In this episode, Colleen shares a real-life story about her daughter's college move-in that reveals one of the most important skills in emotional sobriety: knowing the difference between a grounded choice and a nervous system hijack.

What started as a harmless whiff of pot in the entryway spiraled into panic, urgency, and the impulse to move apartments immediately. But the real issue wasn't the apartment — it was a stress response scanning for danger. Colleen breaks down how fear narrows your perspective, why your brain searches for confirming evidence when you feel unsafe, and how to recognize the moment you stop choosing and start reacting.

You'll learn how to evaluate your options from clarity instead of pressure, how to distinguish obligation from true desire, and how to pause long enough to reconnect to the version of you who can choose intentionally.

🔑 You'll Learn:

• The difference between real choice and a nervous-system-driven reaction • How fight, flight, and freeze disguise themselves as "logic" • Why urgency is a sign to pause, not act • How resentment forms when you choose from fear instead of truth • A simple way to widen your perspective and see more than one angle • How emotional sobriety helps you make decisions you'll be proud of later

This episode is a reminder that grounded choices feel like options — not obligations — and that clarity is something you create from the inside out.

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!

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X (Twitter) : @NotAboutTheAlc

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