the anxiety and overwhelm of their lives. Katherine’s a psychotherapist, speaker, author of The Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control and former on-site therapist at Google who has worked with legions of self-described perfectionists. In this episode, we dive into all things women and perfectionism. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/154 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Let’s dive into a hotly debated topic: Is moderate drinking good for your health? If you google this question you’ll likely find articles with titles like “surprising ways alcohol is good for you” with outdated information based on flawed studies that imply there are both health benefits and risks to drinking, or that it’s an open question if moderate drinking is good for your health. Here’s the truth: there are no health benefits to drinking and it’s not an open question if moderate drinking is good for your health. In this episode, we'll explore the research on moderate drinking and its health risks, the science behind these risks and why they are often overlooked or misunderstood by the general public. If you're currently trying to quit drinking or are considering making a change, this episode will provide you with valuable insights and information to help you make an informed decision about your health and wellness. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/153 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

If you've ever talked with a doctor about trouble sleeping, you may have been prescribed Ambien, one of the most popular insomnia medications. But most people prescribed Ambien are not aware of the addiction risk that comes with long-term use. In this powerful episode, we dive into Laura Cathcart Robbins' moving memoir, Stash, in which Laura shares her personal story of addiction to Ambien and alcohol and the lengths she went to in order to hide it from those around her, from stockpiling pills to meticulously scheduling withdrawals between PTA meetings, baby showers and tennis matches. For full shownotes and access to resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/152 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Getting through sobriety can be one of the most difficult and rewarding experiences of your life and Laura McKowen, founder of The Luckiest Club, an international sobriety support community and best-selling author of We Are The Luckiest, The Surprising Magic Of A Sober Life is here to help us through the process. In Laura’s new book, Push Off From Here - The 9 Essential Truths To Get You Through Sobriety she shares how to get through sobriety in a modern exploration of addiction, sharing practical advice for achieving sobriety and living a fulfilling life in recovery. Laura will help you see the drinking culture we live in, and why so many of us struggle with drinking “responsibly”, in a new light. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/151 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Are you ready to have an amazing sober vacation? Here are the 10 tips you need to do to plan your next alcohol-free trip and enjoy sober travel, even if you’ve never done it before. I know it’s possible that every trip you’ve taken since college has featured cocktails on the beach, wine tasting tours or boozy pubs, but I promise you that you’re going to love sober travel. I asked Margaret Ward, owner of Alcohol Free Adventure Retreats, an alcohol free travel company for women to join me to share our tips and strategies that will help you plan and enjoy sober vacations, survive airports, business trips and visits with the in-laws without diving into a bottle of wine. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/150 Ready to drink less + live more? Get my step-by-step sober coaching framework in The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course, designed for busy women. The Sobriety Starter Kit will give you a new approach and help you change your relationship with alcohol in a positive and empowering way. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab my Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Mother’s feel that they’re not doing enough in the workplace when they leave the office to pick up the kids from childcare, when they try to get to a sports game, or when they have to block off time for a child’s dentist or doctor appointment. And mother’s feel guilty that they’re not spending “enough” time with their children. Or volunteering at school. Or going on field trips. Or making homemade cookies. Or whatever else the perfect Pinterest mom would do. It’s no wonder we drink. It’s often the only reminder of a time before kids, when life was less stressful and busy, that we can tap into while multitasking at home, or while working at night, or while playing Candyland or Legos. The problem is that working women think that drinking helps them cope with life, but it actually makes work and motherhood harder. Drinking doesn’t help working moms cope with life. We don’t need wine. We need flexibility as to when they arrive at the office, help from partners for the morning routine with kids, a supportive boss that encourages them to attend their child’s events, and a team atmosphere where colleagues can take up some of the workload at critical times. It’s easy to get into the habit of drinking as a working mom. I drank a bottle of wine, most nights of the week, for years as I climbed the corporate ladder. And so did my guest today, Heather Lowe. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/149 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

“Maybe you should reevaluate your relationship with alcohol”. That’s what my mother said to me when I was 23 after I told her I had spent a very long night on my bathroom floor throwing up bile. She might have said it again when I was 25 and jumped off the stage at my sister’s wedding, tripped and slid across the dance floor on my knees in my maid of honor dress. And possibly for a third time when I shared that I had thrown up (on myself) in a taxi on a business trip at the age of 29. Oh, and a business colleague of mine was also in the cab..at 8am...on a Wednesday. Mom was right. I definitely needed to examine my relationship with alcohol. But at the time there wasn't a framework to do that if your relationship with alcohol was problematic but you didn’t identify as an “alcoholic” and had no interest in abstinence-based 12-step programs. Luckily, the world has changed a lot in the last 20 years. Amanda E. White, a licensed therapist and the creator of the popular Instagram account @therapyforwomen, is a big part of that change. Amanda developed a resource called Not Drinking Tonight: The Workbook to help therapists, coaches and individuals examine one’s relationship with alcohol by pivoting away from the question “Am I an alcoholic?” and instead consider “Would my life be better without alcohol?” I’m a big fan of Amanda’s work and have interviewed her twice before on The Hello Someday Podcast. In episode #91 we talked about her first book, Not Drinking Tonight: A Guide to Creating a Sober Life You Love, and tools to heal your relationship with alcohol, boundaries, self care, self compassion, and so much more. And in episode 130, we talked about therapy for women and why women seek out therapy for support, the most important factors in determining positive outcomes for therapy, red flags to watch for if a therapist isn't the right fit for you, and why women often are not taught the foundational skills, they need to process difficult emotions. Amanda is here to share how to examine your relationship with alcohol and decide if it’s working for you or if you’re ready to take a break from drinking. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/148 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

How do you navigate life as a sober mom when the alcohol industry has spent millions of marketing dollars to embed the “mommy needs wine” message firmly in our culture? How do you talk to other moms about your decision to take a break from drinking and see what it’s like to be a sober mom? Motherhood without alcohol can feel like a foreign concept for many of us. We’ve been convinced, through advertising, marketing, social media and each other, that drinking is our well earned reward for the hard work of motherhood. It's time to retire the Wine Mom cliché. It's a stereotype that's trite, insulting and minimizes the genuine difficulties of motherhood. It's insulting, trite and actually dangerous. Sober moms are stepping outside the box, modeling healthy coping mechanisms for their kids and prioritizing their own mental and physical health rather than checking out in the evenings with a substance that actually increases anxiety and depression. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/147 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Have you heard of Tommy Rosen and The Recovery 2.0 approach to holistic healing from addiction to alcohol and drugs? If not, you’re in for a treat. Tommy Rosen is the founder of Recovery 2.0 and works to help people build powerful, sustainable lives in which they thrive, not just survive, in sobriety. Anyone can fall victim to addiction, whether it be to alcohol, drugs, food, people, money, sex or technology. Tommy sees addiction as “any behavior you continue to do, despite the fact that it brings negative consequences into your life." During our conversations, Tommy shares his own past struggles with addiction and the powerful insights that helped him to identify and break free from the obstacles that stand in the way of recovery. Tommy truly sees substance-free life and recovery as an upgrade from the way we’re living in the drinking cycle. Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Do you feel stuck? Not just in the drinking cycle, but stuck in your job, your commitments, your role in relationships or habits or patterns that are no longer serving you and yet seem impossible to break. Becky Vollmer, yoga teacher, speaker and author of You Are Not Stuck: How Soul-Guided Choices Transform Fear into Freedom, joined me to help us understand what’s actually holding us back from changing what’s not working in our lives. What if we’re not really stuck? What if we’re actually just scared? What if we feel like we don’t have permission to change? In You Are Not Stuck, Becky argues that when we feel paralyzed by our fears, the answer isn’t just courage—it’s choice. She writes, “Choice starts with acknowledging that the life you’re living does not line up with the life you want … We all have choices, we just need to be brave enough to make them.” Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Holly Whitaker, author of The New York Times best-selling book Quit Like A Woman, The Radical Choice To Not Drink In A Culture Obsessed with Alcohol, was an integral part of my decision to stop drinking and support in early sobriety and her work has helped thousands of women. When I was 60 days sober I signed up for Holly Whitaker’s Hip Sobriety School, an eight-week sober coaching group program with tools, resources and lessons from Holly on “how to quit drinking when you think you can’t”. And when Holly’s book, Quit Like A Woman, was released a few years later I read it and how the book made her story, tools, research and holistic approach to sobriety available to a wider audience. The book has been described as a groundbreaking look at drinking culture and a road map to cutting out alcohol in order to live our best lives without the crutch of intoxication that will change the way you look at drinking forever. I was honored to have Holly come on The Hello Someday Podcast to talk about her book, Quit Like A Woman, The Radical Choice To Not Drink In A Culture Obsessed with Alcohol, the early days of Hip Sobriety School and how much the recovery movement has shifted in the last 10 years. Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

If you’ve evaluating your relationship with alcohol and looking for support as you stop drinking there are many paths to sobriety and sources of support for an alcohol-free life. The most important thing you can do as you stop drinking is to find the approach, tools and resources that are the right fit for you. For decades Alcoholics Anonymous, founded in 1935 as a mutual aid fellowship for abstinence-based recovery through its spiritually-inclined Twelve Step program, was the best-known program recommended to people who struggle with alcohol use disorder. Popular culture rarely depicts other paths to sobriety in TV and movies, but there are many programs and approaches that have successfully helped people stop drinking that are alternatives to the AA twelve-step addiction recovery model, including Women For Sobriety, SMART Recovery, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, sober coaching and online courses, programs and communities. In this episode, I’ve teamed up with Gill Tietz from the Sober Powered Podcast, Dave Wilson, host of the One For the Road Podcast, and Eric Zimmer, host of The One You Feed Podcast to talk about our different paths to sobriety and the support we chose to stop drinking and navigate life happily alcohol-free. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/143 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

How many times have you told yourself that you were going to stop drinking? I did it hundreds of times. Sometimes I’d rationalize drinking again that very night, but often I’d go 4 days, a week or even 2 weeks alcohol-free before I’d decide that I deserved “just a glass” on a Friday night. Stopping drinking is hard, but making sobriety stick is also difficult. You might have decided to stop drinking because of a particularly brutal hangover, an embarrassing night or a slow decline into feeling worse and worse due to your alcohol consumption. Initially, the reason you want to remove alcohol in your life is clear and present, which keeps your willpower strong and motivation high. But how do you stay on the alcohol-free path when you get bogged down in the day-to-day realities and responsibilities of life and alcohol is your go-to coping mechanism? The easiest way to make sobriety stick is to create a vision board. I created my first vision board in early sobriety and it helped me stay centered on the reasons I wanted to be alcohol-free long after my initial motivation and willpower faded. Today on the podcast I’m sharing why vision boards are a powerful tool in sobriety and how to create one that will support you in staying on the alcohol-free path. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Finding your identity in sobriety can be scary for many women when they stop drinking. For years I described myself as a “red wine girl” and drinking was essentially my favorite hobby. I surrounded myself with other people who loved to drink so my social life, activities, favorite places, traditions and relationships were deeply intertwined with alcohol. When I stopped drinking I didn’t know what I enjoyed without drinking. Maz Compton, host of the Last Drinks podcast and I are here to dig into how to find your identity in sobriety. Maz knew she had a problem with alcohol when she couldn’t stop saying yes to it, despite having a high-powered career and success in all the externally visible areas of her life. Once she stopped drinking Maz had to figure out who she was, her interests and identity without alcohol. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned in this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/141 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

Highly Sensitive People may turn to alcohol as a tool to numb overwhelming situations or as a coping mechanism to dull strong emotions. Alcohol has been described as a “mute button” for highly sensitive people in a world that is often too loud. It’s estimated that 15 to 20 percent of the population are HSPs and 1 to 2% of the population are true empaths. An empath is a person who is highly sensitive to the feelings and emotions of those around them and may absorb those feelings as their own. I asked Nikki Eisenhauer, an International Life Coach and Psychotherapist, Licensed Professional Counselor, Yoga and Meditation Teacher and the host of the wildly popular podcast, Emotional Badass, to share how to navigate the world as a highly sensitive person or empath without turning to alcohol. For full show notes and to access resources mentioned in the episode, head to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/140 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com

How can couples heal and recover from infidelity once trust in an intimate relationship has been shattered by an affair? The first step, after the sexual acting out has stopped, is to understand and treat the betrayal trauma. In addition to learning about and coping with infidelity, an affair, sexual acting out, pornography use or sex addiction itself, the partner who has discovered infidelity is also suffering from betrayal trauma that is often not appreciated or fully understood. Betrayal trauma is a form of trauma experienced when there is a loss of trust between spouses or those in committed relationships due to physical adultery, an emotional affair, sex or porn addiction or other sexual behavior outside the relationship and can result in PTSD symptoms in the betrayed partner. Marnie Breecker and Duane Osterlind, Marriage and Family Therapists and Certified Sex Addiction Therapists, are here to share how to help couples heal and recover from infidelity, sex addiction, emotional affairs and betrayal trauma. For full shownotes and to access resources mentioned i this episode, head over to www.hellosomedaycoaching.com/139 Ready to drink less + live more? If you’re ready to change your relationship with alcohol join The Sobriety Starter Kit. It's my signature sober coaching course for busy women to help you drink less + live more. To enroll go to www.sobrietystarterkit.com. Grab the Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking, 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free Connect with Casey McGuire Davidson To find out more about Casey and her coaching programs, head over to her website, www.hellosomedaycoaching.com