Stop Over-drinking and Start Living

Quick update episode before I head out to walk the Camino! A few episodes ago, I told you about coming off my medication and sleep aids, the brain zaps, and the nights I barely slept.

Here's where things landed: I'm fully off everything, sleeping better than I have in months, and I'm sharing exactly what worked.

I'm also telling you about the day I broke my own rule, paid for it until 12:30am, and what I did the next morning — because that part is the whole lesson. If you've ever blown a boundary with alcohol and used it as a reason to give up on the whole thing, this one's for you.

In this episode, you'll learn:

The full update on coming off sleep aids and medication, including the last little crutch I didn't even realize I was using

The two simple changes that made the biggest difference in my sleep

What happened the day I broke my own caffeine boundary (and why it felt exactly like drinking)

How to get back to a boundary after you break it, without the shame spiral or the "I'll start Monday" trap

Why your body knows how to get back to baseline when you stop interfering

Quick reminder: this is my personal experience with medication. Always talk to your doctor before starting or stopping anything.

Also, I recommend you listen to 'How to Stop Talking Yourself Out of It When It Gets Uncomfortable' before you listen to this one, to get the full context! Listen to that here:
https://www.angelamascenik.com/podcasts/stop-over-drinking-and-start-living/episodes/2149227702

Now accepting applications for the next cohort of the Transformation Program, check that out here: https://www.angelamascenik.com

ABOUT ANGELA:
Angela Mascenik is a certified stop over-drinking coach for women and the host of the Stop Over-Drinking and Start Living podcast. She helps high-achieving women get to the root of why they drink and change their relationship with alcohol from the inside out — without white-knuckling it or relying on willpower. Angela is the creator of the 6-month Transformation Program, the Alive AF! membership, and The Magic House Retreat Center in Lisbon, Portugal.

If you've ever thought "I've wasted so many years drinking," this episode is going to change how you see your entire story.

It started with Madonna- a line about how the deepest darkness holds the greatest light. And it perfectly captures something psychologists have been studying for decades: post-traumatic growth.

The research shows that women who go through hard seasons — including years of over-drinking, and actually process them, come out the other side with deeper relationships, more appreciation for life, and a strength they never had before.

The growth comes from processing the pain, and just time alone won't do it.

In this episode, I break down the five research-backed ways post-traumatic growth shows up and I share the tips for actually getting there.

I promise your drinking years aren't wasted years. They're the material for the best years of your life.

Now accepting applications for the next cohort of the Transformation Program, check that out here: https://www.angelamascenik.com/transformationprogram

I've updated my website, check out my new about me page: www.angelamascenik.com/

ABOUT ANGELA:
Angela Mascenik is a certified stop over-drinking coach for women and the host of the Stop Over-Drinking and Start Living podcast. She helps high-achieving women get to the root of why they drink and change their relationship with alcohol from the inside out — without white-knuckling it or relying on willpower. Angela is the creator of the 6-month Transformation Program, the Alive AF! membership, and The Magic House Retreat Center in Lisbon, Portugal.

Let's discuss intuition.

In this episode, I'm telling you the full story of how one small decision to listen to my body last fall led to the biggest, most magical thing in my business and my life.

Last year I had a two week trip planned with my friend Sarah. On paper it was a dream. But as it got closer, something in my body kept whispering, this is too much. And instead of pushing through like I would have during my drinking years, I said it out loud.

Then Sarah asked me one question that changed everything.

In this episode, we're talking about intuition. What it actually feels like in your body, what science says about when you can trust it, and why twenty years of over-drinking teaches you to mute the very signals that are trying to guide you.

You'll learn:

Why gut feelings are literal (your body sends way more information to your brain than your brain sends back)

The one question to ask yourself when you can't tell what you really want

Why your intuition about your own needs is the most reliable kind, according to research

How wine becomes the tool we use to drown out the "something's off" whisper

What honoring your intuition actually gives you (hint: I'm keeping this honest, no fairy tales)

www.angelamascenik.com << check out my new and refreshed website!
www.angelamascenik.com/magichousefounderscircle << 1 shared spot left! Grab it before it's gone!

ABOUT ANGELA:
Angela Mascenik is a certified stop over-drinking coach for women and the host of the Stop Over-Drinking and Start Living podcast. She helps high-achieving women get to the root of why they drink and change their relationship with alcohol from the inside out — without white-knuckling it or relying on willpower. Angela is the creator of the 6-month Transformation Program, the Alive AF! membership, and The Magic House Retreat Center in Lisbon, Portugal.

You decided this morning you weren't drinking tonight. Then 5pm rolls around, the day was long, and the debate starts: "Maybe just one. I don't want to be left out. I'll start fresh Monday."

In this episode, I'm sharing a very personal story about coming off anti-anxiety medication and sleep aids during our move to Lisbon, the brutal side effects nobody warned me about, and the two nights I barely slept at all.

What got me through was one skill: allowing the discomfort WHILE my brain also wanted to talk me out of it.

In this episode, you'll learn:

My experience stopping a low-dose anti-anxiety and what the withdrawal was actually like (brain zaps, body aches, sleepless nights, stomach issues.. all of it)

Why I decided to come off everything before walking the Camino, including sleep aids

The difference between allowing discomfort and white-knuckling through it

Why deciding ahead of time changes everything, and how the 2 am moment becomes just following through

Quick note: this is my personal experience with medication. Always talk to your doctor before starting or stopping anything. This is not medical advice.

www.angelamascenik.com << check out my new and refreshed website!
Magic House Founders Circle www.angelamascenik.com/magichousefounderscircle << 1 shared spot left! Grab it before it's gone! [5:05 AM]

ABOUT ANGELA:
Angela Mascenik is a certified stop over-drinking coach for women and the host of the Stop Over-Drinking and Start Living podcast. She helps high-achieving women get to the root of why they drink and change their relationship with alcohol from the inside out — without white-knuckling it or relying on willpower. Angela is the creator of the 6-month Transformation Program, the Alive AF! membership, and The Magic House Retreat Center in Lisbon, Portugal.

I'm recording this from my first morning LIVING in Lisbon, Portugal, sitting in The Magic House with a cup of coffee, my family finally here, and this feeling I can only describe as the specific joy of having done the hard thing.

Eighteen months ago I had an idea to move my family to a country I had never been to. No plan. Just a decision. And this morning that decision is my reality.

In this episode I'm sharing what that journey taught me — and exactly how it applies to changing your relationship with alcohol.

Because here's what I know after eight years of doing this work: the women who stay stuck aren't lacking information. They aren't lacking willpower. They're waiting to know how before they decide. And that's backwards. The plan doesn't come before the decision. The plan comes FROM the decision.

We cover:
Why waiting to feel ready keeps you stuck — and what to do instead

The one question that cuts through every excuse: if you knew it would work, would you do it?

What real change actually looks like from the inside — and why the mess doesn't mean you're failing

The grief nobody talks about when you change your relationship with alcohol

And what deciding, actually looks like.

THIS EPISODE IS FOR YOU IF:

You've been thinking about changing your drinking for months or years and you still haven't fully committed

You keep waiting until you feel ready, until things calm down, until after the next event

You know what you want but you don't believe you can actually get there

You've tried before and it didn't stick and you're not sure this time would be different

You want permission to start before you have it all figured out

ABOUT ANGELA:
Angela Mascenik is a certified stop over-drinking coach for women and the host of the Stop Over-Drinking and Start Living podcast. She helps high-achieving women get to the root of why they drink and change their relationship with alcohol from the inside out — without white-knuckling it or relying on willpower. Angela is the creator of the 6-month Transformation Program, the Alive AF! membership, and The Magic House Retreat Center in Lisbon, Portugal.

To learn more or apply for the Transformation Program visit angelamascenik.com/transformationprogram.