This is Annie Grace and you're listening to this naked mind podcast where without judgment,

pain or rules, we explore the role of alcohol in our lives and culture.

Hi, this is Annie Grace and welcome to this naked mind podcast. I'm so excited to be here with Laura as someone I've got to meet in real life recently, which is super fun.

So welcome.

Thank you so much for having me. I am stoked to be here. It's definitely an honor.

And I'm so glad that I went to the book signing and waited outside until the end when I could finally get in to say hello.

Yeah, so let's see, we met at the book signing and I gave you one of my protein bars for my business, which was such an honor to be able to do that because that was basically me getting sober, allowed me to start a business.

And so sobriety for me was important and it was a much needed thing. I basically had been a party girl for most of my life.

I feel like from 18 to probably 35. And so I've also worked in the service industry for the majority of that time and the two kind of go hand in hand.

And I've done other things as well. They're avenues of work, but gosh, let's see. Okay, so, yeah, so take us back all the way to the beginning, like your first drink and what that looks like for you.

I feel like my first drink was probably at 16 out of someone's parents liquor cabinet. It was absolutely disgusting.

And I don't really think I started drinking. And so my one year of college and had a lot of fun in college. I definitely flunked out due to all of my party.

But yeah, it just kind of really, I don't think ever ended. I'm a very social person. I love being around people and with friends. I love going out.

That's still kind of the case today. I'm a bit more of a home by now. But yeah, and you know, you have a drink and then you know, one turns into a few and then other things might come into play, which are, you know, at the time they feel like fun and it's exciting.

It's really not hangovers are never very fun. I don't enjoy the blacking out aspect. And so I might need a little direction. So sorry, I'm like, my with my story.

Yeah, so.

You were, you had your first drink at 16 didn't taste good. Didn't feel good. Then he went to college and your first year in college. Was it kind of like, okay, this is good. This is fun. This is helping me. Or was it kind of the kind of do you feel around about alcohol and college.

So it was definitely a fun thing that you did. Everyone drank. So get on the bandwagon of drinking. It was part of that.

You know, I finally grown up. I can drink now. And even though for most of us when we start college, you're not even 21 yet. So we go, you can't. It's just still something that you do.

So college ended and I ended up working in cosmetics for a long time, which is really fun. And continued drinking during that. I would say, and then I moved to Minnesota. And I'm so sorry.

I moved to Minnesota and with my parents at the time and stayed with cosmetic stayed drinking had so many great friends.

And drink a lot. Was it something I did up doing?

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