I never saw myself in any of the images of addiction that we see in the media; I couldn't even see myself in the clients I worked with in the mental health field as a social worker and therapist. And yet, I found myself in a deeply toxic love triangle with cheap (iced) sauv blanc and my couch. As a young mother with very few resources, a hefty dose of postpartum depression, and a desire to find community in the Mom Club, I bought into Mommy Wine Culture hook, line, and sinker. It was my nightly ritual — decompressing from another stressful day of parenting with a glass (or five) of wine after the baby went to bed. And it snuck up on me; first it was a glass, then two, then a bottle, then a couple times a week, then every night.
I knew that I wasn't an alcoholic, but I also knew that drinking a bottle (sometimes more, if it was around) a night wasn't *awesome* either. It wasn't until I saw myself in another woman's story that I was given the courage to change my own drinking habits — to step into a life without alcohol on my own terms. I quit drinking on September 29, 2017, and though it hasn't been a linear journey, it has given me the gift of myself, again.
Now, I marry my clinical experience as a licensed therapist with my four years of experience living without alcohol to help other women make positive changes in their own alcohol use. I know her, I see her deeply, because I was her — using a socially acceptable coping mechanism to get through another day of this *waves wildly.* But there's a different way, a better way. One that honors her physical body, her emotional heart, and her mental health — one that feels really, really good.
My work is rooted in clinical theory and evidence-based modalities, mixed with a bit of my own "woo woo" stuff. Around here, we love neuroscience AND trusting our intuition.
I believe firmly that there is no one right way to change your relationship with alcohol or be a person in the world who doesn't drink alcohol. Just as our alcohol use is often on a spectrum, we often recover from it in beautifully diverse ways. The only one right way to do this is to do it in a way that works for you.