Midlife AF Podcast

Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 20: Preparation Is Everything -Sober October, No Drama My motto: change happens in an instant, but preparation can take a little time - and it is so worth taking that time. That is what made all the difference for me. Over these past 20 tips I have given you a lot of my resources - and all of them will also be available for free inside the Reset, which starts tonight. This whole series has been about getting properly prepared for a really successful Sober October. You can come along whether you are still drinking or not. It does not matter. This is not about not drinking. It is about preparing. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 19: Conditions Are Never Perfect - Do It Anyway -Sober October, No Drama Nobel Prize-winning author Doris Lessing once wrote: "Whatever you're meant to do, do it now. The conditions are always impossible." This is exactly what I want to say to you today. Your brain is going to look for every reason to keep you doing the same thing you have always done. Biologically, evolutionarily, your brain and body are wired to believe that change is unsafe. Back in caveman days its whole job was to preserve energy - and change requires energy. So your brain will always look for reasons to stay the same. Even if staying the same is making you really unhappy, it will still choose that, because it feels safer to stick with what it knows than to risk something different. There is no "right time." Waiting for the perfect moment, flawless resources, or total readiness is a trap Life is inherently messy and circumstances will never perfectly align The very act of starting often alters the impossible conditions into something manageable Conditions are never perfect. Do it anyway. There are so many reasons your brain will try to tell you it is the wrong time. That you cannot do it. That it is not for you. Do not believe it. Changing my relationship with alcohol is the best thing I have ever done in my whole life. This episode is part ofSober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free preparation tools below will help you start despite the chaos, not wait for the conditions to be perfect. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sobr October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 18: What Was Alcohol Keeping You Safe From Experiencing? -Sobr October, No Drama I want you to really listen to this one. Instead of beating yourself up after you have drunk more than you wanted to - focus on the data. Stop being so judgemental. Judgement puts us into a state of dysregulation, and dysregulation makes us much more likely to drink. In my programs we work on data, not blame. We work on growth mindset, not self-attack. It is always: what did I not yet know how to do? The question to ask yourself every single time this happens during your preparation week: What was alcohol keeping me safe from experiencing? For many of us there is a harsh inner critic constantly telling us everything we did wrong and catastrophising everything that is about to happen. Often, drinking is trying to make that voice stop. Often it is trying to keep us pushing through when we are exhausted - or trying to help us relax because we genuinely do not know how to do that without it. For so many women it is exhaustion. Burnout. Needing to stop. We have been culturally conditioned to push through our nervous system and judge ourselves the moment our capacity is not where we think it should be. Alcohol stops us from experiencing ourselves as less than capable. It gives us permission to stop - because we do not know how to give that permission to ourselves. For me it was different again - alcohol let me stay in the room with my family and actually engage when all I wanted was time alone. My brain had been conditioned to believe wanting that time alone was selfish. It let me focus on their needs when everything in me wanted to focus on what I needed to get done. There are a million versions of this question. What is it helping you avoid experiencing? Once you understand what alcohol has been keeping you safe from - you can start to explore what you actually need instead. This episode is part ofSobr October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are perfect for asking yourself exactly this question - without judgement, with curiosity. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 17: The Thing That Changes Everything - Get Support -Sober October, No Drama I asked my membership group what their top tips were for a really greatSober October - one that actually feels good. And every single one of them said the same thing. Community. Getting support. Not doing it alone. I remember what a big deal it felt like to make the decision to spend money on a group program. But it changed everything for me. Because when you are in community: You stay accountable You no longer think it is a you problem You begin to understand that alcohol is an addictive substance to anybody given the right set of circumstances You stop believing it is a personal moral failure - something you just need to try harder at or have more willpower for You realise we are all the same, all navigating the same stuff And everything changes. Whether it is my program or somebody else's - free or paid - I cannot recommend finding support and community in this journey highly enough. It is one of the biggest indicators of how successful your change will be and how long lasting it will be. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. If you would like to test out my community, the FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset is the perfect place to start - a judgement-free space to experience what it feels like to be supported in this journey. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 16: You Are Where You Put Your Attention -Sober October, No Drama You are where you put your attention. So put your attention in the right places. Preparation is everything. You can absolutely go into denial and drink as much as you can before 1 October hits and then go "right, that's it" - but while you do that, start immersing yourself in the culture too. Read some of the books. My favourites, in order of preference: Quit Like a Woman by Holly Whitaker We Are the Luckiest by Laura McKowen This Naked Mind by Annie Grace Follow podcasts like mine - MidlifeAF - or I also love Sober Awkward, Present and Sober Podcast, and How I Quit Alcohol. Follow social media people who are on the sober curious journey. Surround yourself with information from people who have walked this path before you - and have learnt the things that will help you get where you want to go. Wherever that is. You can hear all 30 of these daily tips throughout September on my MidlifeAF Podcast Mini Series - wherever you get your podcasts. This episode is part ofSober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 15: Be Your Own Personal Assistant - Plan Ahead -Sober October, No Drama This is a practical one - and it is more important than it sounds. Having a plan makes your brain and body feel safe. It creates certainty. It removes the daily decision-making that drains your willpower before the evening even starts. So in the lead up to Sober October - whether you are doing the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment with me, someone else's program, or going it alone - schedule the time you want to dedicate to this and build the rest of your world around it. That might look like: Blocking out time for a breathwork practice Scheduling your journaling prompts Getting your group coaching calls in the diary Protecting the time before it gets filled with everything else Your brain loves to know what is coming. When it does, it stops scanning for threats - and that is when real change becomes possible. Be the personal assistant your future self deserves. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My North Star Visualisation is perfect for getting your brain on board with what is coming - it stops the panic before it starts. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 14: Treat Yourself Like a Sick Child -Sober October, No Drama When you are taking a break from alcohol, prepare your evenings like you would for a child who is sick and needs looking after. Your evening preparation list: Get some lovely new pyjamas Make sure you have clean sheets and a bedroom that feels nice to come home to When you get in - shower, bath, clean your teeth Get into your cosiest clothes Make yourself a lovely cup of something warm Get into bed as soon as possible I know what you are thinking. But I am an adult. I deserve to stay up late. I should be able to sit on the couch with a glass of wine like a grown up. Here is the thing - a lot of people drink in the evening because otherwise it doesn't feel like they have given themselves permission to stop. To rest. To be done for the day. Being an adult is also about knowing how to take care of yourself. And treating yourself like a sick child - with gentleness, with warmth, with a really good bedtime routine - is one of the most radical things you can do for your nervous system when you are taking a break from alcohol. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Grounding Audio is perfect for that wind-down moment when you would normally reach for a drink - it gives your nervous system exactly what it is actually looking for. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 13: If You Have to Drink to Enjoy It - You Probably Don't -Sober October, No Drama If you have to drink to do something or enjoy something - you probably don't actually enjoy it. It was only when I took a break from drinking for a year that I realised half the things I was doing in my life I didn't actually enjoy. There was something about them that wasn't really working for me - and alcohol was the thing that made them bearable. My rule of thumb: if I have to drink, it's usually because: I don't like doing the thing I don't like the people involved There is something about myself I don't feel confident enough to show up as I am too tired to be present This is fawning. This is people pleasing. And alcohol is the biggest mask of them all. Because it allows us to do things we don't really want to do - while appearing to be having the time of our lives. Unfortunately it often takes having a break to realise this. And one of the hardest things for people taking a break is: Advocating for themselves Saying no Taking up space Asking to be considered Risking the disapproval of others This can feel very unsafe to our nervous system - and honestly it is the biggest reason people don't get through a month's break. So here is the question worth sitting with: Look at all the things you feel you can't cope with without a drink. Start asking - what would it be like to do them without drinking? What would be hard? More often than not we have to make some changes to our lives to allow us to take a break - and it is worth working out what those changes might be before you start. This episode is part ofSober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free watch-on-demand masterclass talks about exactly this - and will help you work out what needs to shift before your break begins. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 12: Get Out of Struggle Speak and Into Choice - Sober October, No Drama If you think it's going to be hard, it will be. That's cognitive bias. You know that feeling when you wake up in a bad mood and everything goes to sh*t? People do the same thing with taking a break from alcohol - and it makes everything so much harder. Struggle language keeps you in willpower. Choice language gets you out. It's not "I can't drink." It's "I don't want to right now." It's not "I'm battling this." It's "I'm choosing to explore what I really need when I reach for a wine." It's not stepping into the sludge of trying. It's the clean step of choosing. Think about the difference between these two experiences: When you are lost in something and time disappears - that is flow When you are pushing against something with every ounce of energy you have - that is resistance Flow is connected to presence. Resistance lives in the past or the future. Here's what most people don't know: a craving or a trigger is actually your body desperately trying to ground itself - to come back to the present moment. Struggle language takes you further away from that. Presence brings you home. This is exactly why as part of the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment this year we are running a present moment awareness breathwork practice alongside the program - to support everyone in learning how to live in presence rather than resistance. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Grounding Audio is your first step out of struggle and into presence - and it will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 11: You Are Not the Problem - But You Are the Solution - Sober October, No Drama Our culture convinces us from the minute we are born that we are the problem. This is perpetuated by: Everything we see on TV All the stories from AA Families having interventions Our culture's concept of discipline The idea that drinking more than we would like is a sign of weak character - a lack of willpower But the neuroscience shows that is absolutely not true. Alcohol is an addictive substance to anybody who drinks it long enough and often enough. And the amount you have to drink for it to start working in a way that makes you want it even when you prefer not to have it - is actually a very low quantity. The main reason people start drinking more than they want has nothing to do with that. It is because they start associating the relief from discomfort - the relief from emotional or physical pain - with alcohol. The big alcohol companies have done a very good job of convincing us that the problem lies with the person. Their "drink responsibly" campaign runs everywhere and continues to convince people that alcohol is a people problem - not a substance problem, coupled with a cultural and societal problem. Anybody who works in psychology will tell you: a problematic behaviour is always the symptom of the problem - not the problem itself. And this is true when we drink more than we would like. The longer we stay stuck in the cycle of self-recrimination and self-flagellation, the longer we stay stuck drinking more than we want: It stops us being able to look at the data It causes our nervous system to become dysregulated We are attacking ourselves from the inside We cannot make good decisions from that place The thing that changes everything is when we stop blaming ourselves and start looking at the data. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are the perfect tool for starting to look at that data without judgement - and without the self-blame that keeps us stuck. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With AlcoholEpisode 10: Can't Do It Without a Drink? Here's What That's Really About -Sober October, No DramaStart noticing the places where you don't just want a drink. You feel like you need one in order to do the thing at all. To get yourself to the party when you are already running on empty To sit at the dinner table To push through when every part of you wants to stop To feel confident enough to just show up To tolerate a situation - or a person - that costs you something If alcohol is what makes those things doable - that is not a drinking problem.That is a sign that somewhere along the way your needs stopped being allowed to matter. And a lot of us have been doing that for so long we don't even know we have needs anymore.This is grey area drinking at its most invisible. It is not about the alcohol. It is about everything the alcohol is doing for you that nothing else has been allowed to do.So the tip here is not to stop drinking. It is to start noticing: Where do you have to drink to do something? What is that something asking you to suppress? What would it mean to let your needs matter in that moment instead? You matter most. Full stop.This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever.My Awareness Worksheets - perfect for exactly this kind of noticing - and my Grounding Audio, which will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol EPISODE 9: How to Finally Commit to a Break from Alcohol - No Willpower Required - Sober October, No Drama There is an Afrikaans word - soutpiel - which literally translates to salt willy. It describes someone with a foot in two places, not fully committed to either. One foot in South Africa, one foot in Britain - leaving their willy in the ocean. Trying not to get banned on IG. It is a long-winded but perfectly apt description of trying to cut back on drinking without making a firm decision. A maybe is always a yes. As Yoda says - there is no try, just do. Trying, by its very nature, holds failure in its raison d'etre. Try and stand up right now. You can't - you either stand up or you don't. A decision does something completely different: It gets you out of willpower and into choice It frees your brain up for more interesting things to hyper-focus on It stops the exhausting daily negotiation with yourself about whether you are going to drink tonight If you are struggling to make the decision to take a sober curious break, sit with this question: What is not making that decision keeping me safe from experiencing? I would love to hear your answer. If you would like to you can email me at emma@hoperisingcoaching.com This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol EPISODE 8: The Real Reason You Keep Reaching for a Drink - It's Not What You Think - Sober October, No Drama You have heard of fight, flight and freeze - the nervous system safety responses. There is a fourth: fawning - or masking. And alcohol is the biggest mask of them all. The body and brain very quickly learn that drinking allows us to mask and pretend to be the human that society told us we should be - rather than the human we actually are. This is one of the most overlooked reasons people struggle to cut back on drinking. I hear this from clients all the time: I don't know why I drink. I know it's hurting me but I just keep choosing it. Like children, people do well when they can. When they feel safe to. These are not moral failings. They are very valid reasons for reaching for a drink: Not feeling confident socially without the bravado barrier of wine An inner critic that makes being with yourself feel unbearable Needing to push through exhaustion and overwhelm Drinking as the only way to give yourself permission to stop and rest This is grey area drinking at its core - and it is far more common than anyone talks about. The job here is not to solve any of this tonight. It is simply to notice - and to hold yourself with the same compassion you would give a scared child. That is where the freedom begins. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Grounding Audio will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol EPISODE 6: How to Say No to Alcohol Without Going to War With Yourself - Sober October, No Drama This goes against everything we have been taught about cutting back on alcohol. Instead of going into battle - lean in. A craving is not your enemy. It is just a trigger - a way of your body letting you know that something is not OK. So rather than fighting your body in distress, the invitation is to get curious and ask: Would I be having to do something I don't want to do? Would I be pushing through beyond my exhaustion? Is my busy brain driving me bananas? Is drinking the only way I can give myself permission to stop and sit down? Your body is not broken. It is resourceful. It found a solution. Our job is to find a better one - together. Part of changing our relationship with alcohol involves working out how to create those experiences the way we want them - without using alcohol. But the first step is always curiosity and awareness. Not warfare. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are perfect for this episode - working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 5: Why One Day at a Time Keeps You Stuck - And What to Do Instead - Sober October, No Drama I know this one is controversial. I am speaking from my own experience. For me, one day at a time meant I had to keep making decisions - which kept me in decision fatigue, which kept me in willpower. And willpower is a finite strategy for cutting back on alcohol. It also reinforces struggle, battling and hard. It ties into good and bad - binary thinking - all of which keeps us in resistance and out of choice. The alternative? Make one firm decision: I am not going to drink for 30 days. A maybe is always a yes A data point is not a failure - it is something to learn from Go into your sober curious break with the decision made and your brain freed up for more interesting things There is no try. There is only do - or do not. Thanks, Yoda. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Why Thinking About Your Hangover Won't Help You Cut Back on Drinking - Sober October, No Drama When we are taking time off alcohol we tend to spend a lot of time focusing on the hangover and anxiety post-drinking, and not enough time focusing on the issues in the moment. Our craving doesn't care about tomorrow. It just wants to ease our discomfort right now. If you start trying to sell tomorrow's hangover as a reason not to drink, you've lost it - that's a future you problem. Whereas if we start to think about the impact in the here and now, and in the few hours after the first drink, that can be really convincing. Fear of the future, a bit like willpower and restriction, is a short-term strategy and will only last so long. What we need to is: 1. Start to become the craving, need and trigger investigator. 2. Understand what is going on in the moment. For example, if we want excitement, confidence, fun, what do we believe we or the situation will be like without that? This is the shift that makes reducing your alcohol intake feel natural rather than like white-knuckling it through the evening. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets - perfect for exactly this kind of noticing - and my Grounding Audio, which will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 3: The One Thing That Makes Sober October Actually Work - Especially If You Have ADHD Just don't drink for 30 days. That's it. Just one thing. Don't try - as we ADHDers are prone to do - to also get fit, go FODMAP or vegan, and declutter the house. It's too much restriction and you will come undone. For those of us who are demand avoidant or prone to black-and-white perfectionist thinking, piling on extra rules will push us straight into a nervous system safety response - and we'll be pouring a glass of Chardonnay before our conscious brain has time to remind us we are taking a break. Your permission list for the next 30 days: The comfort food The rest The social media and the Netflix binge The care you would give a sick child Nothing else matters but your firm no for 30 days. And if you have a slip-up? A data point is just a sign that your body hasn't learnt how to manage something yet. Treat it with curiosity, not judgement - there is so much to learn from that. A maybe is always a yes. One thing. That's all. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 2: How to Reduce Your Drinking by Stopping Thinking About Drinking - Sober October, No Drama The best way to set yourself up for success with a 30-day break from alcohol is to start noticing YOUR behaviours, thoughts, beliefs and physical experience of alcohol. You need to become a need hunter. Don't spend too much time on the after-alcohol experience - that's what people get wrong. The after experience sends us into judgement and self-flagellation, which distracts us from gathering the data we actually need to cut back on drinking for good. Instead, start noticing what was happening immediately before you got a craving: What need is being met by alcohol? What is alcohol giving you? What is it taking away? Is it like slipping into a warm bath? Do your shoulders relax? Do you sigh? What thoughts change when you drink? Note for our ND friends: noticing physical sensations can be hard - share anything that comes to mind, however small. This is the kind of super-sleuth behaviour that moves us to a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol - and makes for a really enjoyable sober curious 30-day break. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are perfect for this episode - working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. See links below: Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Sober October, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 1 - Why Cutting Back on Alcohol Has Nothing to Do With Willpower There are not two types of people - those who can drink and those who can't. Anyone can start to use alcohol problematically if they are drinking regularly and begin associating it with relief from emotional or physical pain. These kinds of sayings shame people and put the blame squarely on the individual - rather than understanding the truth: Alcohol is the solution to the problem of a person's pain. Not the problem itself. This means: Problematic alcohol use is not a morality issue It is often a valid nervous system safety response to a world that doesn't have our best interests at heart The goal is not to shame ourselves into stopping - it is to find a different solution Our job is to learn how to hold ourselves in our distress. To find a way to be with this world that doesn't hurt our heart and soul even more in the process. If you are sober curious, tired of the back-and-forth about drinking, or simply want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol - you are in the right place. This episode is part of Sober October, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

What if the reason you're finding it hard to stop drinking has far less to do with alcohol — and far more to do with how safe it feels to actually be yourself? In this episode, I'm exploring something we've been doing a lot of work around in my groups lately: the roles we learn to play in our families, people-pleasing (or fawning), masking, the inner critic, and how all of this can show up in our relationship with alcohol. Because so many of us learned very early what made us acceptable. Be good. Be easygoing. Don't make a fuss. Don't be too needy. Be productive. Help everyone else. Keep going. Don't sit down. Don't be difficult. And often, those behaviours kept us safe. They helped us belong in our families and in a culture that rewards busyness, productivity, independence and being “fine”. The problem is, we can carry those rules with us long after we need them. So by the time we reach midlife, we're exhausted. We're still saying yes when we want to say no. Still putting everybody else first. Still pushing through when our bodies are screaming at us to stop. Still trying to perform the version of ourselves we believe will be most acceptable to everybody else. And then we wonder why we want a drink. For many women, alcohol becomes the only way they know how to give themselves permission to stop. This is why I don't believe stopping drinking is simply about trying harder or finding more willpower. In fact, you might have heaps of willpower — you're just spending all of it maintaining the performance. In this episode, I talk about why stopping drinking can sometimes feel unsafe, particularly when it asks us to do things like set boundaries, disappoint people, have difficult conversations, rest, take up space or simply say, “No, I don't want to do that.” I also explore Internal Family Systems and parts work, neurodivergence, hypervigilance and the idea of the “true self” — the person underneath all of those roles and masks we've collected along the way. Because, for me, stopping drinking is the opposite of optimisation. It isn't another project to make yourself better, healthier, thinner, fitter or more productive. It's about connection. It's about becoming curious about what you actually like. What you actually want. What you need. How you feel. What happens when you stop automatically abandoning yourself to keep everybody else comfortable. And perhaps instead of asking, “Why can't I just stop drinking?”, we can start asking: What would it look like to take care of myself today as if I were somebody I loved? This work is about slowly creating enough safety to come back to yourself. Because ultimately, we have to start to matter to ourselves. In this episode, I talk about: Why our upbringing can influence how easy or difficult we find it to stop drinking People-pleasing as a fawn response rather than a personality flaw How childhood roles can become adult masks Why being “good”, productive, independent and easygoing can become tied to our sense of safety The relationship between neurodivergence, masking, trauma responses and alcohol Why hypervigilance can make change feel incredibly difficult The enormous amount of willpower it takes to maintain the appearance of having everything together Why saying no, resting, setting boundaries and disappointing people can feel less safe than drinking The “good girl”, the “cool girl” and the performance of being easygoing Internal Family Systems, parts work and the idea that even the parts of us we dislike are often trying to protect us Returning to your true self rather than turning sobriety into another self-improvement project How small moments of choosing yourself can begin to build safety Why self-criticism makes change harder — and gentle, loving curiosity matters The question at the heart of this work: What do I actually want? Stopping drinking doesn't have to be another way to reject yourself. It can be the beginning of coming home to yourself. Episode links & Resources•⁠ ⁠Learn more about Emma Gilmour at: www.hoperisingcoaching.com•⁠ ⁠Follow Emma Gilmour on insta @hoperisingcoachingFREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous:1.⁠ ⁠7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps2.⁠ ⁠Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in3.⁠ ⁠Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation4.⁠ ⁠Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink.https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking?I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 22, 23 and 24 Sept, 7:30pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Thursday 1 October 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now (ends 15th Spetember) - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until January.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE 3-DAY ALCOHOL RESET HUB: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset-hub

Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE 3-DAY ALCOHOL RESET HUB: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset-hub

Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE 3-DAY ALCOHOL RESET HUB:https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset-hub

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 20: Preparation Is Everything - Dry July, No Drama This is going to be the last daily tip for a few days - because we are about to run the FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset, and the replays will be coming to this podcast. My motto: change happens in an instant, but preparation can take a little time - and it is so worth taking that time. That is what made all the difference for me. Over these past 20 tips I have given you a lot of my resources - and all of them will also be available for free inside the Reset, which starts tonight. This whole series has been about getting properly prepared for a really successful Dry July. You can come along whether you are still drinking or not. It does not matter. This is not about not drinking. It is about preparing. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. Join the FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset tonight to access all of these resources in one place, plus live support to help you prepare properly. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 19: Conditions Are Never Perfect - Do It Anyway - Dry July, No Drama Nobel Prize-winning author Doris Lessing once wrote: "Whatever you're meant to do, do it now. The conditions are always impossible." This is exactly what I want to say to you today. Your brain is going to look for every reason to keep you doing the same thing you have always done. Biologically, evolutionarily, your brain and body are wired to believe that change is unsafe. Back in caveman days its whole job was to preserve energy - and change requires energy. So your brain will always look for reasons to stay the same. Even if staying the same is making you really unhappy, it will still choose that, because it feels safer to stick with what it knows than to risk something different. There is no "right time." Waiting for the perfect moment, flawless resources, or total readiness is a trap Life is inherently messy and circumstances will never perfectly align The very act of starting often alters the impossible conditions into something manageable Conditions are never perfect. Do it anyway. There are so many reasons your brain will try to tell you it is the wrong time. That you cannot do it. That it is not for you. Do not believe it. Changing my relationship with alcohol is the best thing I have ever done in my whole life. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free preparation tools below will help you start despite the chaos, not wait for the conditions to be perfect. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 18: What Was Alcohol Keeping You Safe From Experiencing? - Dry July, No Drama I want you to really listen to this one. Instead of beating yourself up after you have drunk more than you wanted to - focus on the data. Stop being so judgemental. Judgement puts us into a state of dysregulation, and dysregulation makes us much more likely to drink. In my programs we work on data, not blame. We work on growth mindset, not self-attack. It is always: what did I not yet know how to do? The question to ask yourself every single time this happens during your preparation week: What was alcohol keeping me safe from experiencing? For many of us there is a harsh inner critic constantly telling us everything we did wrong and catastrophising everything that is about to happen. Often, drinking is trying to make that voice stop. Often it is trying to keep us pushing through when we are exhausted - or trying to help us relax because we genuinely do not know how to do that without it. For so many women it is exhaustion. Burnout. Needing to stop. We have been culturally conditioned to push through our nervous system and judge ourselves the moment our capacity is not where we think it should be. Alcohol stops us from experiencing ourselves as less than capable. It gives us permission to stop - because we do not know how to give that permission to ourselves. For me it was different again - alcohol let me stay in the room with my family and actually engage when all I wanted was time alone. My brain had been conditioned to believe wanting that time alone was selfish. It let me focus on their needs when everything in me wanted to focus on what I needed to get done. There are a million versions of this question. What is it helping you avoid experiencing? Once you understand what alcohol has been keeping you safe from - you can start to explore what you actually need instead. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are perfect for asking yourself exactly this question - without judgement, with curiosity. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 17: The Thing That Changes Everything - Get Support - Dry July, No Drama I asked my membership group what their top tips were for a really great Dry July - one that actually feels good. And every single one of them said the same thing. Community. Getting support. Not doing it alone. I remember what a big deal it felt like to make the decision to spend money on a group program. But it changed everything for me. Because when you are in community: You stay accountable You no longer think it is a you problem You begin to understand that alcohol is an addictive substance to anybody given the right set of circumstances You stop believing it is a personal moral failure - something you just need to try harder at or have more willpower for You realise we are all the same, all navigating the same stuff And everything changes. Whether it is my program or somebody else's - free or paid - I cannot recommend finding support and community in this journey highly enough. It is one of the biggest indicators of how successful your change will be and how long lasting it will be. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. If you would like to test out my community, the FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset is the perfect place to start - a judgement-free space to experience what it feels like to be supported in this journey. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 16: You Are Where You Put Your Attention - Dry July, No Drama You are where you put your attention. So put your attention in the right places. Preparation is everything. You can absolutely go into denial and drink as much as you can before 1 July hits and then go "right, that's it" - but while you do that, start immersing yourself in the culture too. Read some of the books. My favourites, in order of preference: Quit Like a Woman by Holly Whitaker We Are the Luckiest by Laura McKowen This Naked Mind by Annie Grace Follow podcasts like mine - MidlifeAF - or I also love Sober Awkward, Present and Sober Podcast, and How I Quit Alcohol. Follow social media people who are on the sober curious journey. Surround yourself with information from people who have walked this path before you - and have learnt the things that will help you get where you want to go. Wherever that is. You can hear all 30 of these daily tips throughout July on my MidlifeAF Podcast Mini Series - wherever you get your podcasts. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 15: Be Your Own Personal Assistant - Plan Ahead - Dry July, No Drama This is a practical one - and it is more important than it sounds. Having a plan makes your brain and body feel safe. It creates certainty. It removes the daily decision-making that drains your willpower before the evening even starts. So in the lead up to Dry July - whether you are doing the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment with me, someone else's program, or going it alone - schedule the time you want to dedicate to this and build the rest of your world around it. That might look like: Blocking out time for a breathwork practice Scheduling your journaling prompts Getting your group coaching calls in the diary Protecting the time before it gets filled with everything else Your brain loves to know what is coming. When it does, it stops scanning for threats - and that is when real change becomes possible. Be the personal assistant your future self deserves. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My North Star Visualisation is perfect for getting your brain on board with what is coming - it stops the panic before it starts. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 14: Treat Yourself Like a Sick Child - Dry July, No Drama When you are taking a break from alcohol, prepare your evenings like you would for a child who is sick and needs looking after. Your evening preparation list: Get some lovely new pyjamas Make sure you have clean sheets and a bedroom that feels nice to come home to When you get in - shower, bath, clean your teeth Get into your cosiest clothes Make yourself a lovely cup of something warm Get into bed as soon as possible I know what you are thinking. But I am an adult. I deserve to stay up late. I should be able to sit on the couch with a glass of wine like a grown up. Here is the thing - a lot of people drink in the evening because otherwise it doesn't feel like they have given themselves permission to stop. To rest. To be done for the day. Being an adult is also about knowing how to take care of yourself. And treating yourself like a sick child - with gentleness, with warmth, with a really good bedtime routine - is one of the most radical things you can do for your nervous system when you are taking a break from alcohol. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Grounding Audio is perfect for that wind-down moment when you would normally reach for a drink - it gives your nervous system exactly what it is actually looking for. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 13: If You Have to Drink to Enjoy It - You Probably Don't - Dry July, No Drama If you have to drink to do something or enjoy something - you probably don't actually enjoy it. It was only when I took a break from drinking for a year that I realised half the things I was doing in my life I didn't actually enjoy. There was something about them that wasn't really working for me - and alcohol was the thing that made them bearable. My rule of thumb: if I have to drink, it's usually because: I don't like doing the thing I don't like the people involved There is something about myself I don't feel confident enough to show up as I am too tired to be present This is fawning. This is people pleasing. And alcohol is the biggest mask of them all. Because it allows us to do things we don't really want to do - while appearing to be having the time of our lives. Unfortunately it often takes having a break to realise this. And one of the hardest things for people taking a break is: Advocating for themselves Saying no Taking up space Asking to be considered Risking the disapproval of others This can feel very unsafe to our nervous system - and honestly it is the biggest reason people don't get through a month's break. So here is the question worth sitting with: Look at all the things you feel you can't cope with without a drink. Start asking - what would it be like to do them without drinking? What would be hard? More often than not we have to make some changes to our lives to allow us to take a break - and it is worth working out what those changes might be before you start. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free watch-on-demand masterclass talks about exactly this - and will help you work out what needs to shift before your break begins. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 12: Get Out of Struggle Speak and Into Choice - Dry July, No Drama If you think it's going to be hard, it will be. That's cognitive bias. You know that feeling when you wake up in a bad mood and everything goes to sh*t? People do the same thing with taking a break from alcohol - and it makes everything so much harder. Struggle language keeps you in willpower. Choice language gets you out. It's not "I can't drink." It's "I don't want to right now." It's not "I'm battling this." It's "I'm choosing to explore what I really need when I reach for a wine." It's not stepping into the sludge of trying. It's the clean step of choosing. Think about the difference between these two experiences: When you are lost in something and time disappears - that is flow When you are pushing against something with every ounce of energy you have - that is resistance Flow is connected to presence. Resistance lives in the past or the future. Here's what most people don't know: a craving or a trigger is actually your body desperately trying to ground itself - to come back to the present moment. Struggle language takes you further away from that. Presence brings you home. This is exactly why as part of the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment this year we are running a present moment awareness breathwork practice alongside the program - to support everyone in learning how to live in presence rather than resistance. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Grounding Audio is your first step out of struggle and into presence - and it will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 11: You Are Not the Problem - But You Are the Solution - Dry July, No Drama Our culture convinces us from the minute we are born that we are the problem. This is perpetuated by: Everything we see on TV All the stories from AA Families having interventions Our culture's concept of discipline The idea that drinking more than we would like is a sign of weak character - a lack of willpower But the neuroscience shows that is absolutely not true. Alcohol is an addictive substance to anybody who drinks it long enough and often enough. And the amount you have to drink for it to start working in a way that makes you want it even when you prefer not to have it - is actually a very low quantity. The main reason people start drinking more than they want has nothing to do with that. It is because they start associating the relief from discomfort - the relief from emotional or physical pain - with alcohol. The big alcohol companies have done a very good job of convincing us that the problem lies with the person. Their "drink responsibly" campaign runs everywhere and continues to convince people that alcohol is a people problem - not a substance problem, coupled with a cultural and societal problem. Anybody who works in psychology will tell you: a problematic behaviour is always the symptom of the problem - not the problem itself. And this is true when we drink more than we would like. The longer we stay stuck in the cycle of self-recrimination and self-flagellation, the longer we stay stuck drinking more than we want: It stops us being able to look at the data It causes our nervous system to become dysregulated We are attacking ourselves from the inside We cannot make good decisions from that place The thing that changes everything is when we stop blaming ourselves and start looking at the data. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are the perfect tool for starting to look at that data without judgement - and without the self-blame that keeps us stuck. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: https://www.hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With AlcoholEpisode 10: Can't Do It Without a Drink? Here's What That's Really About - Dry July, No DramaStart noticing the places where you don't just want a drink. You feel like you need one in order to do the thing at all. To get yourself to the party when you are already running on empty To sit at the dinner table To push through when every part of you wants to stop To feel confident enough to just show up To tolerate a situation - or a person - that costs you something If alcohol is what makes those things doable - that is not a drinking problem.That is a sign that somewhere along the way your needs stopped being allowed to matter. And a lot of us have been doing that for so long we don't even know we have needs anymore.This is grey area drinking at its most invisible. It is not about the alcohol. It is about everything the alcohol is doing for you that nothing else has been allowed to do.So the tip here is not to stop drinking. It is to start noticing: Where do you have to drink to do something? What is that something asking you to suppress? What would it mean to let your needs matter in that moment instead? You matter most. Full stop.This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever.My Awareness Worksheets - perfect for exactly this kind of noticing - and my Grounding Audio, which will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below:FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/groundingREADY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here.WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclassAre you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol.REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-resetWant a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October.YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE:hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experimentChange happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol EPISODE 9: How to Finally Commit to a Break from Alcohol - No Willpower Required - Dry July, No Drama There is an Afrikaans word - soutpiel - which literally translates to salt willy. It describes someone with a foot in two places, not fully committed to either. One foot in South Africa, one foot in Britain - leaving their willy in the ocean. Trying not to get banned on IG. It is a long-winded but perfectly apt description of trying to cut back on drinking without making a firm decision. A maybe is always a yes. As Yoda says - there is no try, just do. Trying, by its very nature, holds failure in its raison d'etre. Try and stand up right now. You can't - you either stand up or you don't. A decision does something completely different: It gets you out of willpower and into choice It frees your brain up for more interesting things to hyper-focus on It stops the exhausting daily negotiation with yourself about whether you are going to drink tonight If you are struggling to make the decision to take a sober curious break, sit with this question: What is not making that decision keeping me safe from experiencing? I would love to hear your answer. If you would like to you can email me at emma@hoperisingcoaching.com This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 1. 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps 2. Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in 3. Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation 4. Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol EPISODE 8: The Real Reason You Keep Reaching for a Drink - It's Not What You Think - Dry July, No Drama You have heard of fight, flight and freeze - the nervous system safety responses. There is a fourth: fawning - or masking. And alcohol is the biggest mask of them all. The body and brain very quickly learn that drinking allows us to mask and pretend to be the human that society told us we should be - rather than the human we actually are. This is one of the most overlooked reasons people struggle to cut back on drinking. I hear this from clients all the time: I don't know why I drink. I know it's hurting me but I just keep choosing it. Like children, people do well when they can. When they feel safe to. These are not moral failings. They are very valid reasons for reaching for a drink: Not feeling confident socially without the bravado barrier of wine An inner critic that makes being with yourself feel unbearable Needing to push through exhaustion and overwhelm Drinking as the only way to give yourself permission to stop and rest This is grey area drinking at its core - and it is far more common than anyone talks about. The job here is not to solve any of this tonight. It is simply to notice - and to hold yourself with the same compassion you would give a scared child. That is where the freedom begins. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Grounding Audio will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 1. 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps 2. Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in 3. Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation 4. Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol EPISODE 7: The Sober Curious Secret - Stop Trying to Stop Drinking - Dry July, No Drama I know this sounds counterintuitive. Stick with me. All that stopping and starting - the trying, the failing, the trying again - plays havoc with our hearts and nervous systems when we are trying to cut back on drinking. In the methodology I teach, we call it The Pause. It is the very best preparation for taking a successful break from alcohol. Not white-knuckling it. Not battling. Pausing - and getting genuinely curious. If you are breaking your own heart on a daily basis - stop trying and start learning: Notice your routines, rituals and triggers around drinking Notice the actual physical and emotional experience of drinking - without judgement Become a data gatherer, not a failure counter Stop breaking your trust in yourself. Get into choice. This is how a sober curious 30-day break starts to feel effortless - and how alcohol becomes a genuine non-issue rather than something to white-knuckle your way through. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 1. 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps 2. Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in 3. Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation 4. Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol EPISODE 6: How to Say No to Alcohol Without Going to War With Yourself - Dry July, No Drama This goes against everything we have been taught about cutting back on alcohol. Instead of going into battle - lean in. A craving is not your enemy. It is just a trigger - a way of your body letting you know that something is not OK. So rather than fighting your body in distress, the invitation is to get curious and ask: Would I be having to do something I don't want to do? Would I be pushing through beyond my exhaustion? Is my busy brain driving me bananas? Is drinking the only way I can give myself permission to stop and sit down? Your body is not broken. It is resourceful. It found a solution. Our job is to find a better one - together. Part of changing our relationship with alcohol involves working out how to create those experiences the way we want them - without using alcohol. But the first step is always curiosity and awareness. Not warfare. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are perfect for this episode - working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 1. 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps 2. Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in 3. Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation 4. Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 5: Why One Day at a Time Keeps You Stuck - And What to Do Instead - Dry July, No Drama I know this one is controversial. I am speaking from my own experience. For me, one day at a time meant I had to keep making decisions - which kept me in decision fatigue, which kept me in willpower. And willpower is a finite strategy for cutting back on alcohol. It also reinforces struggle, battling and hard. It ties into good and bad - binary thinking - all of which keeps us in resistance and out of choice. The alternative? Make one firm decision: I am not going to drink for 30 days. A maybe is always a yes A data point is not a failure - it is something to learn from Go into your sober curious break with the decision made and your brain freed up for more interesting things There is no try. There is only do - or do not. Thanks, Yoda. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Why Thinking About Your Hangover Won't Help You Cut Back on Drinking - Dry July, No Drama When we are taking time of alcohol we tend to spend a lot of time focusing on the hangover and anxiety post-drinking, and not enough time focusing on the issues in the moment. Our craving doesn't care about tomorrow. It just wants to ease our discomfort right now. If you start trying to sell tomorrow's hangover as a reason not to drink, you've lost it - that's a future you problem. Whereas if we start to think about the impact in the here and now, and in the few hours after the first drink, that can be really convincing. Fear of the future, a bit like willpower and restriction, is a short-term strategy and will only last so long. What we need to is: 1. Start to become the craving, need and trigger investigator. 2. Understand what is going on in the moment. For example, if we want excitement, confidence, fun, what do we believe we or the situation will be like without that? This is the shift that makes reducing your alcohol intake feel natural rather than like white-knuckling it through the evening. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets - perfect for exactly this kind of noticing - and my Grounding Audio, which will help you identify the unmet need underneath the craving before it reaches for a drink. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 1. 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps 2. Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in 3. Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation 4. Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 3: The One Thing That Makes Dry July Actually Work - Especially If You Have ADHD Just don't drink for 30 days. That's it. Just one thing. Don't try - as we ADHDers are prone to do - to also get fit, go FODMAP or vegan, and declutter the house. It's too much restriction and you will come undone. For those of us who are demand avoidant or prone to black-and-white perfectionist thinking, piling on extra rules will push us straight into a nervous system safety response - and we'll be pouring a glass of Chardonnay before our conscious brain has time to remind us we are taking a break. Your permission list for the next 30 days: The comfort food The rest The social media and the Netflix binge The care you would give a sick child Nothing else matters but your firm no for 30 days. And if you have a slip-up? A data point is just a sign that your body hasn't learnt how to manage something yet. Treat it with curiosity, not judgement - there is so much to learn from that. A maybe is always a yes. One thing. That's all. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 2: How to Reduce Your Drinking by Stopping Thinking About Drinking - Dry July, No Drama The best way to set yourself up for success with a 30-day break from alcohol is to start noticing YOUR behaviours, thoughts, beliefs and physical experience of alcohol. You need to become a need hunter. Don't spend too much time on the after-alcohol experience - that's what people get wrong. The after experience sends us into judgement and self-flagellation, which distracts us from gathering the data we actually need to cut back on drinking for good. Instead, start noticing what was happening immediately before you got a craving: What need is being met by alcohol? What is alcohol giving you? What is it taking away? Is it like slipping into a warm bath? Do your shoulders relax? Do you sigh? What thoughts change when you drink? Note for our ND friends: noticing physical sensations can be hard - share anything that comes to mind, however small. This is the kind of super-sleuth behaviour that moves us to a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol - and makes for a really enjoyable sober curious 30-day break. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My Awareness Worksheets are perfect for this episode - working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes.

Dry July, No Drama: Daily Tips for a Take It or Leave It Relationship With Alcohol Episode 1 - Why Cutting Back on Alcohol Has Nothing to Do With Willpower There are not two types of people - those who can drink and those who can't. Anyone can start to use alcohol problematically if they are drinking regularly and begin associating it with relief from emotional or physical pain. These kinds of sayings shame people and put the blame squarely on the individual - rather than understanding the truth: Alcohol is the solution to the problem of a person's pain. Not the problem itself. This means: Problematic alcohol use is not a morality issue It is often a valid nervous system safety response to a world that doesn't have our best interests at heart The goal is not to shame ourselves into stopping - it is to find a different solution Our job is to learn how to hold ourselves in our distress. To find a way to be with this world that doesn't hurt our heart and soul even more in the process. If you are sober curious, tired of the back-and-forth about drinking, or simply want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol - you are in the right place. This episode is part of Dry July, No Drama - a daily MidlifeAF podcast mini series with tips for cutting back on alcohol without willpower, labels or forever. My free resources below will help you prepare for and get the most out of your break. See links below: FREE TOOLS - four beautiful resources to help you drink less and feel fabulous: 1. 7 Steps to Take Back Control of Alcohol - the exact steps I took when I started out on this journey nearly five years ago. hoperisingcoaching.com/7-steps 2. Awareness Worksheets - if you do nothing else, working through the answers to these questions will change your relationship with alcohol for the better. hoperisingcoaching.com/awareness-worksheets-opt-in 3. Your North Star Visualisation - stops your brain freaking out about doing something unfamiliar. hoperisingcoaching.com/northstarvisualisation 4. Grounding Meditation - you know that feeling when you have a drink and the body goes "aaaaaaaahhhhhhh" and everything seems to relax? What the body really needs is to ground - to come back home to self, and for self to feel lovely. That is what we work on in my live programs. We start every session with a grounding and connect with ourselves to find out what our body really needs when it thinks it wants to drink. hoperisingcoaching.com/grounding READY TO GO DEEPER? Ready to make alcohol a non-issue? Watch my free one-hour masterclass: 5 Surprising Ways Taking a Break from Booze Can Be Effortless and Change Your Life. One hour. Five shifts. Your take it or leave it relationship with alcohol starts here. WATCH NOW FOR FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/masterclass Are you tired of the mental back-and-forth about drinking? I am running a FREE 3-Day Alcohol Reset on 23, 24 and 25 June, 7pm Melb/Syd (replays available). No willpower talk. No abstinence pressure. You can even drink while you do it. A judgement-free space to learn the tools to step into a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol. REGISTER FREE: hoperisingcoaching.com/3-day-reset Want a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol? Want to stop all the "will I, won't I" internal conflict around wine? I am running the Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment LIVE from Wednesday 1 July. 30 days. Small group coaching. Only 25 spots. Small, intimate and private. Rewire your brain and nervous system so you no longer have to reach for a glass to quieten your busy brain, calm your overwhelmed soul or socialise when your social battery is spent. Early bird pricing open now - $500 off the full price, plus two 1:1 counselling sessions with me and 3 webinars included (worth +$1,000). We won't run this live again until October. YOUR NEXT RIGHT MOVE STARTS HERE: hoperisingcoaching.com/the_great_aussie_alcohol_experiment Change happens in a moment, my friends - the preparation for change takes a little bit of time. Take the time. You will be amazed at the difference it makes. _____________________________________________________

In this episode, I guide you through my “Rise” framework for changing your relationship with alcohol. We explore why your drinking is never about “willpower” or “moral failure” and is almost always about unmet needs, nervous system overwhelm, and outdated beliefs you've carried for years. I share how grounding, visualisation, and gentle self‑inquiry can help your brain feel safer with change, so you're not constantly “white‑knuckling it” around booze. I walk you through core concepts I use in my programs - like curiosity over judgment, understanding dopamine and why we chase it, building a compelling vision for an alcohol‑light life, and using awareness tools instead of shame. We also talk about the power of immersion (podcasts, books, social media), why community is so vital, and how to start making a practical plan that fits your real life - not some perfect, imaginary version of you. Throughout, I share stories from clients who've gone from anxious, exhausted and stuck to feeling grounded, self‑trusting and genuinely indifferent to alcohol - more like a “cheese sandwich” than a magical elixir. If you're a midlife woman (especially neurodivergent like me) who's drinking more than you want to and is tired of feeling like the problem, this conversation offers a kinder, more compassionate way forward. Key Takeaways I always start with grounding (breath, body awareness, connection to the earth) because getting out of your head and into your body makes change feel safer to your nervous system. You are not your thoughts; you are the thinker of your thoughts - this gives you space to question old stories about alcohol, yourself and the world. Many women drink more than they want to because nobody says “thank you,” “well done,” or “good job” - booze becomes a shortcut to relief and recognition. My work is about taking a break from taking a break - stepping out of judgment and resistance and into curiosity and inquiry rather than focusing only on stopping. We examine three levels of belief:Beliefs about the substance (alcohol itself)Beliefs about society (what's “normal,” social expectations)Beliefs about self (worthiness, competence, identity) Dopamine isn't a moral issue; it's biology. We're wired to seek it, and alcohol gives us an unearned, easy hit, which can distort how good we think it is. Craving is usually your body saying “I'm not okay”, not that you're weak - often it's about tiredness, loneliness, overwhelm, social anxiety, or people‑pleasing. Alcohol is almost always a solution to a problem, not the problem itself. Until we understand the underlying need, change won't stick. Awareness worksheets and mindful tracking turn “slip‑ups” into data points, so we can ask: What happened? What was I feeling? What did I really need? Self‑compassion is non‑negotiable: I ask, “What would I say to me if I were someone I loved?”-especially when things don't go to plan. Visualisation tools like the North Star exercise help your brain feel safer, because it gets a clear picture of what an alcohol‑light day could actually look and feel like. Our culture gives alcohol a huge amount of power; I want you to feel about booze the way you do about a cheese sandwich - neutral, take‑it‑or‑leave‑it. We're taught that being alcohol‑free is boring and miserable; in reality, for many women it's a massive upgrade in energy, joy, and self‑respect. Immersion works: podcasts, “quit‑lit,” and social media accounts that reflect your values can rewire your beliefs and show you what's possible. Don't go to Bunnings for milk - talk about your alcohol journey with people who get it and won't minimise, shame, or sabotage you. There is no “failure” in my methodology - only learning. The only “fail” is disappearing and not coming back to look at what happened. “Maybe” about drinking is almost always a yes. Setting a clear intention for the day around alcohol is far more powerful than vague hopes. Change involves choosing your hard: the discomfort of staying stuck versus the discomfort of growth and honest self‑reflection. You were never broken; this work is not about fixing you, it's about understanding your conditioning so you can choose differently. Support and community are essential. We're not meant to do this alone, and shame thrives in isolation but dissolves in safe, validating spaces.

In this episode, I walk you through my “third way” approach: a compassionate path that sits between white‑knuckling sobriety and feeling stuck in a shame spiral with alcohol. We explore how to get out of resistance and into curiosity, begin reconnecting with our bodies, and gently question the stories we've carried for decades. If you've ever thought, “What's wrong with me? Why can't I just stop at one?” this conversation is for you. You'll also hear how I work with women in my Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment, why grounding and self‑compassion matter so much, and how shifting beliefs can make alcohol feel more like a cheese sandwich - something you can truly take or leave. Episode Highlights: I encourage you to celebrate yourself simply for being here and examining your relationship with alcohol - most people never do this work. One of the most powerful questions you can ask yourself is: “Why do I like to drink?” answered without judgment. Everything we believe about booze, and much of what we believe about ourselves, is shaped by conditioning, not truth. There are three levels of belief:- Beliefs about the substance (what alcohol “does” for us)- Beliefs about society (what's normal, social, fun)- Beliefs about self (am I lovable, acceptable, fun without alcohol?) Beliefs about the substance are often the easiest to shift once we understand how alcohol actually affects our brain and body. Alcohol doesn't truly relax us - it spikes dopamine briefly, then floods us with stress chemicals like cortisol, adrenaline, and dynorphin. Our struggle with alcohol is not a moral failing or lack of willpower; it's about biology, nervous system regulation, and learned coping. Many of our traits and patterns are actually protective adaptations, not our “true personality.” We didn't make ourselves - family dynamics, culture, and marketing (like “drink responsibly”) all shape our shame and silence. Shame keeps us alone, and when we're lonely, we're more likely to drink. Breaking the shame is part of healing. Dopamine's job is to make us seek; it shows us alcohol through “rose‑tinted glasses,” which keeps us chasing the “buzz.” Starting with knowledge and awareness - then feelings - then behaviour is far more effective than trying to change behaviour with willpower alone. My “third way” is about building a take‑it‑or‑leave‑it relationship with alcohol, grounded in self‑compassion, nervous system tools, and deeper understanding - not harsh rules.

In this episode, I invite you into Day 1 of my three-day end-of-January Alcohol Reset, where I share the “third way” of being around alcohol—beyond the old binary of either “miserably sober” or “happily drinking with constant regret.” Speaking from both my professional training and my lived experience, I talk about how I went from a chaotic, booze-fuelled life to a genuinely take-it-or-leave-it relationship with alcohol, where it now has no emotional pull and feels about as interesting as a cheese sandwich. I walk you through why this unique time of year—especially here in Australia, with kids going back to school and summer socialising still in full swing—is actually a powerful moment to pause and reflect before the rest of the year sweeps you away. Rather than pushing you to “just stop drinking,” I introduce the concept of the Pause: taking a break from taking a break, staying curious, and using your current drinking as valuable data instead of a reason to beat yourself up. We explore how self-trust, self-awareness, and self-compassion sit at the heart of sustainable change. I share stories from my own life—from wild nights in London media culture to exhausted contract work, neurodivergent parenting, and those 3am shame spirals—to show you that the real issue isn't alcohol itself, but why we're using it. You'll hear how I now live happily alcohol-free by choice, while still holding space for a million different ways to be around alcohol for others. If you've ever felt like alcohol is your reward, your way to decompress, your “me time,” or simply something that has more control over you than you'd like—this episode will help you feel less alone, more understood, and much better equipped to start changing your relationship with alcohol in a kind, non-judgmental way. Key Takeaways (from Emma) I don't teach “quit or fail”; I teach a third way of being with alcohol that's based on curiosity, not willpower or white-knuckling. A take-it-or-leave-it relationship with alcohol is possible—where booze has no pull, no drama, and becomes a genuine non-issue. The real problem usually isn't alcohol itself; it's the underlying needs we're trying to meet—stress relief, social ease, escape, rest, sensory regulation, or “me time.” The Pause means taking a break from taking a break: you can keep drinking while you learn, observe, and gather data about your patterns instead of attacking yourself. Beating ourselves up (“I'm weak, I have no willpower”) doesn't create change; it just dysregulates our nervous system and makes us more likely to drink again. Everything shifts on the other side of awareness: noticing when you first think about alcohol, your rituals, how it tastes and feels, and the true after-effects. My awareness worksheets help you track your thoughts, feelings, routines, and the aftermath of drinking with a non-judgmental, “Martian researcher” mindset. Self-compassion is the antidote to shame and the heart of sustainable change:- Self-kindness instead of self-attack- Common humanity (“I'm not the only one who struggles like this”)- Mindfulness instead of catastrophising and over-identifying with every feeling Many of us drink because being inside our own heads feels like an abusive relationship; the work is to become a soft place to land for ourselves. You do not have to stop drinking to start this work. If you've already stopped, great—stay stopped. If you haven't, you're still in exactly the right place. My Great Aussie Alcohol Experiment builds on these ideas in a small, trauma-informed, neuro-affirming group, helping you move from “stuck in the cycle” to genuine freedom and choice around alcohol.

In this final session of my three-day Festive Alcohol Reset, I walk you through exactly how to move into a “third way” relationship with alcohol - one that isn't miserable, all‑or‑nothing, or based on shame and willpower. I share how we can step into the New Year feeling refreshed, resourced, and connected to our original, unhurt selves, instead of chasing a “new me” from a place of self‑blame. I talk about why slip‑ups are data, not moral failures, how dopamine and our beliefs keep us stuck, and why self‑compassion is non‑negotiable if we want lasting change. We explore painting a vivid vision of a life where booze is a genuine non‑issue, and I walk you through the core pillars I teach in my programs: knowledge, positive emotion, and aligned action - all wrapped in community, curiosity, and kindness. If your intuition is whispering (or yelling) that alcohol is taking more than it's giving, this episode will help you see that you are not broken, you are not alone, and there really is a way to make this feel lighter, easier, and even joyful. Episode Highlights I explain my “third way” approach to alcohol - neither white‑knuckled sobriety nor stuck, unhappy drinking. I share why I rarely use the word “sober” and why language matters so much in how we see ourselves and our choices. I reframe slip‑ups as data points, not proof of failure or lack of character. I walk through the three levels of belief that keep us stuck: Beliefs about the substance (“Alcohol relaxes me”) Beliefs about society (“You can't have fun without booze”) Beliefs about the self (“There's something wrong with me”). I talk about dopamine - why the first drink feels so good, how alcohol hijacks our reward system, and what that means for cravings. I emphasise that problematic drinking is a normal human response to an addictive substance, not a personal defect. I show how real change comes from knowledge → positive emotion → action, not from goals and willpower alone. I guide you to define how you want to feel in your future relationship with alcohol (e.g. free, relieved, fearless), rather than just how much you want to drink. I invite you to paint a detailed day‑in‑the‑life where alcohol is a non‑issue and you wake up clear, present, and proud. I talk about returning to the “OG” you - the original, unmasked, unprotected self beneath the coping strategies. I explain why blame (of self or others) keeps us out of change and steals our power. I encourage using curiosity over criticism whenever a craving or slip shows up: “What need is unmet here?” I highlight how planning and preparation make social and high‑risk situations far easier to navigate. I share why community and group coaching are so powerful for dissolving shame and showing us we are not alone. I invite listeners into my Aussie Alcohol Experiment, explaining how it helps you cultivate a genuine take‑it‑or‑leave‑it relationship with alcohol, on your own terms.

In this special episode of Midlife AF, I guide you through the first part of my three-day Festive alcohol reset designed especially for the wild, wobbly space between Christmas and New Year. I share how I went from looking “fine” on the outside - successful career, running half marathons, oysters and champagne - to feeling utterly broken inside, waking at 3am gripped by shame, anxiety, and promises to myself I couldn't keep. I introduce a different, deeply compassionate way to change your relationship with alcohol - one that doesn't rely on willpower, punishment, or labels, and doesn't even require you to stop drinking to begin. We explore grounding, awareness, and self‑trust, and I explain why you drink for very valid reasons, how dopamine hijacks your brain, and why self‑compassion (not self‑criticism) is the heart of sustainable change. You'll also hear about my work with women in midlife, my own journey through burnout, bullying at work, neurodivergence, and parenting quirky teens, and how becoming alcohol free has allowed me to become the calm space in my family's chaos. This is an invitation to pause, get curious, and start gently repairing your relationship with alcohol - and with yourself. Episode Highlights I created this three‑day Festive Reset as a gentle space between Christmas and New Year to repair, reconnect, and refresh your relationship with alcohol. You absolutely do not need to stop drinking to start this work; you can change your relationship with alcohol while still drinking. My approach goes deeper than “top 10 tips” and willpower - it's built on neuroscience, psychology, and compassionate inquiry. I share my own story: from high‑functioning, overachieving, “healthy” drinker to burned‑out, anxious, and waking at 3am full of shame. On the outside I looked like I had it all together; on the inside I felt like a terrible mum, partner, and person constantly failing herself. Alcohol was my off‑switch from a life crammed with caregiving, a demanding corporate job, neurodivergent kids, and zero bandwidth. Discovering my own and my children's neurodivergence reframed so much of my past drinking as a coping strategy, not a moral failing. Today I'm happily alcohol free, and far more able to be the “calm space” in my world - even when life is still messy and hard. We start this episode with grounding and breathwork to show how regulating your nervous system can give you what you're seeking from that first drink. A key goal is rebuilding self‑trust after years of making and breaking promises to yourself about when and how much you'll drink. Awareness work (like my awareness worksheets) helps you see your triggers, patterns, routines, and the real reasons you drink. Everything you do with alcohol, you do for a reason - usually to escape suffering (loneliness, stress, overwhelm, boredom, pain). Self‑compassion is the core of this methodology: we swap judgment for curiosity and punishment for kindness. I lean on Kristin Neff's three components of self‑compassion: self‑kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness (you have experiences; you're not your experiences). Shame and willpower‑based approaches often keep people “white‑knuckling” sobriety for years without real freedom. Dopamine is a survival chemical: your brain thinks alcohol is vital because it delivers a fast, powerful dopamine hit when you're dysregulated. When you “slip,” instead of spiraling into blame, you can ask, “What was going on for me? How was I feeling? What did I need?” Community - especially among women who “get it”—is incredibly healing; you realize you're not uniquely broken, you're completely human. The ultimate aim is a take it or leave it relationship with alcohol and a much more loving, trusting relationship with yourself.