The Heaviness Of Hiding Your Drinking #health #holistic

I saw a news headline the other day that said: “How doctors and dentists know when patients are lying about their alcohol intake.”

Even though I’ve been sober for over a decade, reading that touched a nerve. 

I remember what it felt like to sit in the doctor’s office, being asked about my drinking, trying to decide, “Do I tell the truth here or should I round it down?”

The article itself talks about all the telltale signs medical professionals look for, but that’s not what got to me. What really struck me was remembering the sheer heaviness of having to worry about little things like a trip to the doctor’s.

And that’s exactly what I’m talking about today – the heaviness of hiding (and managing) your drinking.

Key points

The hiding doesn’t stop at the doctor’s surgery

Every single woman I work with hides her drinking to some extent. Even if you live alone and think you’ve got nothing to hide at home, I bet there are still people in your life you’re hiding from.

Maybe it’s the friend whose evening calls you never answer because you might sound drunk. The invitations you turn down because they’d mean driving or staying relatively sober when you don’t want to. Emails you draft late at night but don’t send because you can’t quite trust what you’ve written.

It’s the small things that become heavy

Perhaps you worry whether your colleagues can smell yesterday’s wine when you walk into the office in the morning. Maybe there’s that familiar panic when you wake up and realise you sent text messages or called someone last night, but you can’t quite remember what was discussed.

Or perhaps it’s the clink, clink, clink of wheeling your recycling bin to the curb, hoping the neighbours don’t notice it’s full of empties. Perhaps you’ve started rotating between different shops because you’re worried the cashier is somehow keeping count of what you buy.

None of these things feels like a big deal on its own, but can you see – or feel – how all these little worries accumulate into something much heavier? That’s the real problem here. Not any single thing, but the cumulative weight of carrying them all.

An invitation for you…

First of all, be honest with yourself. How many of these little worries and challenges are you navigating each week? How many small things are you hiding, managing, calculating, worrying about? Make a list somewhere private – maybe on your phone – so you can see it all laid out clearly. You’re not doing this to shame yourself or beat yourself up, but just to see it properly.

Then, after you’ve made that list, close your eyes for a moment and imagine not having to manage any of it. Imagine it all just… going away. Imagine not having to worry about or hide anything, because there’s nothing to get caught out by. 

That relief you’re imagining? It isn’t wishful thinking – it’s your intuition telling you something important. You’ve been carrying all these little things for so long that you’ve forgotten how heavy they are. You don’t always notice the weight until you finally get the chance to put it down and step back.

Sobriety can feel like relief

We tend to assume there’s a heaviness to not drinking – that it’s going to be hard work in and of itself. But I promise, alcohol-free living does not have to feel like white-knuckling and deprivation. Not when you’re doing it the right way. It can just feel lighter. 

Remember, more often than not, there isn’t a big rock-bottom moment that changes things. It’s just the accumulated heaviness of all the little things that one day, becomes too much to carry. 

Ready to create an alcohol-free life you love? Click here to learn more about my Getting Unstuck course.

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What These Sober Women Want You To Know #health #holistic

There are so many things I wish I’d known about alcohol-free living before I quit. 

Back then, I was convinced my life was basically going to be over, if I couldn’t drink. 

Without alcohol, I thought I’d either die of boredom or I’d become a sad sober loser –  abandoned by all her friends – and the loneliness would do me in instead. 

(Dramatic? Me? Just a bit…)

With those kinds of beliefs, it’s no wonder I was a bit resistant to quitting drinking. And I know I’m not the only one who anticipates the worst.

So here’s my attempt to put your mind at rest. 

I’m going to pass on some messages for you, from a few of my Sober School students.

I met up with them in person last month and asked them to write you a message. Watch the video to see what they have to say!

Key points

Their biggest wins

These aren’t small achievements. These are life-changing moments that happened because these women put down the wine glass:

• “749 days sober. My big win? Being effortlessly alcohol-free. No mental chatter, ever. An upgrade indeed.”
• “399 days sober. Thousands saved. My big win? I like myself.”
• “1076 days sober and £10,000 saved. My big win is that I got myself back.”
• “Seven and a half years sober. Saved enough to buy a car and get a mortgage on my own. My big win is that my partner has never and will never see me drunk.”
• “£6,000 saved in 1,120 days. My big win? Dealing with the sudden death of my husband without returning to drinking.”
• “I’m 3.5 years sober and I saved enough money in sobriety to get my teeth fixed – and I overcame my agoraphobia.”

What they want you to know: 

• “Sobriety doesn’t need to be boring. Sobriety rocks.”
• “What a life upgrade it is.”
• “How good a nine-hour sleep feels. Life is bloody good fun without booze. People don’t really care if you’re not drinking.”
• “I wish I’d known there was nothing wrong with me because I was struggling to stop, and I didn’t have to be ashamed about being addicted. That I wasn’t broken.”
• “I wish I’d known that I could still be fun and interesting without alcohol.”
• “I didn’t know that I could be successful. I was so worried about failing after so many Dry Januarys.”
• “The importance of education. You need to know the truth about alcohol and the power of a community.”

These are just a few messages from some of The Sober School graduates who attended my event in Birmingham. As I said in the video, I know you might not believe me when I tell you how good alcohol-free living can be. But I hope these real, heartfelt notes do strike a chord with you, and perhaps you’ll be able to believe the women who wrote them. 

Not one of these women described sobriety as a sacrifice. Not one said they missed drinking or wished they’d waited longer to quit. What they talked about was freedom, sleep, money, confidence and getting themselves back.

Ready to create an alcohol-free life you love? Click here to learn more about my Getting Unstuck course.

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My Name’s Kate And I’m Not An Alcoholic #health #holistic

In my drinking days, I must have googled “Am I an alcoholic?” so many times. 

I didn’t think I actually was an alcoholic, but my drinking certainly didn’t feel “normal”. I was stuck, not finding anything that described me or what to do next. 

Fast forward to today and an awful lot has changed. 

Not only am I happily sober, but my thoughts on the whole “alcoholic” label are a lot clearer. I wanted to share them here, in case you’re feeling as confused as I was. 

Key points

What exactly is an alcoholic anyway?

It’s a genuine question. How do you define that? Is it someone who regularly drinks above the recommended guidelines or often has more than they intend to? Or is it someone who feels they have to drink every single day? It’s so hard to define.

Some studies have found that only ten percent of excessive drinkers are officially ‘alcohol dependent’. Even if you fill out an online questionnaire about your drinking, it won’t tell you that you’re an alcoholic – it will refer to an alcohol use disorder instead.

Alcohol vs other drugs

When it comes to other substances, we’re not so obsessed with labels. Smokers never wonder if they are nicotine-oholics or whether they have a disease. They’re never going to question why they can’t just ‘control’ their intake of cigarettes or why they can’t smoke ‘responsibly’. 

The difference is that we recognise nicotine as a drug. We understand that if you use an addictive drug, then you’re probably going to get addicted to it. That addiction won’t be a reflection on you or your morals or your inner strength – it’s just what happens. 

A controversial opinion

Some people will come at me for this… but honestly? I think the only people who like to use the word alcoholic, are those who benefit from labelling others. It suits the alcohol industry to pretend that there’s such a thing as ‘normal’ or ‘responsible’ drinking. 

Other drinkers benefit from this too. They want to believe that they’re fine, they’re normal, they’re not doing anything wrong… and people who “have” to quit are different from them. It suits the system to keep perpetuating the myth that there’s just a small group of people out there who can’t use alcohol “responsibly”. 

No need for labels

As you might have guessed, I don’t call myself an alcoholic, I don’t think I am at all. I think I had a very normal relationship with alcohol, because it’s normal to get addicted to addictive substances, especially when they’re romanticised and glamorised. 

Unless the “alcoholic” label empowers you to change, feel free to ditch it. If you quit drinking, all it really means is that you’re a non-drinker. You’re alcohol free. You’re a teetotaler. You’re enjoying a hangover-free lifestyle. And you’re awesome. That’s it!

Ready to create an alcohol-free life you love? Click here to learn more about my Getting Unstuck course.

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Forget Dry January – February Matters Just As Much! #health #holistic

February is here. If you did Dry January, how did it go?

Maybe you sailed through and plan to continue… or perhaps you’re not sure what to do next. Maybe you’ve already had a drink or struggled to make it through the month.

I’ve had ALL of those experiences at some point or another, so I know what it’s like. 

And here’s the thing: it’s what you do next that matters just as much as what happened in January. I explain why in this video.

Key points

No matter what you do next, reflect first

It’s really important to capture how you’re feeling right now – the good and the bad. (Download the Dry January Debrief to help with this). Some of my biggest breakthroughs came from reading something I’d written months earlier and realising: “I forgot how good I felt back then.” Or I’d look back and notice a pattern to my drinking that I hadn’t spotted before. 

For example, if you completed Dry January but it felt like an endurance test – akin to being on a diet, perhaps – then let’s capture why sobriety feels like hard work right now. Why does it feel like deprivation? What do you think you’re missing out on? This information is key to changing those beliefs and how you approach alcohol-free living in the future. 

If you’re going to drink again…

Put a note in your diary first! I wish I’d done this after my breaks from drinking. I was so determined that everything was fine (“Look – I stopped! No way do I have a problem…”) that I conveniently overlooked what happened next. Somehow, it didn’t register how quickly I slid back into drinking in a way that didn’t work for me.

So set a reminder to check in with yourself at the end of February. Put another reminder on your phone for the end of March. On each occasion, grab your Dry January Debrief to remind yourself where you were at the end of January. Have things got better, worse or stayed the same? This is how you collect proper information about your drinking – don’t rely on your memory (which always distorts over time). 

If you had a tough month, you’re not alone

In 2013, I attempted Dry January with a group of friends. I lasted a week before giving up. (They all made it through the month and I had to pretend I was still doing it too. It was awful). But do you know what else happened in 2013? That was the year I quit for good.

So if you need a reminder that all is not lost and this year isn’t a write-off – then hello: I’m it. I’m living proof that you can turn things around. All that matters now is moving forward with intention. The key is capturing how you feel right now. Then you’ll have real data to work with – not just vague memories or wishful thinking.

Ready to create an alcohol-free life you love? Click here to learn more about my Getting Unstuck course.

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Что означает имбаланс в трейдинге Биржевой Университет #health #holistic

Имбаланс: когда рынок теряет равновесие

FVG в трейдинге или imbalance (на английском imbalance in trading) – это трехсвечная комбинация, область, где только одна сторона рынка предлагает ликвидность. Очень часто imbalance в системе Smart Money появляется после обновления какой-либо ликвидности. Imbalance (fvg, inefficiency) – импульсное движение цены, которое показывает неравновесие между покупателями и продавцами в определенном диапазоне из за нехватки ликвидности. Синим уровнем и красной стрелкой выделен огромный множественный имбаланс продавцов.

Пример 3: Ложный пробой и сбор ликвидности

• Если цена движется без четкой структуры, лучше воздержаться от входа.
• Чтобы эффективно сбалансировать цену и предложить ее обеим сторонам, в какой-то момент времени график вернется туда.
• Единичный имбаланс в верхней части бара, выделенный красным цветом означает, что перевес со стороны продавцов составляет более 300%.
• Причина, по которой мы называем это явление имбалансом заключается не только в том, что это дисбаланс между покупателями и продавцами, но и в том, что на рынке буквально существует дисбаланс.

Имбаланс в трейдинге — это несоответствие между спросом и предложением на определённом финансовом инструменте. Если на рынке существует сильный дисбаланс между покупателями и продавцами, это может привести к резким движениям цен в ту или иную сторону. Например, если продавцов слишком много, а покупателей мало, то цена будет снижаться. Напротив, если на рынке преобладают покупатели, а продавцов недостаточно, цена будет расти. Имбаланс на рынке можно определить как дисбаланс между покупателями и продавцами. За бычьим дисбалансом стоит больше покупателей, имбаланс а за медвежьим – больше продавцов.

Имбаланс — что это? Как найти и торговать имбаланс.

Фитили обычно представляют собой колебания цены вверх и вниз за определенный промежуток времени. Если на часовом таймфрейме вы видите палочку снизу или сверху свечи, это не просто какой-нибудь штрих, это полноценное движение на 1-5минутном графике. Когда вы видите насыщенную свечу без прикрывающих её теней от соседних свечей – вы определили явный дисбаланс в цене. Институциональные игроки формируют на рынке большие торговые объемы благодаря своим крупным ордерам на куплю или продажу.

Когда на графике формируется медвежий FVG, это прямой сигнал, что продавцы взяли контроль над рынком. Такие зоны часто появляются после резкого дисбаланса спроса и предложения, когда крупные игроки агрессивно разгружают позиции. Имбаланс (imbalance) в трейдинге — это диспропорция между спросом и предложением, вызывающая неравномерное распределение ликвидности и значительное https://forexby.com/ движение цены в одном направлении. Этот феномен играет ключевую роль в формировании трендов, волатильности и поведения активов на финансовых рынках.

Для более подробного описания работы индикатора посмотрите вебинар его создателя. Данные об открытом интересе в режиме реального времени предоставляет только Московская биржа, поэтому индикатор работает только на фьючерсных контрактах Московской биржи. Если вы хотите подробнее узнать, как торговать на имбалансе и как извлечь из него выгоду, рекомендуем вам записаться на курсы Биржевого Университета. Мы детально рассмотрим на них все интересные стратегии и разберем разные ситуации на практике, что позволит вам лучше усвоить информацию. Помните, что определить возникновение дисбаланса не всегда возможно. Часто для этого нужно использовать специализированное программное обеспечение, индикаторы, кластерный анализ и пр.

На верхнем графике вы можете наблюдать, как стремительно развивается восходящее движение фьючерсного контракта на британский фунт. Поступим как профессиональные трейдеры и попытаемся найти на графике футпринт Bid x Ask Imbalance платформы ATAS, крупный стек имбалансов, сформированный агрессивными покупателями. Если вдруг вы увидели, что имбалансы сформировались не в сторону вашей сделки, они скорее всего переедут ее своими большими колесами.

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My Biggest Lessons From 10 Years Of Running The Sober School #health #holistic

The Sober School turned 10 this month and over the weekend I threw a party in Birmingham to celebrate.

Students from all over the world travelled to the event to mark this milestone together. 

The party got me thinking about everything I’ve learned over the past decade of helping women put down the wine glass.

So I wanted to share some of my biggest takeaways with you in a video I filmed during Saturday’s event. 

It’s a bit rough and ready, but it’s the behind-the-scenes stuff that’ll give you a sense of what The Sober School is really all about.

Key points

Don’t think too far ahead

When I launched The Sober School in 2016, I had no idea where it would end up. I certainly never imagined I’d be hosting a party like this, celebrating ten years with a room full of women who’ve transformed their lives.

The same is true for your alcohol-free journey. You don’t need all the answers before you begin. You can’t figure out how you’ll handle that holiday in three months because you’re literally going to be a different person by then – thinking, knowing, and feeling different things. Future-you will have the skills to handle what comes next. You just need to start.

It’s hard to be what you can’t see

Standing in that room full of sober women was powerful. These are friendships forged online and magnified in person. People who understand each other’s journey because they’ve walked the same path. There was no chit chat about the weather here – just meaningful connection with people who get it.

So don’t do this alone. Surround yourself with people who’ve done what you’re doing and are a few steps ahead. The women who have the most success are the ones who stay connected to a great community.

Your sobriety creates ripples you’ll never see

At the party, I reminded everyone of something important: so many of them were the first person in their family or friendship group to stop drinking. They had to go first… but since then, others have followed.

Your kids, grandkids, partners, friends – they’re all watching. No matter what they say to begin with, they’ll feel the benefits of you changing your life later on. The ripple effect of your sobriety stretches much further than you realise.

Alcohol-free living is the ultimate lifestyle upgrade

In ten years of coaching women, I haven’t seen any evidence to the contrary. Not once! Ditching alcohol is not about settling for less. When you go about it the right way, alcohol-free living adds more into your life than you’d ever find at the bottom of a bottle.

Standing at the party, watching women hug, chat and celebrate together – all completely sober – was proof of that. This is what’s possible. If you’re curious about what life could look like without alcohol, I hope to see you at The Sober School one day. It might just change your life.

Ready to create an alcohol-free life you love? Click here to learn more about my Getting Unstuck course.

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2025 In Review: Our Alcohol-Free Highlights Of The Year #health #holistic

One of my favourite traditions at The Sober School happens every December. 

I ask the women I’ve coached throughout the year if they’d be happy to send me a photo of their alcohol-free highlight of the year.

The pictures that come back are incredible. Sometimes it’s a moment they’re grateful they were able to experience, sober. Other times it’s something that would never have happened if they’d still been drinking.

These aren’t stock photos or posed shots – they’re real life glimpses into what a happy, alcohol-free life can look like. I can’t wait to share them with you in today’s video.

What about you?

If you’ve got a favourite alcohol-free highlight that you’d like to share, let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear about it!

If you feel inspired by these photos and you’d like to make a fresh start in 2026, make sure you join my free New Year Masterclass! It starts just after Christmas. Fill out the form below to join.

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