Susan’s Sobriety Journey: A Squiggly Line
For today's blog, I’m thrilled to share Susan's progress on her sobriety journey. Susan participated in my Sober October 2024 Group Coaching Course & Alcohol-Free Challenge and had some successes throughout the month. Her goal was simply to drink less, which she accomplished! She also wanted to pick up some new tools and strategies, which she's now putting into practice, building new habits.
Susan signed up for my 6-month Reach New Heights signature coaching package in November, and while she hasn't been 100% alcohol-free, she said working with a life coach has been definitely helpful!
At 67 years young and a retiree, she's successfully gone a week at a time alcohol-free, and has had a drink here and there in between over the past 2 months. As a sobriety coach, I fully support this approach!
It's important to me to work with my clients and support their goals, while not projecting my own opinions. I also believe in progress -- not perfection -- when it comes to quitting drinking because I know how hard it is! Going cold-turkey often doesn't work for people. Susan calls it, "weaning herself off of her nightly wine."
Even in these early days, here are some of the benefits she's noticing:
Sleep has improved
More alert during her daily walks with her girlfriends
"There's more pep in my step"
Some of the strategies that are working for her:
Hiring a coach!
Understanding that eating out is a big trigger for her. To combat this, making a plan ahead of time (using the "Play the Movie Forward" technique) before going out for a meal to order iced tea or soda water with lime
Sitting at a table instead of at the bar when she goes out to restaurants
Not having wine in the house
Spending more time with friends that don't drink
Telling people in advance of a social gathering that she won't be drinking and
Bringing her own AF options to social events
Taking one day at a time
Reading "Quit Lit" books such as This Naked Mind and The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober
I'm honored to be her sobriety coach; the "guide by her side," as she's going through this challenging process of gradually quitting drinking. I’ll be sure to share more of her story in future blog posts. She in the early days, but she's doing amazing and I'm rooting for her!
