It's Not About the Alcohol

You told yourself this morning you weren't going to drink tonight. But now that it's time to make that decision, it feels impossible to say no. That moment is exactly what Colleen breaks down in this episode — because the path forward requires you to understand that this is not a lack of discipline and it's not a willpower problem. The relief you feel when you take that first sip has nothing to do with alcohol. It's about what's been happening inside your body all day long — the dumpster fire of stress and anxiety that has chronically become your state of normal. In this episode, Colleen teaches you the foundational skill that changes the way you move through your entire day, so that by evening, instead of telling yourself no, you're telling yourself yes — and there are a lot more options on the menu than just drinking.
In This Episode:
The two versions of you: regulated vs. dysregulated, and why you're a completely different decision-maker in each state

Why your body isn't craving alcohol — it's craving relief

The difference between skills and strategies, and why strategies fail without this foundational skill

Practical strategies that work when you're regulated: Delay Don't Deny, mental rehearsal, talking to your tomorrow self, and extracting the lesson instead of spiraling in shame

The RISE framework: Recognize, Integrate, Strategize, Embody

What it takes to become the version of you who can take or leave alcohol

 
You don't need to be "ready." You just need to be honest with yourself about where you are. Start with a Discovery Call. CLICK HERE.
Uncover just how supportive a community of women can be when we are all co-creating positive change with intention and clarity.
 
Find me on:
YouTube: @HangoverWhisperer
TikTok: @hangoverwhisperer
Instagram: @thehangoverwhisperer 
X (Twitter) : @NotAboutTheAlc

Do you want to know what's different about the women who can genuinely take or leave alcohol? And why it feels impossible for you to be "more like them?"
In this episode, I'm giving you a sneak peak of my new masterclass: The science behind take it or leave it--why some women can and how you can too.
The masterclass isn't even on my website yet--you'll watch it right on YouTube. 
Click Here to WATCH The Masterclass
Also, I'm running a Love Yourself campaign in honor of Valentine's Day.
If you book a call and decide to join The Next Chapter, you'll get $2,000 off !
Click Here to BOOK A DISCOVERY CALL
The call is how you lock in the discount — and it's a real conversation, not a sales pitch. Even if you just have questions, book it. That's what it's for.

I was one of the most therapized people you've ever met.
I knew my triggers. I'd unpacked my daddy issues, my relationship with my mom, my insecurity, my eating disorders, problems in my marriage. I cognitively understood what triggered me and why I wanted to drink so much.
And that did fuck-all to reduce my cravings.
Which is how I know that awareness isn't enough. Understanding the pattern doesn't break the pattern. And talk therapy—as valuable as it is—didn't change how I felt in my body. 
Today's guest is Dr. Amanda Hanson, a clinical psychologist who spent the first half of her 27-year career practicing traditional therapy—until she realized all that talking wasn't actually helping women change. What she discovered instead will completely transformed how you think about emotions, nervous system regulation, and why so many of us numb instead of feel.
We go deep in this conversation. We talk about why women are taught to source their safety outside of themselves—and what happens when you stop. We talk about the rage release practice that cracked me open at her retreat. We talk about aging, beauty, and the cultural scam that keeps women distracted from their real power. And we talk about what it actually takes to stop abandoning yourself.
If you've done the therapy, read the books, understand your patterns—and you're still stuck—this episode is going to show you what's missing.
In this episode, we cover:
→ Why traditional talk therapy often isn't enough to change behavior 
→ The difference between being emotionally dysregulated and being fully alive
→ How self-abandonment leads to numbing (wine, food, scrolling)
→ What a rage release and grief release practices look like 
→ How to give yourself the things you've been waiting for someone else to give you
→ Aging, beauty, and refusing to be complicit in a system designed to keep women small
 
Dr. Amanda Hanson is a clinical psychologist with 27 years of experience who now works with women in ways radically different from her traditional training. She is the host of the podcast Things Your Mother Never Told You and creator of the Magnetic retreat experience.
Find her on Instagram @midlife.muse or at AmandaHanson.com
 
If you are ready to get support from a community of women who are co-creating this change with intention and clarity— Click here to BOOK A DISCOVERY CALL. 
 
Do you want help from Colleen with a situation you're struggling with? Click here to submit your question for Colleen's NEW Q&A episodes. Your name will not be mentioned on air! 
 
Find me on:
YouTube: @HangoverWhisperer
TikTok: @hangoverwhisperer
Instagram: @thehangoverwhisperer 
X (Twitter) : @NotAboutTheAlc

In this episode, Colleen shares a raw, surprising takeaway from a recent retreat — one that had nothing to do with learning new concepts and everything to do with experiencing her body in a new way.
What began as deep discomfort around words like sensuality and sexual energy opened into a realization many women quietly live with: when you've been taught to fear, suppress, or perform your body for others, you often shut down far more than sexuality — you shut down joy, creativity, pleasure, and aliveness. And when that energy stays blocked, the body looks for relief wherever it can find it.
Colleen explores how drinking, numbing, and emotional shutdown aren't moral failures or cravings for "bad behavior," but attempts to regulate trapped energy in a body that hasn't felt safe to move, express, or feel. She explains the difference between processing trauma cognitively and liberating energy physically — and why movement, music, and instinctive expression can unlock more healing than insight alone.
 
🔑 Key Takeaways
Why blocked sensual and creative energy often shows up as numbness or drinking



How purity culture and performative sexuality disconnect women from their bodies



The difference between sexual energy and sexual behavior



Why movement is a powerful form of emotional regulation



How suppressing instinctive expression drains energy and joy



Why healing doesn't always come from "working through it" — sometimes it comes from moving through it



How reconnecting with your body creates relief without numbing

 
This episode is about reclaiming your body as your own — not for a partner, not for performance, not for approval — but as a source of power, pleasure, and presence. It's a reminder that the body doesn't want to be fixed — it wants to be seen and felt.
 
If you are ready to get support from a community of women who are co-creating this change with intention and clarity— Click here to BOOK A DISCOVERY CALL. 
 
Do you want help from Colleen with a situation you're struggling with? Click here to submit your question for Colleen's NEW Q&A episodes. Your name will not be mentioned on air! 
 
Find me on:
YouTube: @HangoverWhisperer
TikTok: @hangoverwhisperer
Instagram: @thehangoverwhisperer 
X (Twitter) : @NotAboutTheAlc

I woke up a little hungover this morning. I had a third glass of wine I didn't need. And instead of spiraling into shame, I did what I always do now—I grabbed my journal and got curious.
In this episode, I'm walking you through exactly what I do the morning after I drink too much. The four mindset tools that set me up to learn instead of spiral into shame. The journaling framework I use to extract the lesson. And what I discovered about why my mind and body were out of sync.
But I'm also being honest: this process only works if you're in a certain place in your journey. If shame and frustration are still running the show, this episode might feel overwhelming. If that's you, I'll explain what to do instead.
What I cover:
→ Why another drink feels like a good idea when your nervous system is stressed
→ The four mindset tools you need to expand your perspective so you can extract a valuable lesson
→ How to tell the difference between your conscious intentions and subconscious habits
→ Why willpower doesn't work when you're dysregulated
→ What to do if this process feels impossible (you've got to clear the shame first)
→ The four phases of this journey and how to know where you are
This episode is for you if:
You tend to overdrink and you're tired of the shame spiral

You want to actually learn from your mistakes so you can stop repeating them

You're curious about what it looks like to change your drinking without white-knuckling

You want to understand why some approaches work for some people and not others

You're ready to figure out where you are in your journey and what you actually need

If you are ready to get support from a community of women who are co-creating this change with intention and clarity— Click here to BOOK A DISCOVERY CALL. 
 
Do you want help from Colleen with a situation you're struggling with? Click here to submit your question for Colleen's NEW Q&A episodes. Your name will not be mentioned on air! 
 
Find me on:
YouTube: @HangoverWhisperer
TikTok: @hangoverwhisperer
Instagram: @thehangoverwhisperer 
X (Twitter) : @NotAboutTheAlc