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The Deliberate Exchange - Navigating Stress, Sobriety & Self-Trust — One Deliberate Step at a Time
The Deliberate Exchange is a podcast for women ready to lead themselves through stress, sobriety, and self-trust — one deliberate step at a time.
Hosted by Chelsea — a stress and confidence coach, breathwork facilitator, and Interim Director of She Walks Canada — each episode offers mindset tools, emotional regulation practices, and real conversations that help you reclaim your power and presence.
Whether you're sober, sober-curious, or simply seeking deeper self-leadership, you'll find insights on stress relief, nervous system healing, and the mind-body connection. Expect solo episodes, some guest interviews, and practical guidance to help you stop performing and start becoming who you really are.
This is for women who want to feel calm, clear, and confident — and know their growth isn’t an accident... it’s a choice.
The Deliberate Exchange - Navigating Stress, Sobriety & Self-Trust — One Deliberate Step at a Time
You Quit Drinking… So Why Does Everything Feel Harder? EP63
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If you quit drinking and feel more emotional, anxious, or dysregulated instead of better, you’re not alone and nothing has gone wrong.
In this episode, I explains why quitting alcohol can initially feel harder, not easier, through a nervous system lens. You’ll learn how alcohol acts as a form of stress regulation, why emotions and anxiety often intensify after quitting, and what your body is actually asking for during this phase of change.
This conversation is especially for women who are alcohol-free or sober-curious and navigating the emotional aftermath, feeling raw, unsettled, or unsure why relief hasn’t arrived yet.
Inside this episode:
- Why quitting drinking can increase anxiety and emotional sensitivity
- How alcohol numbs the nervous system and what happens when it’s removed
- The difference between dysregulation and failure
- Why white-knuckling sobriety often backfires
- What actually supports nervous system healing after alcohol
This episode is not about willpower or labels. It’s about understanding your body, building safety without numbing, and learning how to support yourself through the middle chapter of change.
Ways to continue the work:
🔁 Ongoing support: The Deliberate Practice — a steady rhythm of nervous system regulation, breathwork, and integration.
Free: The Complete Guide to Quitting Drinking .. a nervous-system-based guide for understanding cravings, stress, and stop/start cycles.
🧭 Personalized clarity: The Personal Power Map — a personalized nervous system and identity audit with a video walkthrough.
Explore everything at thedeliberateone.com
Connect on Instagram @thedeliberateone
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