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1,000 Days Sober: How a Teacher Stopped Using Alcohol as a Personality | Ep.14 cover art

1,000 Days Sober: How a Teacher Stopped Using Alcohol as a Personality | Ep.14

1,000 Days Sober: How a Teacher Stopped Using Alcohol as a Personality | Ep.14

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He wasn't drinking because he loved alcohol. He was drinking because he didn't think people would like the real him.In Episode 14 of Beyond the Gray, Kari welcomes Billy Lahr, host of the Mindful Midlife Crisis podcast, joining live from Seoul, South Korea. Billy shares his full story: growing up in small-town Minnesota where the bar was the Sunday restaurant, building a drinking identity in college, showing up hungover to teach ninth graders, and the moment anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation forced him to take a hard look at what alcohol was actually doing.What followed was years of "sober school years," traveling the world alcohol-free, one bad date that became his zero day, and now at 1,000 days of sobriety. This conversation is raw, funny, and deeply relatable.In this episode you'll hear:• How Billy created a drinking personality to get people to like him and what it actually cost him• The 180-day challenge that turned his mental health around• Why he did "sober school years" from 2013 to 2021 and what he learned from each one• The date that became his zero day and why "F the zero" keeps him going• Why Billy believes "follow your passion" is terrible advice and what to follow instead• The free writing practice (started in Minneapolis jails) that's now connecting people worldwide• Kari's personal connection to free writing through her late friend Chris• The hidden cost of staying in a gray area: living small and giving up agency• Why comfort is fine but complacency will cost you everythingIf you've ever used alcohol to fit in, to feel confident, or to become someone you thought the world wanted you to be, this conversation was made for you.—————GUEST: Billy LahrMindful Midlife Crisis Podcast (120+ episodes)Instagram: @mindful_midlife_crisisLinkedIn: Billy LahrCommunity: www.mindfulmidlifecommunity.comEmail: billy@mindfulmidlifecrisis.comTo join the Free Writers community: https://www.mindfulmidlifecommunity.com/freewriters—————RESOURCES MENTIONED📌Gray Area Audit (FREE DOWNLOAD)Beyond the Gray Episode 3: IdentityBeyond the Gray Episode 11: Stop Calling Yourself an AlcoholicBeyond the Gray Episode 13: Gray Area Drinking 101READY TO GO DEEPER?The Gray Area Insights Experience helps you get clear on where you actually are across all four areas of life: body, being, balance, and business. It includes a behavioral scan and two deep coaching sessions. It's not therapy. It's clarity.Gray Area Insights Experience 👇https://www.graytonic.com/coaching-programs-leaders-couples/#insightBook a Call with Kari:https://calendly.com/karischwear/45minVisit the Website:https://www.graytonic.com/—————CONNECT WITH KARILinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/karischwear/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/beyondthegray.podcast/📌New episodes drop weekly. Subscribe so you don't miss what's coming next.If this episode hit home, share it with someone who's been performing a version of themselves that only shows up after the third drink. Sometimes hearing someone else's story is the permission we need to start writing our own.—————TOPICS COVEREDgray area drinking, sober curious, alcohol and identity, drinking to fit in, people pleasing and alcohol, 1000 days sober, quit drinking story, midlife sobriety, teacher and alcohol, sober school year, alcohol and mental health, anxiety and drinking, free writing practice, mindful midlife crisis, Billy Lahr, Kari Schwear, Beyond the Gray podcast, alcohol-free living, drinking personality, external validation—————#GrayAreaDrinking #1000DaysSober #DrinkingToFitIn #SoberCurious #AlcoholAndIdentity #MidlifeSobriety #BeyondTheGray #KariSchwear #BillyLahr #MindfulMidlifeCrisis #AlcoholFree #DrinkingPersonality #MentalHealthAndAlcohol #FreeWriting #QuitDrinking #SoberExplorer #PeoplePleasing #HighPerformers
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