The Catholic Sobriety Podcast

Twenty-five years without a drink. And I still walked into rooms feeling like an alcoholic.

Not because I was drinking — I wasn't. But because somewhere along the way, being a non-drinker became a fact about my life, and "alcoholic" stayed the truth about who I was. In this episode, I'm telling you the two specific moments that showed me I was on the fringe of my own life — one at my cousin's 30th birthday, one in Las Ve...

Andrea Bear didn't set out to write about people pleasing — it found her. In this conversation, Andrea unpacks the difference between pleasing God and pleasing people, why "good" behavior can quietly become a false virtue, and how her own years of over-functioning — in her marriage, her parish, and eventually caring for her dying father — forced her to confront what she was really seeking. If you've ever felt exha...

If your house got quiet this fall and your wine glass got a little more full, you're not imagining it — and you're not doing anything wrong.

In this episode, Christie shares what she didn't expect in her second year of college drop-off: the small things that hit harder than the big ones, the night she caught herself buffering instead of feeling, and what actually helped the next morning. Plus, real, specific things to do inste...

Your body already knows the truth — even when your brain is still negotiating. In this episode Christie opens up about what her sleep tracker revealed after 93 days of a hormone recalibration program — and how ignoring data she already had is the perfect picture of what later-stage resistance actually looks like. She talks about why resistance gets sneakier, not louder, as you make progress, unpacks the "you deserve thi...

If you've started paying attention to your drinking and suddenly feel like you can't stop thinking about it — this episode is for you. Christie explains why the chatter gets louder before it gets quiet, what the closet analogy has to do with sobriety, and what it actually looks like to go from "all I can think about is alcohol" to "I'm not thinking about it hardly at all anymore." This is the episode that reframes the uncomfo...

For the woman who drinks because her life is genuinely a lot — this one is for you. In this episode Christie talks about why alcohol feels like the only off switch at the end of an overwhelming day, what it's actually doing to your capacity over time, and three practical things to simplify your life so the craving loses its grip. Plus: the pitcher plant analogy that explains exactly how we slide in, Christie's birthday solo l...

Nobody warns you about the messy middle. You've gotten through the beginning, you're past the pink cloud, and now the doubt is setting in — is this sustainable? Can I really keep this up? In this episode Christie shares what happened the morning after she moved into her new home and why it's the perfect picture of what women go through when they start releasing alcohol. Plus: the marriage analogy that changed how one of her c...

Christie came across a reel from a health coach with an unpopular opinion: she's not going to teach her teens to drink responsibly — she's going to give them the real truth about what alcohol actually is and does. The comments were - well, interesting.

In this episode Christie adds her voice to that conversation, shares what she's seen firsthand as a mom with a son in college right now, and talks about why the cultural pressur...

Why does the craving hit out of nowhere? Why does wine feel like it helps with overwhelm? And why does cutting back feel so hard even when you really want to? In this episode Christie breaks down exactly what your brain is doing when you crave a drink — the dopamine loop, the habit trail, the borrowed relief — and gives you real tools to get through the next twenty minutes. Plus: the science behind vacuuming and your hi...

Can I even do this? Am I too far gone? Am I the one this doesn't work for? If you're asking any version of that question right now — this episode is for you. Christie answers it directly, talks about why the shame voice isn't God's voice, walks through the stages of change so you know exactly where you are, and shares the story of standing outside the window wondering if she was allowed in. Spoiler: she was. And so are you.

To...

Anyone can stop drinking for a while. Willpower works — temporarily. But if the foundation underneath the habit is compromised, the craving comes back. In this episode Christie shares what happened over 50 days of working with a functional health practitioner — what shifted physically, what opened spiritually, and why she finally stopped relying on willpower. Plus: the neuroscience of why lasting change takes longer tha...

Who are you without a drink in your hand? Not what do you do without it — who are you? In this episode Christie shares the surprising truth she discovered about herself when she got sober at 23, why it took years to actually figure things out, and the moment she finally believed she was a beloved daughter of God. Plus: what her clients think they're going to lose when they stop drinking, what they actually find, and one simpl...

The hardest trigger isn't at the party. It's on your own couch, at the end of a regular Tuesday, next to your husband. In this episode, Christie gets personal — sharing what happened in her own marriage when she decided to invest in her health, what she learned about habit loops and evening triggers, and why one person changing is often enough to shift everything. Plus: three husband scenarios, the conversation you need to ha...

The girls trip. The family barbecue. The friend who says "well then I can't drink" when you order iced tea. If summer social situations are the thing standing between you and drinking less, this episode is for you. Christie gets specific — and a little light-hearted — about FOMO, social pressure, and exactly what to say when someone won't let your sparkling water go unquestioned. Plus: what really happened when her clie...

You don't have a wine problem. You have a wound that wine is covering. In this episode, Christie shares the story of how she started drinking at sixteen — and why — and unpacks the real need underneath every woman's habit. Spoiler: it goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden. This is the episode that changes the question from "how do I stop?" to "what am I actually reaching for?"

Topics covered: The friend breakup tha...

Every summer, millions of women tell themselves the same thing: "I'll deal with this after Labor Day."

And every fall, they're right back where they started.

In this episode, Christie makes the case that summer isn't the worst time to do this work — it's actually the best. The barbecues, the girls trips, the family reunions, the cooler full of White Claw at every single event from June through August? That's not the obstacle. T...

Abby is a wife, mom, and Sacred Sobriety Lab member who has been alcohol-free for 232 days. But before that number, there were six attempts at cutting back — each one unraveling the same way, one exception at a time.

In this episode, Abby walks us through what her drinking actually looked like at its peak, why moderation kept failing her, and what shifted when she stopped trying to manage alcohol on her own terms and instead r...

Christie pulls back the curtain on her four coaching pillars — Catholic faith, neuroscience, inner healing, and identity in Christ — and shares the personal journey behind each one. Nearly three decades sober, she walks through why she built her coaching approach the way she did, what she wishes she'd known sooner, and why she believes this framework works. If you've ever felt like something was missing from your sobrie...

Have you ever walked past something — a park, a pair of tiny shoes, a photo on the fridge — and felt that sudden ache of a season that's gone? That's where this episode starts. Christie was walking her dog when she passed a neighborhood park where her boys used to play, and the grief hit her out of nowhere.

Not grief over something bad. Grief over something beautiful that simply isn't anymore.

And then her brain did what ...