What happens when the people, roles, and routines that have needed you for years suddenly… don't need you quite so much?
In this first installment of a new coaching-style segment on Unbottled Potential, I'm answering a question I've been hearing from women again and again: I have more space in my life now, I can feel there's a bigger version of me waiting—but I don't know who she is, and I don't know how to find her while I'm still drinking every night.
Whether you're becoming an empty nester, changing careers, setting new boundaries, becoming an entrepreneur, or simply stepping into the identity of a non-drinker, transitions can leave behind an uncomfortable amount of spaciousness.
And when alcohol has been your reward, your "me time," your social life, or your way of shutting everything off at the end of the day, that space can feel especially unsettling.
In this episode, we explore:
- Why identity shifts can make drinking feel more appealing, not less
- What might actually be underneath your nightly glass of wine
- Why women who have spent years orienting around everyone else can struggle to answer, "What do I want?"
- My extremely sophisticated theory that you are, in fact, a glorified houseplant
- The basic practices that can help you reconnect with yourself
- Why you may need actual hobbies again—and preferably some analog ones
- My personal rule of "fiction after 5:00"
- How creativity, curiosity, and spaciousness begin opening the door to your intuition
- Why the dream you can imagine for yourself right now may be much smaller than what becomes possible without alcohol
You don't need to immediately know what your next chapter looks like. Your first job is simply to create enough space to become curious about it.
Have a question you'd like me to coach on the podcast? Submit it at amandakuda.com/askamanda. Questions used on the show will remain anonymous.
If you're ready for more personalized support, I also have a few openings for private 1:1 coaching this September - go to amandakuda.com/apply to book a free clarity call & see if we'd be a good fit to work together.
