Trigger Warning: This episode discusses pregnancy and fertility loss, breast and brain cancer, caregiving stress, grief, blackout drinking, relapse, and substance use.What if relief isn’t in the glass but in the space you reclaim? Mary maps the messy middle—moderation rules, peer pressure, the “pitcher plant,” and the night she couldn’t care for her sister because she was too sick to stand. Revisiting her 2017 episode with Annie, she joins Coach Hayley to redefine success: presence over performance, rituals without alcohol, and permission to say “I don’t drink today.” Along this long road to quitting drinking, Mary learns that forgiveness ends the shame spiral—and that peace shows up when she stops chasing the first sip.

In this episode, Coach Hayley and Mary catch up on:

Revisiting Mary’s first TNM episode (2017) and what changed

Miscarriages, breast cancer, and pandemic drift—why moderation unraveled

The “pitcher plant,” blackout shame, and the caregiving wake-up call

Surrogacy, motherhood, and choosing presence at bedtime

Keeping the ritual without the alcohol: mocktails, adaptogens, THC microdosing

Self-forgiveness > perfection; “not today” over “never again”

Why relief feels like mental space, not a glass

Walking the long road to quitting drinking without perfectionism

…and more topics

Episode links:

nakedmindpath.com

Related Episodes:

EP 35: Naked Life Story: Mary - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-35-naked-life-story-mary/

Making the Breast Cancer and Alcohol Connection - Tabbin’s Naked Life - E713 - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-713-naked-life-story-tabbin-a/

Brian Accidentally Stopped Drinking - Brian’s Naked Life (Part 2) - E639 - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-639-naked-life-story-annie-graces-husband-part-2/Does this mean I can never drink alcohol again? - Reader’s Question - E576 - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-576-readers-question-does-this-mean-i-can-never-drink-alcohol-again/

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