Sober Awkward

The Share Shed – Sober Awkward Writing Competition Specials - A Drinking Career - By Kimberley

Every Thursday, we’re handing the story telling over to you.

Over the next few months, Vic will be reading some of the incredible entries from this year’s Sober Awkward Writing Competition. Honest, funny, heartbreaking, hopeful, awkward and beautifully human, these stories come from people all over the world who have experienced the ups and downs of changing their relationship with alcohol.

Whether you’re sober curious, newly alcohol-free, years into recovery, or simply wondering if life might feel better without booze, we hope these stories remind you that you’re not alone.

Writing has a powerful way of helping us make sense of our lives. It can shine a light on things we’ve hidden away, help us process difficult experiences, and remind us just how resilient we really are. Plus, it’s considerably cheaper than therapy and doesn’t require you to wear pants.

So grab a cuppa, get comfortable, and join us for this week’s Share Shed as Vic tells another story from our amazing community.

💛 Resources & Links

📘 Victoria’s memoir – A Thousand Wasted Sundays
A brutally honest and hilarious look at motherhood, anxiety, and ditching the booze.
👉 Buy the book here or head to the website to find out more about writing mentorships with Vic.
👉 www.soberawkward.com

🫖 Join The Cuppa Community
Our private, supportive online space for sober folk
👉 www.cuppa.community

📘 Get the Sober Awkward Guide
Our downloadable toolkit for ditching booze the awkward way.
👉 The Sober Awkward Guide

📱 Follow us for daily sober fun:
Instagram: @soberawkward
TikTok: @soberawkward
Facebook: Sober Awkward Community for Women

📞 SUPPORT & RESOURCES
If anything in today’s episode felt familiar, or you’re worried about your drinking, there is support available. You don’t have to do this alone.
🇦🇺 Australia
National Alcohol & Other Drug Hotline
📞 1800 250 015 (24/7)
https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/alcohol-and-drug-information-service
Lifeline
📞 13 11 14 (24/7)
https://www.lifeline.org.au
Hello Sunday Morning / Daybreak
https://hellosundaymorning.org
https://daybreakapp.com.au
Clean Slate Clinic
https://www.cleanslateclinic.com
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Drinkline
📞 0300 123 1110
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/alcohol-support/
Alcohol Change UK
https://alcoholchange.org.uk
We Are With You
https://www.wearewithyou.org.uk
🌍 International
Alcoholics Anonymous
https://www.aa.org
SMART Recovery
https://www.smartrecovery.org

💬 A Gentle Reminder
If you’re drinking in the morning to cope, especially with anxiety or withdrawal symptoms, it’s important to speak to a doctor or medical professional. Stopping alcohol suddenly can be unsafe for some people, and getting support can make a huge difference.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Gorillaz bassist Seye Adelekan joins Vic for a wonderfully honest conversation about belonging, family, fame and finding his place in the music world.

Seye talks about moving around the world as a child, the family who shaped him, his love of music, touring, the forgotten gigs and the long period he spent in rehab.
Now over seven years sober, he shares how recovery changed his life, his relationships and the way he steps onto some of the world’s biggest stages - stone cold sober.

Seye wants people to leave his gigs, his online spaces and his everyday interactions with something more than they arrived with, and Vic genuinely felt that warmth by the end of their conversation.

He shows sobriety does not have to make you smaller, quieter or less capable of performing in front of a crowd. Sometimes, it helps you stop hiding, own your space and finally understand why you are standing there.

(Vic also tells Seye the story of her finger, which, between two former party animals familiar with two-day benders, earns her a surprising amount of respect. Some people bond over music and recovery, while others compare unexplained bodily damage from the old days!)

Enjoy!

💛 Resources & Links
Follow and Find out more about Seye head to https://www.seyemusic.co.uk @seyemusic

📘 Victoria’s memoir – A Thousand Wasted Sundays
A brutally honest and hilarious look at motherhood, anxiety, and ditching the booze.
👉 https://amzn.asia/d/0aZ69GpK

Vic's book 'Mumming - A year of Trying (and Failing) to be a better parent - https://amzn.asia/d/0bUJTS2W

🎧 Listen to more Sober Awkward episodes
👉 www.soberawkward.com

🫖 Join The Cuppa Community
Our private, supportive online space for sober folk
👉 www.cuppa.community

📘 Get the Sober Awkward Guide
Our downloadable toolkit for ditching booze the awkward way.
👉 The Sober Awkward Guide

📱 Follow us for daily sober fun:
Instagram: @soberawkward
TikTok: @soberawkward
Facebook: Sober Awkward Community for Women
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Share Shed – Sober Awkward Writing Competition Specials - I didn’t realise it was a funeral - By Sarah

A huge congratulations to Sarah who was one of this years winners!!

Every Thursday, we’re handing the story telling over to you.

Over the next few months, Vic will be reading some of the incredible entries from this year’s Sober Awkward Writing Competition. Honest, funny, heartbreaking, hopeful, awkward and beautifully human, these stories come from people all over the world who have experienced the ups and downs of changing their relationship with alcohol.

Whether you’re sober curious, newly alcohol-free, years into recovery, or simply wondering if life might feel better without booze, we hope these stories remind you that you’re not alone.

Writing has a powerful way of helping us make sense of our lives. It can shine a light on things we’ve hidden away, help us process difficult experiences, and remind us just how resilient we really are. Plus, it’s considerably cheaper than therapy and doesn’t require you to wear pants.

So grab a cuppa, get comfortable, and join us for this week’s Share Shed as Vic tells another story from our amazing community.

💛 Resources & Links

📘 Victoria’s memoir – A Thousand Wasted Sundays
A brutally honest and hilarious look at motherhood, anxiety, and ditching the booze.
👉 Buy the book here or head to the website to find out more about writing mentorships with Vic.
👉 www.soberawkward.com

🫖 Join The Cuppa Community
Our private, supportive online space for sober folk
👉 www.cuppa.community

📘 Get the Sober Awkward Guide
Our downloadable toolkit for ditching booze the awkward way.
👉 The Sober Awkward Guide

📱 Follow us for daily sober fun:
Instagram: @soberawkward
TikTok: @soberawkward
Facebook: Sober Awkward Community for Women

📞 SUPPORT & RESOURCES
If anything in today’s episode felt familiar, or you’re worried about your drinking, there is support available. You don’t have to do this alone.
🇦🇺 Australia
National Alcohol & Other Drug Hotline
📞 1800 250 015 (24/7)
https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/alcohol-and-drug-information-service
Lifeline
📞 13 11 14 (24/7)
https://www.lifeline.org.au
Hello Sunday Morning / Daybreak
https://hellosundaymorning.org
https://daybreakapp.com.au
Clean Slate Clinic
https://www.cleanslateclinic.com
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Drinkline
📞 0300 123 1110
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/alcohol-support/
Alcohol Change UK
https://alcoholchange.org.uk
We Are With You
https://www.wearewithyou.org.uk
🌍 International
Alcoholics Anonymous
https://www.aa.org
SMART Recovery
https://www.smartrecovery.org

💬 A Gentle Reminder
If you’re drinking in the morning to cope, especially with anxiety or withdrawal symptoms, it’s important to speak to a doctor or medical professional. Stopping alcohol suddenly can be unsafe for some people, and getting support can make a huge difference.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yes, the World Cup is on, everyone is drinking to celebrate and commiserate, so welcome to your safe little corner of the internet, where Vic promises to mention the legend Jude Bellingham only once… and then get back to what really matters, talking about sobriety and not trying to explain the offside rule.

So apart from the Spain win, the other news is....You don’t have to wait until Day One to start building an alcohol-free life.

In part two of my conversation with Jean McCarthy, author of UnPickled and creator of the pioneering sobriety podcast The Bubble Hour, we explore what comes next once you’ve decided alcohol might not be serving you anymore.

How do you know what kind of support is right for you? Is there a place between the pub and AA? Should you consider therapy, a community, a treatment centre, or something completely different? Jean shares the wisdom she’s gathered from years of helping thousands of people find their own path to sobriety.

Together we talk about finding the support that fits you, learning to care for yourself with compassion, and beginning to imagine a future where alcohol no longer takes centre stage.

Whether you’re sober curious, preparing for your first alcohol-free day, or simply wondering what’s possible, this episode is full of reassurance, practical ideas and hope.

Put the kettle on and prepare to be UnPickled.

💛 Resources & Links
Follow and Find out more about Jean head to @jeanmccarthy_writes
Or buy her book UnPickled Prepare to be Alcohol-Free: Insights and Tips to Ease the Transition - here
https://amzn.asia/d/02iVCTtz

📘 Victoria’s memoir – A Thousand Wasted Sundays
A brutally honest and hilarious look at motherhood, anxiety, and ditching the booze.
👉 https://amzn.asia/d/0aZ69GpK

Vic's book 'Mumming - A year of Trying (and Failing) to be a better parent - https://amzn.asia/d/0bUJTS2W

🎧 Listen to more Sober Awkward episodes
👉 www.soberawkward.com

🫖 Join The Cuppa Community
Our private, supportive online space for sober folk
👉 www.cuppa.community

📘 Get the Sober Awkward Guide
Our downloadable toolkit for ditching booze the awkward way.
👉 The Sober Awkward Guide

📱 Follow us for daily sober fun:
Instagram: @soberawkward
TikTok: @soberawkward
Facebook: Sober Awkward Community for Women
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Share Shed – Sober Awkward Writing Competition Specials - I scream... and she lets go - By Lisa

Every Thursday, we’re handing the story telling over to you.

Over the next few months, Vic will be reading some of the incredible entries from this year’s Sober Awkward Writing Competition. Honest, funny, heartbreaking, hopeful, awkward and beautifully human, these stories come from people all over the world who have experienced the ups and downs of changing their relationship with alcohol.

Whether you’re sober curious, newly alcohol-free, years into recovery, or simply wondering if life might feel better without booze, we hope these stories remind you that you’re not alone.

Writing has a powerful way of helping us make sense of our lives. It can shine a light on things we’ve hidden away, help us process difficult experiences, and remind us just how resilient we really are. Plus, it’s considerably cheaper than therapy and doesn’t require you to wear pants.

So grab a cuppa, get comfortable, and join us for this week’s Share Shed as Vic tells another story from our amazing community.

💛 Resources & Links

📘 Victoria’s memoir – A Thousand Wasted Sundays
A brutally honest and hilarious look at motherhood, anxiety, and ditching the booze.
👉 Buy the book here or head to the website to find out more about writing mentorships with Vic.
👉 www.soberawkward.com

🫖 Join The Cuppa Community
Our private, supportive online space for sober folk
👉 www.cuppa.community

📘 Get the Sober Awkward Guide
Our downloadable toolkit for ditching booze the awkward way.
👉 The Sober Awkward Guide

📱 Follow us for daily sober fun:
Instagram: @soberawkward
TikTok: @soberawkward
Facebook: Sober Awkward Community for Women

📞 SUPPORT & RESOURCES
If anything in today’s episode felt familiar, or you’re worried about your drinking, there is support available. You don’t have to do this alone.
🇦🇺 Australia
National Alcohol & Other Drug Hotline
📞 1800 250 015 (24/7)
https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/alcohol-and-drug-information-service
Lifeline
📞 13 11 14 (24/7)
https://www.lifeline.org.au
Hello Sunday Morning / Daybreak
https://hellosundaymorning.org
https://daybreakapp.com.au
Clean Slate Clinic
https://www.cleanslateclinic.com
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Drinkline
📞 0300 123 1110
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/alcohol-support/
Alcohol Change UK
https://alcoholchange.org.uk
We Are With You
https://www.wearewithyou.org.uk
🌍 International
Alcoholics Anonymous
https://www.aa.org
SMART Recovery
https://www.smartrecovery.org

💬 A Gentle Reminder
If you’re drinking in the morning to cope, especially with anxiety or withdrawal symptoms, it’s important to speak to a doctor or medical professional. Stopping alcohol suddenly can be unsafe for some people, and getting support can make a huge difference.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.