Dopamine and Alcohol: What to know when you’re taking a break.
Dopamine is a key neurotransmitter tied to mood and motivation… and drinking alcohol deeply disrupts the balance of this hormone in your brain. 🧠
If you’re taking a break from booze, you may experience a bit of a “lull” while your body rebalances and resets to its normal baseline…
Burnout and Alcohol: The Sober Edge
This is such a great discussion! Many thanks to my friend and colleague Teri Patterson for having me on her pod. ♥️
We cover a lot of ground in this episode, including:
➡️ Alcohol is not only socially accepted, but it’s *expected* — stepping out of those expectations is a rebellious act.
➡️ Using alcohol to cope with stress and overwhelm is keeping us stuck — and learning to turn and face our lives can fast-track burnout recovery.
➡️ Unhooking from booze gives us renewed access to hope & inspiration — reconnecting us with our intuition and inner trust.
➡️ For all the “A students” out there excelling in the workplace — boundaries and a connection with inner limits is key to avoiding burnout.
➡️ How to use micro-moments of rest to start moving towards a place of healing without adding to the overwhelm.
➡️ SO much more!
What does it feel like at 2 years alcohol-free?
If you tried to tell me two years ago that I’d be living a fulfilled and joyful life *without* cocktails or wine… I flat out would NOT have believed you.
Back then, I was a daily drinker and taking even just a single day off made me feel like I was missing out. 🎟️ An evening without wine was a ticket to bummer town.
When I started all of this, I just wanted to take a break. Give my liver a rest. ⛑️ Maybe pick up a few new tools for self care. But then…
What does drinking have to do with how we see the world?
This is a game-changer, folks. 🙌 Not an easy switch to flip, but one that leads directly down a path towards happiness & peace.
Our definitions of ourselves and others can be complex and, honestly, somewhat *habitual* 👉 Meaning: they become fixed. set. expected. “knee-jerk”
BUT. Here’s the kicker:
Why does it feel like I’m one person in the morning, but a DIFFERENT PERSON by happy hour?
This is a real question from one of my clients:
“When it comes to drinking: Why does it feel like I’m one person in the morning, but a DIFFERENT PERSON by the time happy hour rolls around?”
This is a common sentiment among my clients, and something I experienced *myself*...
Spoiler alert: The answer has *nothing* to do with self-control! 🙌
Buck the Stigma! It’s just nonsense, anyway.
It means *so much* to me to get this feedback from my wonderful client, Linda. 🥰
Bucking the STIGMA out there that causes so many of us to feel shame is my #1 REASON for becoming a coach! It’s why I’m out here, shouting my story from the rooftops. 🙌
Because stigma & shame held me back for years… and that narrative is TOTAL. NONSENSE.
You’re not starting from scratch. You’re starting from experience.
If you’re tired of trying and *failing* to cut back on your drinking, please know: 💗 You are not alone.
Drinking alcohol isn’t like other habits or hobbies… the chemical-chain-reaction from booze actually hacks into your body’s natural survival system! It messes with your hard-wiring. 🧠
If you’ve tried to cut back, take a break, or even quit…
Do you have a drinking problem? NO! You just have a THINKING problem…
You don’t have a DRINKING PROBLEM. 👉 You have a THINKING PROBLEM.
Our thoughts & beliefs about alcohol keep us stuck drinking more than we want to... So, if you try to change your behavior and take a break from booze without first adjusting your mindset... this is what lands you in the realm of deprivation and FOMO.
THE GOOD NEWS? 👉 You can rewire those thoughts & beliefs! By harnessing the power of mindfulness and “neuroplasticity”...
Opinions & FAQs
When it comes to re-evaluating our drinking, there’s a common concern that echoes time and time again: “What will people think!?”
In this article, I share a great resource on the subject, and invite your questions on alcohol, habit change, burnout prevention and recovery, finding inspiration & purpose, and beyond! There’s so much we can learn from one another.
My So-called Sobriety
Growing up in the 80’s & 90’s was wild.
Sandwiched in-between The Muppets and MTV… my formative years were defined by radical weirdness… and media.
As a nerdy kid in a small town, TV was my steadfast companion. Looking back, I’m both *grateful* for the exposure to the wonderful weirdness of a world greater than my own… and also *saddened* by …