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Alcohol Minimalist: Mindful Drinking & Behavior Change — Education
Alcohol Minimalist: Mindful Drinking & Behavior Change

Join coach Molly Watts on the Alcohol Minimalist Podcast to explore mindful drinking, behavior change, and mental wellness. This show offers science-based strategies to help you break drinking habits and overcome anxiety linked to alcohol use. Whether you’re an adult child of alcoholics or seeking peace with your drinking, discover tools for lasting change without shame or guilt. New episodes every Monday and Thursday.

Becoming an alcohol minimalist means:
Choosing how to include alcohol in our lives following low-risk guidelines.
Freedom from anxiety around alcohol use.
Less alcohol without feeling deprived.
Using the power of our own brains to overcome our past patterns and choose peace.
The Alcohol Minimalist Podcast explores the science behind alcohol and analyzes physical and mental wellness to empower choice. You have the power to change your relationship with alcohol, you are not sick, broken and it’s not your genes!

This show is intended for educational purposes and does not constitute medical advice. If you are physically dependent on alcohol, please seek medical help to reduce your drinking.

Copyright: ©2023

Latest Episodes:

All about Moderation Management--Moderating Alcohol with Mary Hickey Reid Apr 07, 2021

Show notes

Have you picked up your free e-book "Alcohol Truths: How much is SAFE?" Download it at www.mollywatts.com

Join my private Facebook group Change Your Alcohol Habit here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/changeyouralcoholhabit

This week's episode I'm talking all things moderation with Mary Hickey Reid, Executive Director or Moderation Management.

Moderation Management is a lay-led nonprofit dedicated to reducing the harm caused by alcohol. It's guided self-help to help you moderate your drinking and restore balance in your life. It's a wonderful community with lots of different options for engaging from private forums, online meetings and an active Facebook group where people can find the support that suits them best.

Moderation Management believes in sharing stories to help each other learn. Mary and I talk about her own history, and some of the moderation strategies that have helped her.

We discuss how the stories we tell ourselves create our feelings to take better actions.

Moderation Management offers suggestions and recommendations on how to change your relationship with alcohol. Mary says Moderation isn't the easier choice, abstinence is simpler. Moderation requires mindfulness and a plan.

For more information on Moderation Management visit:

www.Moderation.org

The Facebook group for MM can be found here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/moderationmanagement

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The Sober Diaries with Author Clare Pooley Mar 31, 2021

Show notes

Grab your free e-book "Alcohol Truths: How Much is SAFE?" here! Join the private community "Change Your Alcohol Habit" here!

This week on the podcast I'm delighted to share my conversation with Clare Pooley, author of "The Sober Diaries". This book and Clare's story were a huge inspiration for me while I was changing my drinking habit. The book is a wonderful mixture of humor, science and straight talk.

A little bit about Clare:

After studying Economics at Cambridge University, Clare spent twenty years in the heady world of advertising, producing global and local campaigns for brands like Kit Kat, Huggies nappies, Barclays Bank, Rolex watches, Persil washing powder, and many, many more.

Clare worked hard and played hard and ended up drinking way too much wine, so she quit drinking and started a blog called Mummy was a Secret Drinker.

This blog became a runaway success and led to a publishing deal. Clare's memoir - The Sober Diaries was published in December 2017, followed by a TEDx talk titled 'Making Sober Less Shameful.'

Clare then turned to fiction. Her debut novel - The Authenticity Project - was published last year in thirty-one languages, from Croatian to Korean and Hebrew and spent several weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.

Clare is currently editing her second novel and of course, being "Mummy" to three children too.

I loved talking to Clare all about her experience as she changed her relationship with alcohol and what she's working on now.

Visit her at www.clarepooley.com

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Alcohol & Anxiety Mar 24, 2021

Show notes

Join my private Facebook group!

Pick up your free copy of "Alcohol Truths: How Much is Safe" here.

Do you believe that you need to have a drink to take the edge off? This episode is all about the relationship between alcohol and anxiety.

We'll dive into the science of alcohol and how it effects neurotransmitters in the brain. The therapeutic benefits of alcohol are limited to only one drink when it comes to relaxation.

There is a rebound effect of alcohol when alcohol is dissipating from your system and your brain releases excitatory neurotransmitters in an attempt to counteract the depressant actions of alcohol.

Often times we believe that we need another drink to relieve the anxiety that we caused by drinking in the first place. It can become an endless cycle.

Drinking alcohol can increase anxiety in the brain and learning the science behind that helped me change my relationship with alcohol.

Alcohol Explained

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My Intuitive Drinking Toolbox Mar 17, 2021

Show notes

Join my private Facebook group!

Pick up your free copy of "Alcohol Truths: How Much is Safe" here.

What is intuitive drinking? Learn more in today's episode about intutive drinking and what I have in my intuitive drinking toolbox.

Article on "intuitive drinking"

These are the tools I've used to create a peaceful relationship with alcohol: past, present and future.

In combination with understanding and implementing the Behavior Map and Results Cycle that I talked about in episodes 11 & 12, these are the tools I used to break my 30-year daily drinking habit. In addition to practicing the Results Cycle, i.e., writing down my “old” thoughts and choosing new thoughts, here are the four tools I used (and still use) to change my relationship with alcohol.

1) Creating a Drink Plan

When it comes to alcohol we have to bring our decision to drink into the prefrontal cortex and plan ahead of time what to drink and how much to drink. Planning ahead of time means that we aren’t reacting in the moment. We aren’t listening to permission-giving thoughts that don’t align with our long-term goals. We aren’t choosing to drink a drink that we haven’t already planned on. Our adult brain is in charge, not the toddler or child. The process of planning doesn’t have to be complicated, but it does need to happen.

James Clear Continous Improvement

2) Preparing Ahead for Falls/Reviewing Off-Plan Days

Here is what I suggest to prepare yourself for the times when you go “off-plan”. We are going to avoid the “coulda/woulda/shouldas” as well as the “blame game” when we drink more than we intended to. We are first going to write down what the plan was, and what we actually drank. We’re going to write down where we were and who we were with. We are writing down the facts here. Simply and clearly—no judgement. Next, we are going to look back and uncover the thoughts we were having when we chose to drink more than we planned.

3) Education on Alcohol Science

The third tool is not just one tool…its multiple tools and with the exception of this book you are reading, they are not created by me. There is no shortage of literature on alcohol and “quit lit” as it’s called and reading books, listening to podcasts and participating in courses was an important part of the process for me. In addition to reading books about alcohol I also read books on cognitive behavioral therapy, books on personality, habits, and motivation. See some my recommendations below.

4) Community & Motivation

While I can’t subscribe to the twelve steps and have hopefully convinced you that your brain holds the power to your relationship with alcohol, there is certainly value in “finding your tribe”. Whether it’s a Facebook group, a small-group coaching program, or an accountability partner, being around people who are like-minded and focused on changing their daily drinking habits will help you create your peaceful relationship easier and faster.

EDUCATION ON ALCOHOL/ALCOHOL SCIENCE:

Alcohol Explained and Alcohol Explained 2

Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health

This Naked Mind

How to Change Your Drinking

Rethink Drinking

Moderation Management

PODCASTS:

Group Coaching:

30 Day Alcohol Experiment with Annie Grace

Self Coaching Scholars

Take a Break 30-Day Challenge Rachel Hart

Facebook Groups:

Alcohol Explained

Moderation Management

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Figuring Out Your Feelings Mar 10, 2021

Show notes

Grab 32 FREE self-help books including "Alcohol Truths: How Much is Safe?" Link is valid through March 15, 2021.

FREE Self-Help Books

Join my free private Facebook group. It's private so no one will know you are in there but the group is searchable on Facebook. Click here to join me!

This week's episode extend's last week's conversation talking about the Results Cycle and the Behavior Map. Specifically, we're focusing on the middle of both: emotions. They key to changing your relationship with alcohol is figuring out your feelings.

Figuring out your feelings means:

We understand that we experience emotions or feelings in different areas of the brain.
We notice and can describe the physical sensations that are happening in our bodies when we experience emotions.
We are willing and able to feel all of our feelings without trying to numb them or change them by drinking alcohol—we accept that we aren’t always going to feel happy and content and know with certainty that we can handle all of our emotions.
We practice choosing thoughts to create the feelings we need to get the results we want in our lives.

James Clear Identity-Based Habits: https://jamesclear.com/identity-based-habits

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The Behavior Map & The Results Cycle Mar 03, 2021

Show notes

Free Self-Help Book Promotion! Grab 32 Free books here:

Have you grabbed your free E-book Alcohol Truths: How Much is Safe? Get it here: www.mollywatts.com

Join my private Facebook group for support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/breakingthebottlelegacy

This week's episode I dive into the Behavior Map and the Results Cycle. These tools are my take on Brooke Castillo's self-coaching model. Visualizing the tool in this way, helped me to internalize it and apply it to my drinking habit as well as my life in general.

The Behavior Map helps us understand our own behavior as well as other people. It gives us a way to navigate and to move within it to uncover the different pieces based on where we start inside the Behavior Map.

(Link to image) Behavior Map-Results Cycle Visual

For me learning how to apply the Results Cycle to my drinking habit and understanding the Behavior Map and how it applies to everyone and everything, was the difference in changing my relationship with alcohol permanently.

Other resources mentioned in this podcast:

Brene Brown Podcast with Dr. David Eaglemen

Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever Changing Brain

Brooke Castillo's Life Coach School

Rachel Hart Podcast

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Breaking an "Unbreakable" Drinking Habit Feb 24, 2021

Show notes

This week on the podcast Molly is talking about how the habit of drinking works in the brain and why this habit seemed "unbreakable" in her own life.

She shares the science of alcohol and how it impacts neurotransmitters including dopamine, the "feel good" cheminal in our brains and is responsible for motivating us to keep doing whatever we're doing that released it. The paradox with alcohol is that it also acts as a depressant, so it simlutaneously makes us feel good and feel bad at the same time.

To change our drinking habit we rely on another aspect of neuroscience and that is neuroplasticity. Your brain can create new neural pathways and to do that you need to think better thoughts.

Molly also shares why urges and cravings do not mean that anything has gone wrong, and why learning to allow and urge or craving is actually what willpower is all about. You don't have to grit your teeth and resist the urge to drink for the rest of your life.

Resources mentioned:

The Power of Habit

Live HAPPIER Longer Podcast: The Science of Habits

Live HAPPIER Longer Podcast: How to Build a New Habit

Live HAPPIER Longer Podcast: How to Break Habits that Don't Serve You

For your free e-book "Alcohol Truths: How Much is Safe?" please visit www.mollywatts.com

Join my private Facebook group for support and community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/breakingthebottlelegacy

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Being an Adult Child of an Alcoholic & Emotional Immaturity Feb 17, 2021

Show notes

This week's episode is the first dive into Molly's life as an adult child of an alcoholic. She shares information she learned while researching the Breaking the Bottle Legacy book. Her research included conversations with other adult children of alcoholics and the NY Times bestseller, Adult Children of Alcoholics

From the book, Molly shares some of the thirteen characteristics outlined by Dr. Woititz that have been most prevalaent in her own life. She also shares information from Dr. Woititz regarding characteristics of alcoholics that are oftened taught to children and become learned behaviors for adult children of alcoholics.

One of the common causes for addiction is emotional immaturity and Molly dives deeper into how this was modeled for her by her own mother and lead to her own dysfunctional habit with alcohol.

Becoming aware of the where of the characteristics of emotional immaturity can help you uncover your own thinking fueling habits that don't serve you. Understanding the past allows you to hold it in a different way now and it only exists in how you think about it today.

From Adult Children of Alcoholics, Janet Woititz, 1983, 1990.

Adult children of alcoholics guess at what normal behavior is.
Adult children of alcoholics have difficulty following a project through from beginning to end. 3. Adult children of alcoholics lie when it would be just as easy to tell the truth.
Adult children of alcoholics judge themselves without mercy.
Adult children of alcoholics have difficulty having fun.
Adult children of alcoholics take themselves very seriously.
Adult children of alcoholics have difficulty with intimate relationships.
Adult children of alcoholics over-react to changes over which they have no control.
Adult children of alcoholics constantly seek approval and affirmation.
Adult children of alcoholics usually feel that they are different from other people.
Adult children of alcoholics are super responsible or super irresponsible.
Adult children of alcoholics are extremely loyal, even in the face of evidence that the loyalty is undeserved.

13. Adult children of alcoholics are impulsive. They tend to lock themselves into a course of action without giving serious consideration to alternative behaviors or possible consequences. This impulsivity leads to confusion, self-loathing and loss of control over their environment. In addition, they spend an excessive amount of energy cleaning up the mess.

Characteristics of Alcoholics from "Adult Children of Alcoholics" and "Love on the Rocks" , Janet Woititz

excessive dependency
inability to express emotions
low frustration tolerance
emotional immaturity
high level of anxiety in interpersonal relationships
low self-esteem
grandiosity
feelings of isolation
perfectionism
ambivalence toward authority
guilt

For more information go to https:www.mollywatts.com

For free support changing your relationship with alcohol join my private Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/breakingthebottlelegacy

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Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health with Dr. David Nutt Feb 10, 2021

Show notes

In this episode of Breaking the Bottle Legacy, Molly interviews one of Britain's leading alcohol experts. Professor David Nutt is a neuropharmacoligist and has spent his career researching drugs and specifically psychopharmacology— the study of the effects of drugs on the brain, from the perspectives of both how drug treatments in psychiatry and neurology work, and why people use and become addicted to some drugs, such as alcohol. Dr. Nutt is recognized as one of the top researchers in the world and has published over 500 original research papers in psychopharmacology.

Molly and David discuss his latest book, Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health.

In the book Nutt outlines the scientific impacts on the brain from alcohol as well as other physical risks. He also shares science that supports why alcohol may be positive for your social health.

Says Nutt in the introduction: "My position has always been: Alcohol is a drug and one that shouldn’t be taken lightly. This may sound odd in our culture, where having a drink and indeed getting drunk is broadly acceptable. But it’s a position most doctors, scientists, and addiction experts take too, given the enormous amount of damage alcohol does to people’s health and to society."

Nutt's "view is, try to reduce how much you are drinking as much as you can toward the recommended limit while maximizing your fun and pleasure. And have at least two days off a week."

Molly asks Professor Nutt specifically about how genetics plays into addiction and if he believes in the "alcoholic gene".

You can find "Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health" here: Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health

For your free E-book "Alcohol Truths: How Much is Safe? " please visit www.mollywatts.com

Join our PRIVATE Facebook group for community and support:

Breaking the Bottle Legacy Facebook Group

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5 Reasons to take a 30-Day Break from Alcohol! Feb 03, 2021

Show notes

Have you tried taking an extended break from drinking? Tune in to this week's episode as Molly Watts details the five benefits she is noticing while participating in #Dryuary.

There are scientific reasons that taking a break is good for you and Molly shares both science and her own experience from January's successful month off alcohol.

Molly discusses her own journey and why taking a break in the beginning was not something that she even considered and why doing it now has proved so beneficial.

Reason #1: You'll sleep better.

For more information alcohol and sleep visit: American Sleep Association: Alcohol & Sleep

Read Alcohol Explained for more on how alcohol affects your sleep.

Reason #2: Your Liver will thank you.

Reason #3: You'll Have Reduced Anxiety

This is covered extensively in Alcohol Explained and was very noticeable in Molly's experience during Dryuary.

Reason #4: You'll Have more Time and Energy

Reason #5: It allows you to really evaluate your drinking habits

This episode references the Live HAPPIER Longer podcast episode #6 on the science of sleep and Alzheimer's prevention.

Live HAPPIER Longer Episode #6

For more information on Dryuary or to sign up for 2022, visit www.dryuary.org

More information on moderation can be found at www.moderationmanagement.org

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