Journey to the Sunnyside Why “Just Quit Drinking” Never Worked for Me w/ Claudia Christian
Claudia Christian is an actress, author, and leading advocate for evidence-based approaches to alcohol use disorder. She’s best known for her roles on Babylon 5, NYPD Blue, and 24, as well as for her widely viewed TEDx talk on alcohol recovery, which has been watched by millions of people worldwide.
In this conversation, Claudia shares why being told to “just quit drinking” never worked for her, despite years of trying. We talk about cravings, relapse cycles, and why willpower alone often isn’t enough to change drinking habits. Claudia explains how naltrexone helped quiet the mental and physical noise around alcohol, and what most people misunderstand about medication, side effects, and consistency.We also go beyond the biology.
Claudia reflects on trauma, learned coping patterns, and why the deeper work matters once cravings begin to fade. This episode is about expanding options, reducing harm, and offering a more realistic and compassionate way to change your relationship with alcohol.
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ABOUT SUNNYSIDE:
Sunnyside is the #1 alcohol health app that helps you drink less without any shame, guilt, or pressure to quit. Optimize your alcohol habits to achieve benefits like sleeping better, losing weight, feeling more energy, and saving money. We know that an all-or-nothing approach doesn’t work for everyone, so we focus on helping you set your own goals, celebrate small wins, and build a lasting system of accountability. As a result, 96.7% of our members see a big drop in their drinking after 90 days.
We now offer Sunnyside Med, a new program that provides access to compounded naltrexone, a medication that can reduce alcohol cravings at the brain level, offering a more clinical pathway for people who need it. Sunnyside Med is a complete, holistic approach to help you drink less or quit, including coaching, community, habit change, education, and more to help you create longterm change while the medication does its work.
Disclaimer: This podcast is not intended as medical advice, and the views of the guests may not represent the views of Sunnyside. If you’re concerned about your health or alcohol use, please consider seeking advice from a doctor.