Episode 319 - When I was stressed out at work or stressed by a social situation, alcohol would fix it temporarily, until it didn’t.  Now I’m accepting moods, feelings and phases come and go and it’s all okay.   Korie took her last drink on March 21, 2019. She is from Texas and is 32 years old.  This is her story of living alcohol-free (AF).   A request from Recover Elevator   We have a request; we would like to hear more from you!  Please consider making a one-minute video sharing your, “you might need to ditch the booze if… story”.  Hold your camera sideways, make it less than a minute and send it to: info@recoveryelevator.com.  Make it authentic to yourself and your journey.  We will post your video on Instagram.  If you share your Instagram handle, we will post that as well. We look forward to seeing more of you on our page.  Instagram:  @recovery elevator.   Finding Your Better You – Odette’s weekly message   Rediscovering your life beyond recovery.  You are all unique.  We are more than a drinking problem; we are more than recovery.  The life we now enjoy would disappear if we returned to drinking.  It is easy to feel  uniqueness –submerged in recovery.  In sobriety we don’t know when things will get better, but they do.  Sobriety is a piece of your whole life.  We all have the opportunity to learn and re-learn who we are.    Maintenance is important to secure your sobriety.  If you stay the course, you get to graduate.   You always focus on maintaining sobriety, but it’s not all day every day, it becomes a piece of your broader life.  There are so many benefits to being present in sobriety – you can have your cake and eat it too.   [8:12] Odette introduces Korie   Korie said her last drink was 3/21/19.  She grew up in Austin, Texas and is 32 years old.  Korie was abroad and lived in Japan and Singapore and came to the US when she was 6 years old.  She is engaged and just bought a home outside of Austin.  Pre-quarantine, Korie was a social butterfly.  Now, she stays home more than she used to and loves getting outside, running, reading, drawing and anything artsy.   [11:46]  Tell us about your history with drinking.   Korie doesn’t remember her first drink of alcohol.  She would have a sip or two of her Mom’s wine and thought it was disgusting.  In high school she was in a few programs that required her to sign a contract saying she wouldn’t drink or party.  She followed the rules.  In college she remembers drinking, getting dizzy, self-control was gone, and she didn’t want it to stop because she liked the feeling.  She didn’t drink often.    She worked in the restaurant industry which breeds lots of drinking.  It felt normal, until it didn’t.  When she graduated from college, she moved to Spain to become an Au Pair and drank a lot there.  She remembers staying out all night, being hung over and thinking she may have a problem and her drinking wasn’t normal.   The nightlife continued when she returned to the US.  She remembers getting drunk, getting sick and making bad decisions?   [15:13]  What thoughts were you having about your drinking?   Korie felt pretty justified because she judged her drinking based on what other people were doing.  She knew it wasn’t who she wanted to be   It started to feel not right.  When she left the restaurant industry, she recognized it wasn’t normal to drink every night.  She had a broader circle of friends to compare herself to.  She was working as a virtual concierge and was calling in to work, saying she was working from home, but just too hungover to go in.  She realized she was still drinking like she had in her twenties.  She never wants to experience an emotional rock bottom again.    [18:46] Did you ever talk to anyone about your drinking?   Korie said a former boyfriend spoke to her about her drinking.  She got defensive and thought he was a bit paranoid.  Looking back, she realizes he was right to be concerned.  At 24, Korie verbalized concerns to her best friend, but kept drinki