Ali Press is a counsellor who specialises in helping neurodivergent people get sober. Ali didn't realise until she got sober that a lot of her struggles were because of being neurodivergent and how understanding this can provide great clarity and relief while navigating the sober world. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Diane Bell is an independent filmmaker and director whose first movie made a splash at the Sundance Film Festival. Born in Scotland into a big drinking culture, she could never conceive of a life without alcohol in it, until one day she woke up and realised how much better she felt without it and how much culture (including Film and TV) misleads us into believing alcohol was glamourous and exciting. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Veronica explores how fear is the engine of an alcohol problem and how all humans experience fear. But no one talks about fear, we hide it deep inside of ourselves. She outlines some simple methods you could try to manage your fear and how the work of sobriety is learning how to manage our fear. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Arlina Allen has been sober for thirty years and has written a book that clears up a lot of the misinformation about 12-step programs. They discuss the difference between the fellowship and the program and the common blocks people experience when trying to work the 12 steps. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Ben Walden joins Veronica to delve into the complexities of sobriety for individuals on the autism spectrum. Dr. Walden sheds light on the challenges of diagnosing autism, a topic that often remains in the shadows. He stresses that new research is constantly emerging, keeping the audience informed and aware. Dr. Walden also discusses the integral role of community and group work in addiction recovery, while acknowledging the unique struggles individuals with autism may face in group...

Veronica is joined by a former client who got sober in one of her programs when she was 29. Now, two years later, she talks about how much her life has changed and how great her sobriety is. Creating community and connection was vital for her sobriety to become sustainable. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bria Gadd is the 'period whisperer', a certified holistic health coach she helps women navigate the peri menopause and the hormonal transitions women go through. She explains how women get themselves into 'health debt' and how women can manage the supply and demand of energy. And of course, one of the best ways to get out of health debt is to stop drinking alcohol. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Veronica and Chip discuss the serious issue of pain management and sobriety. How does someone in recovery navigate pain management if they need to take opioids for pain relief? What are the pitfalls? How does someone in recovery navigate pain management? They share their experience and advice. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Duane Osterlind is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who specialises in helping people overcome sex addiction. He explains that sex addiction is a way to get connection and intimacy but remains unfulfilling and compulsive. Duane explains that it's essential to understand how shame factors into sex addiction and that dealing with shame is crucial to recovery. He also talks about how it affects partners and the trauma of betrayal. But that a marriage can survive, and someone can recover...

Early sobriety is a unique experience, not to be judged or assumed as a reflection of the long term. Veronica shared her insights into the processes that unfold in the first year. The physical changes, the brain's self-repair, and the emotional processes are all part of this unique journey. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Artist and director of the Create Now Academy Sarah Gillespie joins Veronica to discuss The Call of the Self. How addiction prevents us being who we really are. And that the calling of an artist is the same as the calling to stop drinking. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breaking the cycle of drinking - Bonus episode Sign up here: https://go.soberful.com/break-the-cycle Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Veronica breaks down why emotional sobriety is essential if you want to stay sober, what it is and how it works. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we are going to learn what it's like to be in a relationship with someone who is deep into addiction. Imagine being a young woman who gets involved with an older man who dazzles her. Imagine that you get pregnant by that man, and despite promising that he would stand by you, he, in fact, abandons you and denies paternity. Imagine that man gets sober and remarries, and his whole family pretends that you and your child don't exist. Imagine that man is the son of the most...

How do you know if you are one? Chip takes Veronica through the criteria you need to meet to find out how serious your alcohol problem is. The outcome will shock you. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Codependency is the fear of someone else's feelings. Veronica does a deep-dive with Dr. Sarah Michaud who talks about her book 'Co-crazy - One Psychologist's Recovery from Codependency and Addiction. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this solo episode, Veronica explains why an alcohol problem appears on the inside long before it appears on the outside. Most people think an alcohol problem is a homeless person or someone who gets DUIs. Veronica explains how that is misleading, and an alcohol problem shows up in our feelings (shame, guilt, fear, anxiety) long before anyone can see it. We become adept at hiding how we feel and what is happening. She also explains how no one realises when their drinking crosses the line,...

An alcohol problem shows up on the inside long before it shows up on the outside. When people saw Julie, she looked like an attractive, busy mom who had everything: a great husband, a business and a great lifestyle. What they couldn't see was how she felt on the inside, the shame, self-loathing and guilt from her drinking. Julie looked for help from a wellness professional who told her to drink organic wine as it was better for you and from a therapist who told her as she didn't drink in...

Veronica and Chip discuss the rise of microdosing. Is microdosing just high-end drinking? Dressed up drug taking? Or, does it have the ability to help people navigate life and heal trauma? To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Laura Willoughby from Club Soda joins Veronica to discuss how the alcohol market has changed and continues to change. They start by remembering what drinking was like for them in the 1990's, how they were encouraged as women to drink until they passed out. They then look at how much the culture has shifted, with young people either choosing not to drink or drinking occasionally. Laura explains that the alcohol-free market is continuing to expand and that, yes, you can get a good alcohol-free...

When we get stuck in blame, we become powerless. Chip and Veronica explore how we blame circumstances and other people for our alcohol problem. Blaming is a psychological defence mechanism to justify our drinking behaviour, but it also means we stay stuck in a harmful place. Everybody has 'stuff'. Lots of people who have a drug or alcohol problem had childhood experiences that were harmful, hurtful or abusive. These need to be validated and acknowledged so healing can take place, but...

The mother-daughter relationship is one of the most important and powerful relationships of our lives. But it can also be one of the hardest. From the unrealistic expectations placed on mothers to navigating when daughters change from children to adolescents to women. Daughters learn what being a woman is like from their mothers, and they may not necessarily want to be like their mothers. Hilary Mae is a therapist who specialises in the mother-daughter relationship and helps women navigate...

The biggest obstacle to getting sober is the Fear Of Missing Out (or FOMO). But what are we scared of missing out on? In this episode, Chip and Veronica explore how feelings of missing out are very human because we are programmed to belong and connect. When we analyse what we are afraid of missing out on if we stop drinking, it is very undefinable. We have a fantasy in our heads about how we think drinking is going to be, but the reality is very different. Chip and Veronica also explore how...

Social media is addiction by design. Dr. Nicholas Kardaras joins Veronica to talk about social media addiction and how it was deliberately designed to hijack our dopamine system and get us hooked. It's digital candy and we are enticed into displaying our idealised internal lives. Dr. Kardaras explains how predatory algorithms work and how they are responsible for creating a mental health crisis for young people. To learn more, visit the show notes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...