<p>Is alcohol confidence, connection, and a doorway back to yourself, or is it a liquid barrier that keeps you further away?</p><br><p>In this episode, Vic is joined by Australian broadcaster and former Triple J presenter Mel Bampton. Now 15 years sober, Mel has come full circle back to radio after spending years rebuilding her life around yoga, surfing and sobriety. Together, they explore one powerful question: how do we make our way back after losing ourselves to alcohol?</p><br><p>Mel explains how alcohol can feel like a shortcut back to playfulness, imagination, and that light, giggly version of us we lost somewhere between school rules, expectations, and being told to “behave”. They talk about how drinking can seem like it’s giving you freedom, when it’s quietly taking pieces of you away, and why it can be so hard to notice that loss of self when you start young.</p><br><p>They also dig into timing, the moment you know it’s time to stop, the shift from chaos to clarity, and the surprising truth that sobriety can be less about becoming someone new, and more about returning to who you were before life made you small.</p><br><p>There’s tequila, hangovers, bins full of glass bottles, silent discos in the jungle, and a full-circle comeback story that proves this, even if you’ve taken the scenic route, you can always find your way back to you.</p><p>Enjoy!</p><br><p><a href="https://www.instagram.com/melbampton_/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@melbampton_</a></p><p>https://www.thepranaproject.com/blog/whats-in-a-name</p><br><p>💛 Resources &amp; Links</p><br><p>📘 Victoria’s memoir – A Thousand Wasted Sundays</p><p>A brutally honest and hilarious look at motherhood, anxiety, and ditching the booze.</p><p>👉 <a href="https://www.https//amzn.asia/d/gfqQtIF.com/a-thousand-wasted-sundays" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Buy the book here</a></p><br><p>🎧 Listen to more Sober Awkward episodes</p><p>👉 <a href="https://www.soberawkward.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">www.soberawkward.com</a></p><br><p>🫖 Join The Cuppa Community</p><p>Our private, supportive online space for sober folk</p><p>👉 <a href="https://www.cuppa.community/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">www.cuppa.community</a></p><br><p>📘 Get the Sober Awkward Guide</p><p>Our downloadable toolkit for ditching booze the awkward way.</p><p>👉 <a href="https://www.soberawkward.com/guide" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Sober Awkward Guide</a></p><br><p>📱 Follow us for daily sober fun:</p><p>Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/soberawkward" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@soberawkward</a></p><p>TikTok: <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@soberawkward" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@soberawkward</a></p><p>Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/soberawkwardforwomen" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sober Awkward Community for Women</a></p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>