Trigger warning: This episode contains references to domestic violence, sexual assault, self-harm, disordered eating, substance use, and mental health crises.
What does an alcohol-free life transformation actually look like from the inside? For Valerie, it looks like CrossFit at 4:30 AM, a flourishing marriage, a challenging career, and a self she genuinely loves for the first time at 36. But getting here meant surviving an abusive relationship, years of drinking as a survival tool, and a long search for belonging that took her to martial arts competitions in Korea, AA meetings, and finally a bookstore where Annie Grace's book changed everything. This is her story.
Valerie and Coach Cole discuss:
Growing up without consistent support and turning to alcohol as a survival tool from age 18
How a deeply abusive relationship pushed her drinking to its darkest point and left her searching for a way out
The moment she put down her last drink without a plan and never looked back
Why AA gave her community but not the alcohol-free life transformation she was truly looking for
How Annie Grace's book found her in a bookstore and rewired the way she understood herself and alcohol
Building her CrossFit community as the foundation of belonging, she had been searching for her whole life
What spontaneous alcohol freedom feels like and why she has not had a single craving in 14 months
Letting go of the need for family approval and turning compassion inward for the first time
And more on healing, self-love, and the extraordinary life that opened up when she stopped drinking...
Episode links: https://go.tnmprograms.com/start-here-quiz
Related Episodes:
Emotional Trauma Recovery with Dr. Melissa Kalt - Interview - EP 689 - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-689-interview-with-dr-melissa-kalt/
Does Annie Grace think AA is wrong? - Reader Question - EP 324 - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-324-reader-question-does-annie-grace-think-aa-is-wrong/
Overcoming Drinking Culture in Fitness - Where Are They Now? Molly - EP 695 - https://thisnakedmind.com/ep-695-naked-life-story-hayley-where-are-they-now-molly/
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