Sober Curious?: How Midlife Women Can Rethink Alcohol Without Shame

What if questioning your relationship with alcohol doesn’t mean you have a problem — it just means you’re paying attention?

In this honest and eye-opening episode of Midlife Strategies for Badass Women, Sue Willoughby sits down with alcohol relationship coach and host of the Sober and Lit podcast, Susan Larkin, for a compassionate, no-shame conversation about gray area drinking — the space where many successful midlife women quietly wonder, “Is this still serving me?”

Susan shares her personal journey of questioning her own drinking, the shame and self-blame that kept her stuck for years, and why the all-or-nothing narrative around alcohol stops so many women from getting the support they actually need. Together, Sue and Susan unpack how alcohol often becomes a coping mechanism for stress, anxiety, loneliness, and life transitions — and why curiosity, not labels, is the most powerful place to start.

This episode is not about telling you to quit drinking. It’s about giving you information, perspective, and permission to explore your relationship with alcohol in a way that feels empowering and self-directed.

🔥 In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What gray area drinking really is — and why so many midlife women fall into it 
• Why shame keeps women stuck in negative habit loops
• How alcohol quietly affects anxiety, depression, sleep, and intuition
• The difference between “high functioning” and truly thriving
• Why alcohol-free doesn’t have to mean isolation or deprivation
• How to get curious about the jobs you’ve given alcohol in your life
• Why taking a break can be the most revealing experiment of all 

If you’ve ever Googled “Do I drink too much?”, felt a quiet heaviness after drinking, or wondered why something that once felt fun no longer does — this conversation will resonate deeply.