Stop Over-drinking and Start Living

This episode explores that we are trading off discomfort tomorrow for comfort today when we choose to drink off plan. And that the discomfort is not equal. The discomfort you will feel tomorrow is a lot bigger than the discomfort you will feel today. If you say yes to a drink today and it's not planned, you will have a little bit of comfort in that you won't have to work through your urges or feel...

Have you heard of my mini-course, Say YES to Drinking Less? Well, if not, tune in and hear about it. It all goes down next week, Aug 21-25, 2023. You can sign up right now for it here:  www.angelamascenik.com/say-yes . And hear what only people who over-drink think to themselves... sounds like 'If I don't drink, I'll worry, I'll be boring...' People who don't drink, don't think that. People w...

Wow! You are in for a very special treat this week as I invited my Alive AF! clients, Amy and Emily on the podcast to share their stories.   Amy and Emily are sisters-in-law, and they are married to twin brothers! They have known each other since elementary school and ended up marrying twins!   They share what was going on with their drinking before joining Alive AF! and where they are n...

We got home one day ago from a 6-week cross country and back road trip! Please tune in and hear my personal highlights of that trip and some of our fun activities. And how you can reacclimatize to 'normal' life that doesn't include extreme measures and restrictive dieting. I discuss how focusing on ONE thing for the first 24 hours is super helpful and will keep your mind from spinning on what you...

This episode dives into the concept of Restriction. I might be a bit controversial here, but I don't think Restriction around alcohol is a bad thing. We restrict ourselves from doing all sorts of things, right? I restrict myself from yelling at my kids constantly and eating all the junk food. And I want to restrict myself from these things. The act of restricting usually comes from feeling bad abo...

I can't wait for you to listen to this week's episode!   I just got back from an overnight in the Napa Valley Wine Region!   I haven't been there since I stopped drinking.   I share what I did, my thoughts about being sober in Napa, and more. I also expand on how when we cut back on drinking, we have more space in our lives to address unresolved issues and decide how we want to live...

This episode dives into the concept of 'pre-stressing.' You know, it's what we do when we have something coming up, and we get ourselves all freaked out about it, and then once we get to the event, we realize it wasn't such a big deal, and we wish we didn't spend so much time stressing over it? YUP, pre-stressing, it's a thing, and I'm teaching you how to manage that (very normal human condition)...

The episode you have been waiting for!   In this episode, I reflect on my recent trip to Las Vegas and how it differed from my previous trips when I would over-drink and party the night away.   I also discuss how to think ahead with intention when you travel and the importance of setting expectations with your family or friends you are traveling with.   And I share more details of m...

In this episode, I break down the trifecta of what causes us to over-drink. 1. We are actually designed to get addicted to things; it's part of our survival programming. 2. Our societal and cultural programming plays a big part in how we view alcohol and what we think about using it. 3. And finally, our lack of skill to be with our feelings. I dive deep into each of these areas and expand on why w...

Coach Steph joins me today to discuss the most common setbacks women experience when working on cutting back on how much they are drinking.   These are common themes that we see over and over again when clients ask for coaching. The reasons why they are not seeing the progress that they want to see: Fear of failing Waiting for the “right” time Telling themselves they don’t have the time Belie...

Ep. 231 Pivoting   When should I pivot?   We need to be flexible in our well-laid plans.   Like on vacation, we know that not everything will play out exactly as planned.   And when you make a drink plan or are working on your relationship with alcohol, it goes without saying that things can change, and we need to be flexible.   Tune in and listen to this week’s episode, a...

I know what it’s like to be stuck and over-drinking and not believing in myself and feeling overwhelmed and anxious and often resentful AND using alcohol for all the good times too. However, I also know what it's like to come out of that situation and let me tell you, it's absolutely worth the effort. It may take some time and uncomfortable moments as you face your urges, but trust me, being free...

What isn't working? I share some of my adventures in Ireland, AND a very important question was asked that we all need to ask ourselves regularly... What isn't working? What isn't working for you, right now, in your life? This episode explores how alcohol might not work for you and how you can get clear on that and then helps you move forward with deciding what you will do about it. The good news...

This week I am discussing why 'just being positive' doesn't work. When things are hard, and you or your loved ones are going through a rough time, and you have negative feelings about it, telling yourself, 'stay positive' or 'look on the bright side' doesn't work and can actually cause harm. This is also called 'spiritual bypassing' 'toxic positivity,' or I call it 'steamrolling yourself.' It's wh...

Welcome back to the podcast! This week I explore tapping into your intuition and what you already know to be true about you and your relationship with alcohol. I recommend you have a notebook/journal and give yourself some quiet space to listen to this podcast. I take you through a process of quieting your mind and connecting with your breath and body so that you can be quiet and distraction-free...

This week's podcast is another one addressing your biggest obstacles in stopping over-drinking.  I discuss how to handle it when your spouse/husband/partner has a regular drinking habit (it's not what you think!) Addressing the range of feelings you have when you live with someone (p.s. NEGATIVE feelings are part of living with someone, learning how to be with those feelings instead of drinki...

Welcome back to the podcast. This week, I will help you examine why you are scared to change your relationship with alcohol and why you love the Buzz so much. These two topics will help ease your worries about what you think you will experience if you work on cutting back on how much you are drinking. It all comes down to our minds and how it's wired to keep us the same and comfortable. When we wa...

Hiiii! I’m baaack! I just got back from getting my forest therapy certification, and I am so excited! My goal is to teach as many people as possible to stop numbing out, start living again, and feel more ALIVE! And, this is another tool that I have to do so. In this episode, I update you on what is going on with my Alive AF! Membership. Registration at the founder’s rate will close at midnight on...

“Do you help me learn to moderate or to quit drinking?” This is a question that I am often asked by my clients and followers. AND…. The answer is NEITHER! What I do is help YOU decide what is best for you. In this podcast rewind, I shared some feedback I received from a long-time AA advocate who was worried I was giving real alcoholics false positive hope in offering help to drink less versus...

This episode take you into a Masterclass I hosted earlier this week called How to Stop Over-drinking, and we address the fundamentals of how YOU hold the key to drinking less and making it stick. I teach about the motivational triad (seek pleasure, avoid pain, save energy) and how this human function drives us to create patterns or "habits" that aren't always the best thing for us. We also discuss...

Today's episode goes deep into our over-desire for alcohol, and urges. We over-drink because we have an over-desire for alcohol. Over-desire is created by the consistent drinking we do in response to our emotions and urges. Over-desire is built up over time and it's a learned behavior that can be unlearned by learning how to be with your desires and how to process your urges. In this episode I tea...

I recently asked my followers what their #1 struggle was in stopping over-drinking. We categorized all the responses that came in. Having a complicated life was ranked #1. Meaning, from all the responses we received, this was the most common response. Women who are managing older parents, kids, work, their own health, and having complicated relationships, plus any other issues that arise in life.....

This is a special conversation with my new friend and colleague, Allyson Scammell.   I met Allyson during my retreat to Morocco this past fall.   Allyson and I initially didn't think we would be going to Morocco, but there we were, there and experiencing a week of magic and wonder.   In this conversation, we dove into saying yes to these types of opportunities and how you can tune i...

In  this episode, I explore how we might always have painful emotions from something that happened to us in our past.   The goal isn't to 'get rid of' or 'move on' past these feelings.   The goal should be to accept them, validate them, and learn how to be with them when they come up.   When we have thoughts like 'I wish I didn't keep feeling this way' or 'I want to forget abou...

In this episode I discuss how to be joyful and feel alive as you stop over-drinking. The reason so many of us over-drink is because we are using it as a reward for #allthethings we do each and everyday. However, #allthethings don't typically include doing fun and joyful things for ourselves, so at the end of the day we are in desperate need to reward ourselves and relax, so cue 'it's WINE TIME!' A...