Sarah H., a mother of three, shares her enlightening journey of sobriety after realizing that alcohol, once seen as a fun addition to celebrations, had negative effects on her behavior and well-being. She recounts how her perception of drinking changed during motherhood, leading her to explore a sober lifestyle starting with Dry January. Sarah's powerful reflections on grief, empowerment, and the importance of shared stories highlight her evolution towards embracing sobriety, transforming her life and inspiring others along the way.

Real Sober Mom Kim is three months sober! Today, she’s giving us a peek into this extremely important phase of sobriety. Kim experienced postpartum anxiety with her second child. During her recovery, her therapist recommended that a glass of wine a night was no big deal if it helped her wind down, and Kim’s daily drinking began. Despite the fact that Kim was able to moderate, her life began to revolve around her nightly drink. The relief she found in the ritual eventually started to blot out other things in her life. As a therapist, Kim knew she was using drinking was a coping mechanism. Recently, though, it became too much. She found herself intoxicated on the floor of her living room during a night with friends and she asked herself - how would she feel if her kids came home and found her like this? She did not like the answer, and that night, she decided to quit. The next day she joined the first meeting she could find online and her sobriety journey began. The meeting wasn’t a perfect fit, but it was good enough to help support her and keep her going until she found the Cafe. She is so glad she went. At 3 months sober, Kim’s sobriety feels hard, but incredible! She shares about the unexpected anxiety she felt during her first sober month, how it dissipated, and the gorgeous glimmers that are now coming through in her sober life. If you’re struggling with early sobriety, Kim wants to encourage you to keep going! Are you looking for community in sobriety? Join us in the The Sober Mom Life Cafe! For $40/month, you’ll get access to 12 weekly peer support meetings, the exclusive Cafe social feed, our monthly book club and happy hour, the chance to share your story on The Real Sober Moms, and even a monthly Bravo chat! For a limited time, get one week free! We also have The Sober Mom Life Community for just $5.95/month - In the Community, you’ll receive access to the exclusive Community social feed, the exclusive community chat, our monthly book club, and one free weekly meeting. Click here to follow The Sober Mom Life on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our resident scientist, Gill Tietz of SoberPowered, is back on the pod to help us understand the recent US Surgeon General’s report on the link between cancer and alcohol consumption. This link is something that we in the sobriety space have known for a long time, but it is the first time that the government has publicly announced the connection. We’ll talk about how this report might change people’s drinking habits, how alcohol and cancer are related, and even how your body heals as your years of sobriety progress. Plus, Gill and I will share how our five year sober-versaries have felt for each of us! To hear more from Gill, check out The SoberPowered Podcast!  Check out Gill’s past episodes on The Sober Mom Life: An Alcohol Reality Check Your Dry January Dream TeamThe Sober October RoundtableIt’s Not You, it’s the AlcoholAre you looking for community in sobriety? Join us in the The Sober Mom Life Cafe! For $40/month, you’ll get access to 12 weekly peer support meetings, the exclusive Cafe social feed, our monthly book club and happy hour, the chance to share your story on The Real Sober Moms, and even a monthly Bravo chat! For a limited time, get one week free! We also have The Sober Mom Life Community for just $5.95/month - In the Community, you’ll receive access to the exclusive Community social feed, the exclusive community chat, our monthly book club, and one free weekly meeting. Click here to follow The Sober Mom Life on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a fitness professional, Hollie Nicholson always kept alcohol out of her weekdays, but those weekends of drinking still took their toll until, in 2019, she started asking questions. Despite embodying health in many aspects of her life, Hollie faced a personal challenge with alcohol—and one day, she decided she had enough.Every weekend, amidst living a life filled with healthy habits, alcohol was still a part. For the next six years, Hollie drank with the blinders off. She noticed how inconsistent moderation success could be, she learned about the true impacts that alcohol could have on her body and mind, and she felt how good she could feel through stints of sobriety. But still, a question remained: how could you live a full sober life? In May of 2024, shortly after she turned 40, Hollie woke up after a night of drinking with severe anxiety and she asked herself - what if she could live her next decade totally different than her last? At that moment, she had a lot of questions but she knew one thing - she was getting sober. Inspired by the Sober Mom Life community, she embraced the idea that it’s entirely okay to let go of alcohol—no dramatic reasons needed.The Cafe has given Hollie such a sense of support and community. She’s even experienced an incredible connection story with another member that she tells on the pod! Learn more about Hollie’s fitness program for women in mid-life on IG @hollienicholsonstrong or on her website. Are you looking for community in sobriety? Join us in the The Sober Mom Life Cafe!  For a limited time, get one week free! For $40/month, you’ll get access to 12 weekly peer support meetings, the exclusive Cafe social feed, our monthly book club and happy hour, the chance to share your story on The Real Sober Moms, and even a monthly Bravo chat! We also have The Sober Mom Life Community for just $5.95/month - In the Community, you’ll receive access to the exclusive Community social feed, the exclusive community chat, our monthly book club, and one free weekly meeting. Click here to follow The Sober Mom Life on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Samantha dives into her childhood memories of alcohol normalization and her tumultuous relationship with drinking. Panic attacks led her to reconsider her alcohol use, pushing her towards sobriety after struggles with moderation. The conversation highlights the emotional toll alcoholism took on relationships and identity. Samantha shares the profound transformation she's experienced in rediscovering her desires and building a career to help others find freedom in sobriety. Her inspiring journey emphasizes the importance of community and self-awareness in facing anxiety and addiction.

Today’s episode is all about social anxiety in sobriety - that anxiety you get before, during or after an interaction that can just be so hard to handle. Anxiety can be so overwhelming, but there’s good news! It is very treatable and you can find relief. My guest today is Courtney - a good friend, a Sober Mom Life Cafe member, and a therapist! She knows all about this social anxiety, both as a professional and as a person who experiences it regularly herself. You’ll learn what social anxiety is, how it differs from introversion, how to manage your fear of judgment, the importance of self compassion, and Lynn Lyon’s ‘Three Exes’ to manage your anxiety. Plus, Courtney will conclude by guiding us through a self compassion meditation! Resources Courtney recommends: Quiet by Susan Cain Lynn Lyons 10% Happier with Dan HarrisCheck out Courtney’s Real Sober Mom’s interview here! Are you looking for community in sobriety? Join us in the The Sober Mom Life Cafe! For $40/month, you’ll get access to 12 weekly peer support meetings, the exclusive Cafe social feed, our monthly book club and happy hour, the chance to share your story on The Real Sober Moms, and even a monthly Bravo chat! For a limited time, get one week free! We also have The Sober Mom Life Community for just $5.95/month - In the Community, you’ll receive access to the exclusive Community social feed, the exclusive community chat, our monthly book club, and one free weekly meeting. Click here to follow The Sober Mom Life on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s Real Sober Mom, Laura, has given alcohol many ‘jobs’ throughout her life. Growing up with a mom in recovery, she was familiar with the fact that alcohol could be damaging, but she wasn’t clear on the 'how' or 'why'. In fact, as she invited alcohol into her own life, she believed it was helping her. As a teen, it helped her fit in. In college, it helped her feel independent. After a devastating sexual assault, it helped her forgot. And when she became a mom, she believed it would help make motherhood easier. That was not the case. Laura became a mom at the height of Covid. A combination of isolation and postpartum depression drove her to drink in a way that resulted in her concealing the truth about her consumption, and feeling deeper and deeper levels of shame. With the help of a therapist, she began to experiment with removing alcohol from her life to see how it was affecting her mental health. She went back and forth for months, and slowly a pattern started to become clear: Alcohol was not helping her. In fact, it was making her lose so much. Sobriety has helped Laura experience more joy as a mother, show up better at work, and strengthen her relationship with herself. She feels so grateful to be sober! Are you looking for community in sobriety? Join us in the The Sober Mom Life Cafe! For $40/month, you’ll get access to 12 weekly peer support meetings, the exclusive Cafe social feed, our monthly book club and happy hour, the chance to share your story on The Real Sober Moms, and even a monthly Bravo chat! For a limited time, get one week free! We also have The Sober Mom Life Community for just $5.95/month - In the Community, you’ll receive access to the exclusive Community social feed, the exclusive community chat, our monthly book club, and one free weekly meeting. Click here to follow The Sober Mom Life on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s a big day - I’ve now been sober for five years! To celebrate this milestone, we’re turning the tables. I’m in the hot seat and my mom is interviewing me! You’ll hear about my past with alcohol, how I found my path in sobriety, why I took my personal sobriety journey public, my vision for where I want to take this platform in the future, and the things I’ve been most grateful for during these past five years of sobriety. Only one spot is still available for our February retreat! If you’re feeling called to join us, now is the time to sign up. We’ll be gathering at the Mountain Shadows Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona from Feb 27-Mar 2, 2025. Book your spot here. Are you looking for community in sobriety? Join us in the The Sober Mom Life Cafe! For $40/month, you’ll get access to 12 weekly peer support meetings, the exclusive Cafe social feed, our monthly book club and happy hour, the chance to share your story on The Real Sober Moms, and even a monthly Bravo chat! For a limited time, get one week free! We also have The Sober Mom Life Community for just $5.95/month - In the Community, you’ll receive access to the exclusive Community social feed, the exclusive community chat, our monthly book club, and one free weekly meeting. Click here to follow The Sober Mom Life on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gillian shares her journey from a chaotic childhood surrounded by alcohol to realizing its grip on her identity as an adult. She reflects on her first drink at 13 and the years spent underestimating her drinking habits. Personal stories reveal the emotional struggles tied to alcohol, including the wake-up call she experienced during pregnancy. Embracing sobriety opened her eyes to transformation and the strength found in shared narratives, particularly among women. This journey highlights the empowerment that comes from acknowledging and overcoming the challenges of alcohol.

Discover Claire's journey from casual drinking to embracing sobriety. She reflects on her struggle with alcohol and the pressures that led to unintentional overindulgence. Humorous anecdotes about physical affection and introversion add depth to her experiences. Claire shares crucial moments, including a heartfelt goodbye to alcohol, and emphasizes the importance of self-compassion in overcoming shame. With six months of sobriety under her belt, she highlights how community support and shared experiences can foster a positive outlook on this transformative path.