Stop Over-drinking and Start Living

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.

Please enjoy this podcast rewind:

This episode is a further exploration of Decisions. If you haven't listened to Part 1, please do that first, https://www.angelamascenik.com/podcasts/stop-over-drinking-and-start-living/episodes/2148935056

This episode dives into AFTER we made a decision, how to evaluate that decision, especially if you didn't experience the outcome of the decision that you really wanted to.

I also discuss how to keep making more decisions that have this new insight you received after being in the outcome of the original decision.

Also learn how to have your own back around the decisions you made no matter the outcome.

Decision making is a huge process when you are trying to change unwanted behavior. It's really important to learn how to make and evaluate decisions that have your goals in mind instead of reacting to your mind's primitive needs and wants!

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 about or apply to for the Transformation Program visit angelamascenik.com/transformationprogram.

Please enjoy this Podcast Rewind:

This episode is going to help you become aware of your automatic or unconscious decision making process.

Once you see HOW you are making decisions you can decide with more intention on the outcome you want to have versus just your automatic quick or knee jerk decisions.

This is a skill that you can use for any decision you are contemplating or to evaluate how you've make past decisions.

Changing your relationship with alcohol comes with a lot of decisions to make.

Please listen to this informative Part 1 Decision making episode to gain awareness so you can make the best possible decisions for you!

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 about or apply to for the Transformation Program visit angelamascenik.com/transformationprogram.

I've been sitting with a thought this week that I can't stop thinking about: transformation requires transparency.

You cannot have one without the other.

We all know too well the toxic cycle of sneaking, hiding, avoiding, and disregarding how much our drinking is impacting us, mostly from the inside. If you truly want to transform your relationship with alcohol you need to start getting honest and be transparent.

Additionally, I'm sharing what came up on a recent Q+A, the moment when every woman on the call recognized that she was using alcohol to solve an emotional problem. They knew it. They could name it. And yet knowing it and actually being able to sit with the discomfort instead of reaching for a drink, that's a completely different skill.

In this episode I talk about the impact of staying hidden and the 3 things that might make transformation possible for you.

THIS EPISODE IS FOR YOU IF:

You know what to do but you're not doing it and you can't figure out why

You've tried cutting back, taking breaks, making rules and nothing has stuck permanently

You recognize that you drink to take the edge off or unwind but you haven't been able to stop

You feel like you're doing the work but something is still missing

You're tired of hiding this from the people you love and from yourself

You're ready to stop managing your drinking and actually transform your relationship with it

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.