Episode 93: Sober Curious with Karen Johnston

Content warning: this episode contains a discussion about dysfunctional relationships with alcohol that may be difficult for folks new to recovery.

Whenever I talk about my sobriety on Instagram I get a tonne of DM’s, so I’m overjoyed to have the wonderful Karen Marie Johnston, champion of self-love, self-care and self-compassion, on the podcast today.

Karen is an advocate of women who are sober or are in recovery.  She is a front-line social worker who has run award-winning projects, and she also runs The Self Love Hub – an online community along with the most beautiful weekend retreats, (which is totally on my vision board to attend, but always seem to sell out).

So what’s this episode really about? 

• We get to the bottom of the reasons why some of us turn to drink to help us cope with life.
• We talk about why it’s completely understandable that we choose to use alcohol to numb us out, or escape reality.
• How lockdown felt for as both in sobriety and how it effected people who drink excessively.
• How to spot the signs that becoming sober is right for you, or when you know it might be time to reduce your drinking.
• We ask the important question – are we avoiding our needs and emotions when we drink?

Why you should listen

Most of us aren’t taught how to navigate our feelings in a way that feels ok. We end up trying to avoid or dismiss them, some of us shop or scroll them away, some of us drink. This often creates a cycle of shame where the ways we cope with the underlying feelings, don’t feel good.

But it’s the reason why we turn to these shadow comforts that are worth our attention, curiosity and compassion. By finding safe spaces to talk about how we are actually doing, we can begin the process of feeling instead of numbing.

Most of us don’t know who we will be on the other side of sobriety, or much-reduced drinking – understandably we feel apprehensive, fearful, even dismissive. It might not be something you have ever talked about with anyone but you can trust that soul-level recognition that wants to make a change.

We talk about how amazing sobriety is, that this shared path creates an incredible intimacy with others.

Links 

Follow Karen on Instagram
The Self-Love Hub

You can quote me on that…

“Being able to feel the full spectrum of your emotions is being alive.” – Sas Petherick

“Our wound is not our fault, but our healing is our responsibility.” – Karen Marie Johnston

“I can access my intuition (now I’m sober), that feels incredible to me.” – Karen Marie Johnston.

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