Finding Joy Without the Bottle | Building an Alcohol-Free Lifestyle That Lasts |Lauren's Naked Life | E798

This Naked Mind Podcast

Annie Grace

Mental Health, Education, Self-improvement, Health & Fitness

4.7 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 3 May 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What if the anxiety you've lived with for years could disappear by changing just one habit? Lauren never questioned the drinking culture she grew up with in the UK, where pubs were central to every social occasion. When the pandemic hit shortly after her move to Canada, she began noticing how alcohol had shifted from enjoyment to an unsatisfying habit. Through research and repeatedly listening to This Naked Mind, Lauren began building an alcohol-free lifestyle that lasts, taking extended breaks from drinking that revealed surprising benefits—including the complete disappearance of her anxiety. In this episode, she shares her journey of ups and downs, the importance of self-compassion after slip-ups, and how she's found more genuine joy and connection without alcohol at the center of her life. In this episode, Annie and Lauren discuss: From British pub culture to questioning alcohol's role How the pandemic revealed problematic drinking patterns The process of building an alcohol-free lifestyle that lasts Why tracking "failures" can be counterproductive The complete disappearance of anxiety after reducing alcohol Discovering genuine joy without drinking The surprising impact on hormone health and overall wellness Finding alternatives to "chasing the high" after activities Recognizing the link between alcohol and emotional stability Creating new traditions beyond drinking culture And other topics… Episode links: Related Episodes: EP 445: Finding Joy with Catherine Gray - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-445-finding-joy-with-catherine-gray/ EP 448: What I Wish I Knew Before My First Drink – The Thief of Joy - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-448-what-i-wish-i-knew-before-my-first-drink-the-thief-of-joy/ EP 20: Reader Question – What do You do about Missing the “High” from Drinking? - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-20-reader-question-what-do-you-do-about-missing-the-high-from-drinking/ Ready to take the next step on your journey? Visit https://learn.thisnakedmind.com/podcast-resources for free resources, programs, and more. Until next week, stay curious!

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to This Naked Mind with Annie Grace.
0:14.7	Hi, this is Annie Grace and welcome to This Naked Mind podcast, and I am here with Lauren. Hi, Lauren. How are you?
0:21.6	Good. How are you doing, Annie? I'm really good. Thanks so much for joining. Yeah, no problem. Awesome. So why don't you
0:27.0	take us back to the beginning in your relationship with alcoholic? Where did it all start for you?
0:32.5	Yeah, absolutely. So yeah, so I'm now, so I'm from the UK. So, I mean, I'm sure it's like everywhere, but it's definitely a big part of the culture, right?
0:40.3	I mean, everyone, ever since I was probably, as long as I can remember, it's just been around alcohol as a total normal part of, like, my upbringing.
0:48.7	Like, we as kids, like my family would be, we'd be in pubs all the time.
0:53.6	Like, we would be like, right, adults
0:55.0	are going off having some drinks. Here you go kids, go play some pinball or go play in the room
0:59.6	together. We're all just going to sit around and have some drinks and stuff. And yeah, it was just
1:03.3	like totally a normal thing to be around. I remember being as young as like three, four years
1:08.0	old and just being around drunk adults all the time. It was just a normal
1:11.7	thing, like not in an aggressive way, in a bad way. It was always a happy place to be around in that
1:16.9	respect. But as a young kid, you're just like being passed around by all these different
1:21.0	adults who are all drunk and having a great time, but you're just like, well, feel are you.
1:24.9	Like, it was very strange to see your parents.
1:28.1	You see them one way, like days a day.
1:30.8	And then when they're drunk, they shoot them in a totally different light.
1:34.2	They're just like, yeah, very different people to be around a bit more in your face and everything.
1:38.2	So it's, yeah, pretty strange to see that as a child.
1:41.0	And then, yeah, as I'm sure everyone else is the same, you'd be
1:44.5	every occasion drinking, weddings, funerals, get together. And I think especially in the UK,
	...

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