Ep 55: Alcohol and Mental Health: The Conversation Nobody Is Having

EP 57: Why Are You Working So Hard to Keep Alcohol in Your Life?

I have been thinking about this question ever since a woman in one of my groups asked it out loud and I knew I had to dedicate an entire episode to it. She said, "Why am I working so hard to keep this substance in my life?" That's it. That's the whole question. And I promise you, if you sit with it honestly, it will shift something. Because most of us (and I was absolutely one of them) are not asking that question. We're asking how I can moderate better, how I can drink less, and how I can keep the fun part without the consequences. We are in the negotiation cycle endlessly. And this one question interrupts all of it. This is a solo episode, and I go deep on why this question matters, what it reveals, and what to do with it. No shame, no labels, just honesty and brain science. In this episode I cover: * The question one of my group clients asked that stopped me cold, and why I wish I'd asked it years earlier * The detox-retox negotiation cycle: what it looks like, why it's exhausting, and why willpower will never be enough to break it * Why most of us aren't actually protecting the drink — we're protecting what we think the drink gives us (relief, confidence, connection, reward) * Fading effect bias — the sneaky reason you always end up back at the store after a few good days * Why shame and self-blame will never create lasting habit change — and what the science actually says works * My 4R Method — Recognize, Replace, Rewire, Renew — and how it works 💬 WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE TOOLS I OFFER? 👇 Am I Drinking Too Much Quiz [https://www.soberfitchick.com/amiquiz]   Six-Week Alcohol Reset [https://www.soberfitchick.com/alcohol-reset-waitlist] Drink Less By Monday  [https://www.soberfitchick.com/afw-optin] Book a FREE Discovery Call [https://calendly.com/soberfitchick/30min?month=2025-07] Follow me on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/soberfitchickllc/]

EP 56: Rock Botton is Where You Stop Digging with Laney Dimezza

This guest is the literal definition of Sober Fit Life, and I could not wait to share her story with you. Laney Dimezza is a certified personal trainer based in New Jersey who ditched alcohol while navigating perimenopause at the same time. She's also a licensed drone pilot and real estate photographer, a mom, and honestly, one of the most quotable people I've ever talked to. Lainey was a national championship cheerleader as a kid, literally on top of the pyramid at Nationals with the Pop Warner Rockets in 1991. But like so many of us, high school brought a whole new set of pressures and alcohol became her way of fitting in. That pattern followed her into her 20s, through mommy wine culture, and all the way into her 40s, when she finally decided enough was enough. What I love about Laney's story is that she didn't lose everything before she made a change. She was still showing up, still running her business, still being a great mom. But she knew something was off — the off switch was broken, she was stepping over her own lines, and the detox-to-retox cycle was wearing her down. So she stopped digging. In this episode, we talk about: * Growing up a national championship cheerleader and how that go-getter energy eventually got applied to partying * The mommy wine culture trap and how those TJ Maxx signs and memes aren't there by accident * Why the moderation games never work, and the mental gymnastics that go along with trying * How COVID accelerated everything and finally pushed Laney to seek out alternatives to traditional programs * Shaping your own algorithm, how Laney intentionally controlled her inputs (podcasts, books, social media) to rewire her environment around sobriety * "Rock bottom is simply when you stop digging" and why you don't have to lose everything to decide you're done * Her mantra: The woman I'm going to be in a few years is counting on me * Finding your tribe at the gym and building real human connection that isn't alcohol-dependent * $15,000 saved in 620 days of not drinking (yes, really) * How getting sober gave her the time and mental space to become a certified personal trainer FIND LANEY: * Personal training at SmartBodies in Marlton, NJ * Community at Royal Fitness in Barrington, NJ * Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/laneylanedimezza/] 💬 WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE TOOLS I OFFER? 👇 Am I Drinking Too Much Quiz [https://www.soberfitchick.com/amiquiz]   Six-Week Alcohol Reset [https://www.soberfitchick.com/alcohol-reset-waitlist] Drink Less By Monday  [https://www.soberfitchick.com/afw-optin] Book a FREE Discovery Call [https://calendly.com/soberfitchick/30min?month=2025-07] Follow me on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/soberfitchickllc/] Ready to explore what alcohol freedom could look like for you? Email me at maureen@soberfitchick.com [maureen@soberfitchick.com] or visit my website to learn more about working together — no obligation, just science-backed support that actually works.

Ep 55: Alcohol and Mental Health: The Conversation Nobody Is Having

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, but honestly, this conversation should be happening all the time. There's something that's still missing from too many mental health conversations, and I'm just going to say it: alcohol. We've come a long way in talking openly about depression, anxiety, therapy, and medication. But the thing nobody wants to name? How much alcohol might be quietly (and sometimes not so quietly) working against every single thing you're trying to do for your mental health. This is a solo episode, and it's personal. I've struggled with depression for most of my life. I tried therapy, medication, journaling, exercise, prayer, supplements, and I was doing all of it while still drinking. And here's what I know now that I wish I'd known then: you cannot out-supplement, out-exercise, or out-therapy a drinking habit that's actively pulling your brain chemistry in the wrong direction. In this episode, I walk through exactly how alcohol interferes with the most common mental health tools people are using right now — and then I share my 4R method for what to do instead. Some topics I cover are: * Why alcohol is still the missing piece in most mental health conversations, from patients to doctors to therapists * How alcohol actively interferes with therapy, antidepressants, sleep aids, journaling, exercise, and supplements * The shame spiral and fading effect bias, which is the cycle that keeps so many of us stuck * Brain shrinkage, rebound anxiety, and what expert brain imaging research actually shows If this episode hit home, I want to hear from you. Email me at maureen@soberfitchick.com [maureen@soberfitchick.com] I read and respond to every single one. And if you're ready to dig in, head to my website to learn more about working together. 💬 WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE TOOLS I OFFER? 👇 Am I Drinking Too Much Quiz [https://www.soberfitchick.com/amiquiz]   Six-Week Alcohol Reset [https://www.soberfitchick.com/alcohol-reset-waitlist] Drink Less By Monday  [https://www.soberfitchick.com/afw-optin] Book a FREE Discovery Call [https://calendly.com/soberfitchick/30min?month=2025-07] Follow me on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/soberfitchickllc/]

EP 54: Why Yoga Is Better Than Wine with Tina Lanzoni

Okay, I have to be honest, this episode started because Tina Lanzoni sent out an email with the subject line Why Yoga is Better Than Wine after returning from a retreat in Costa Rica. And I immediately had to get her on the podcast. Tina is a yoga therapist, meditation teacher, somatic instructor, and indoor cycling coach with over 10,000 hours of teaching experience. She's a certified yoga therapist in the Kripalu School of Integrative Yoga Therapy, a graduate of the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program, and a Level 2 iRest Yoga Nidra teacher. She's trained over 100 teachers in the Annapolis area, and if you've ever been in one of her classes, you already know she has a gift for making hard things feel doable. She's also the person who quietly kicks my butt every week in SoulCycle at Evolutions. So yeah, she's the real deal. This conversation goes deep into something I talk about a lot  (why willpower isn't the problem) but, Tina brings a completely different lens to it through the world of somatics and embodiment. When we keep reaching for something outside ourselves (wine, scrolling, binge-watching, you name it), we're actually teaching our nervous system that discomfort is a threat. And the more we do that, the more disconnected we get from ourselves, and the harder it becomes to trust ourselves. Tina also did a live somatic practice with me on the episode. Honestly, just listen to it. You'll feel it. Here's what we get into: * What "being embodied" actually means and why most of us aren't * Why discomfort is not the enemy, and what happens when you stop escaping it * Why alcohol makes embodiment almost impossible (and what opened up for me personally once I stopped drinking) * The difference between outsourcing your feelings vs. insourcing, and why it matters for self-trust * A live titration practice you can actually try right now * Yoga Nidra, breathwork, and how to start a somatic practice even if you think you can't sit still * Tina's upcoming retreat to the Azores,  these fill up fast CONNECT WITH TINA Tina Lanzoni - Yoga Classes, Yoga Therapy, Meditation - Annapolis, MD [https://tinalanzoni.com/] 💬 WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE TOOLS I OFFER? 👇 Am I Drinking Too Much Quiz [https://www.soberfitchick.com/amiquiz]   Six-Week Alcohol Reset [https://www.soberfitchick.com/alcohol-reset-waitlist] Drink Less By Monday  [https://www.soberfitchick.com/afw-optin] Book a FREE Discovery Call [https://calendly.com/soberfitchick/30min?month=2025-07] Follow me on Instagram  [https://www.instagram.com/soberfitchickllc/] Want to explore what changing your relationship with alcohol could look like for you? Email me at maureen@soberfitchick.com [maureen@soberfitchick.com] or visit my website [https://www.soberfitchick.com/].

EP 53: My Binge Drinking Diaries

In this episode of Sober Fit Life, I'm doing something I've been wanting to do for a long time — I'm reading you my actual journal entries from the month leading up to my last drink on September 14th, 2021. The shame. The bargaining. The waking up at 2am asking what is wrong with me? The promises I made to myself that I broke over and over again. I wrote all of it down, and I want you to hear it — because if you've ever kept that inner struggle completely to yourself, I want you to know you are not alone and there is nothing wrong with you. These aren't someone else's words. They're mine. And I'm sharing them because when clients work with me now, I never want them to think I don't remember what this felt like. I do. Every bit of it. In this episode, I share:  * Real journal entries from the month before I ditched booze for good, the shame, the rationalizing, the hiding * What finally happened on September 14th, 2021, my last day drinking, and what shifted the morning after * Why trying to moderate keeps so many of us stuck, and what true moderators actually look like * The one big domino and why alcohol is the first thing that has to change before everything else can fall into place * How I navigated my first alcohol-free wedding just 11 days in and what I wrote in my journal the next morning * Why this is less about willpower and everything about brain chemistry and neural pathways * What it looks like to build confidence win by win, situation by situation * A peek inside my recent six-week group, including a 78-year-old client who went 12 days alcohol-free for the first time in her adult life I also want to invite you to take my free quiz — Am I Drinking Too Much? — at www.soberfitchick.com/amiquiz [http://www.soberfitchick.com/amiquiz]. No labels, no shame, just honest questions and real answers. You'll also get my guide to gray area drinking and three science-backed strategies for stopping cravings in the moment. And if this episode speaks to you, I'm already taking names for my next six-week Alcohol Reset, kicking off at the end of September. I would love to have you. Ready to take the next step? Email me at maureen@soberfitchick.com [maureen@soberfitchick.com] or visit my website to learn more about working together. No obligation, just science-backed techniques that actually work. 💬 Want to learn more about the tools I offer? 👇 Six-Week Alcohol Reset [https://www.soberfitchick.com/alcohol-reset-waitlist] Drink Less By Monday  [https://www.soberfitchick.com/afw-optin] Book a FREE Discovery Call [https://calendly.com/soberfitchick/30min?month=2025-07] Follow me on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/soberfitchickllc/]