Do you ever find yourself under pressure trying to meet that work deadline or juggling multiple responsibilities at home? Discomforts are part of life. That is when our tendency is to reach for something that brings comfort—snacks, sweets, soda, (make it True Lemon in my Bubba for me!). This is what we could call an addiction.
On this week’s podcast, I'm interviewing the inspiring Annie Grace!
She is a dear friend of mine, a fantastic businesswoman, and brilliant author . She wrote “The Naked Mind: The Truest Version of Ourselves” and another book helping thousands of people find their way out of addiction. (SO beautiful, right?)
I want you to listen to this podcast because I think you’ll be surprised when you find out how the brain forms addictions to things like sugar, Diet Coke, alcohol–even technology.
Annie Grace and Her Descent Into Addiction
Annie’s story started when she was just a child. She grew up in a tiny one-room log cabin in the middle of absolutely nowhere. It was so far from everything that her family needed a snowmobile just to get there. In the winter, there was no running water, no electricity, and no heat. The reason behind that, Annie says, is because her parents were some of the most extreme hippies she had ever met.
Annie’s parents didn’t drink. They lived a pure holistic lifestyle, so Annie never really heard the cautionary tales about alcohol addiction growing up!
Annie got married and took off with her new husband on a romantic honeymoon. When the newlyweds returned from their trip, they drove from Colorado straight into the New York City sunset to start their new jobs and life together.
Annie remembers her first day on the job—she was asked by coworkers to come out for drinks. Not wanting to say no, she went. At the time, alcohol wasn’t really part of her life. Sure, she'd had a few drinks here and there, but it was never a big deal.
She didn’t really know what to order that night. She thought a Cosmopolitan was what all the it-girls in New York drank (at least, according to T.V. shows), so she ordered that. When she got the bill, it was a whopping $25!! Yikes! Of course, Annie decided that was gonna be her one drink of the night. After finishing it, she stuck to water with a lemon.
Fast forward to a year later, Annie’s boss took her aside and asked, “Why don’t you show up to the office’s happy hour nights?”
Annie told him she wasn’t really a drinker. He said: “Let me explain something about how the world works; it’s not about the drinking; it’s about making deals and showcasing your ideas, so you need to show up.”
So, Annie started showing up to happy hour. She created her own drinking method in order not to get too tipsy: She would have one glass of wine with one glass of water. If she ever felt herself get too tipsy, she would go to the bathroom and throw up so she could stay and continue drinking more wine.
The problem, Annie came to find out, was that alcohol is a highly addictive substance. It influences your brain and the more you drink, the more you crave it.
What was an occasional drink after work with her colleagues turned into a glass of wine every night at home after work to “de-stress”.
Little by little, alcohol replaced everything Annie used to cope with stress and the pressures in her world. She could put on her running shoes or drink a glass of wine. Somehow the wine seemed easier to do.
A decade later, Annie became a mom to two boys and was a corporate executive who often traveled for work. In the evening, she was an alcoholic. Her addiction had her drinking close to two bottles of wine every night. She tried to stop many times or even just cut back, but it felt impossible.
How did she do it? And what’s her advice to those struggling with addiction? I’d rather you hear the answers to these questions from Annie herself, so tune in now to give this heartfelt episode a listen!
Top Takeaways
- The brain’s number one function is survival.
- Avoid pain, seek pleasure, conserve energy, and prove yourself right.
- Instead of avoiding pain, lean into it.
- Instead of seeking pleasure, delay gratification.
- Invest your energy into growing your business.
- Embrace the discomfort of knowing that you are wrong.
- Discomfort is the map to solving problems.
- It takes knowledge, emotion, and action in order to be able to learn and change.
