The Hangover Liberation Society

The Hangover Liberation Society

Feminist Hotdog and Loudspeaker Studios

Chances are you know about the downside of drinking… the anxiety, damage to your body, lost days, lost relationships. But instead of focusing on the downsides, why not talk about the UPside of recovery? Recovery is more than just abstaining. It means changing the conditions that surround us and learning to love and trust ourselves again. Most people need support to do that, and that’s where The Hangover Liberation Society comes in. Each week on the show, co-hosts Adrienne van der Valk and Erin Ranta will teach you how to live sober using a combination of neuroscience, somatic practices, nutr...

HLS S1E15: Learning Our Brains with Gill Tietz

HLS S1E15: Learning Our Brains with Gill Tietz

We're ending our first season by interviewing a guest we've long admired: Gill Tietz, creator and host of the Sober Powered podcast and YouTube channel! Gill is a sober scientist and public educator who interprets research on alcohol use disorder and recovery in terms anyone can understand. She's a pioneering voice in the recovery community, and we loved our conversation on the many empowering benefits of understanding our brains. In this episode, Adrienne also brings you a BIG SOBER ENERGY tip

Jun 23, 2022 • 34:33

HLS S1E14: Perks and Pitfalls of Vacationing Sober

HLS S1E14: Perks and Pitfalls of Vacationing Sober

It's finally summer, and we're gearing up to get out of town! Vacations used to be drinking marathons for both of us, but (thankfully) we now have more time and headspace to spare while traveling. This week, we're focusing on how to plan for your sober vacation and maximize the benefits of being more present and hangover-free. Adrienne's BIG SOBER ENERGY tip reminds us that we don't have to live-stream our travels to prove we're having fun, and Erin leads us in a mindful knee bend that captures

Jun 9, 2022 • 25:28

HLS S1E13: The REVA Intensive

HLS S1E13: The REVA Intensive

Erin's on mom duty today, so Adrienne goes solo to answer your questions about the REVA Intensive! From the philosophies and beliefs that underpin the program to the nuts and bolts of exactly what it means to be a REVA student, she breaks it all down. She also explains how the Intensive differs from 12-steps and traditional treatment programs in structure and focus. In addition to answering our most frequently asked questions, Adrienne also leads a guided visualization designed to help you conne

May 26, 2022 • 35:15

HLS S1E12: Speaking Light Into Abortion with Amanda Star Kingsley

HLS S1E12: Speaking Light Into Abortion with Amanda Star Kingsley

This week, we learned via a leaked Supreme Court opinion that the Court is poised to overturn Roe v. Wade; given this news, we decided to release an episode on the topic of abortion from Season 4 of Adrienne's other podcast, Feminist Hotdog. We at REVA have always centered bodily autonomy in our recovery work and feel strongly that scaling back access to abortion institutionalizes body terrorism. We hope this episode inspires you as a human and inspires you to fight this decision if it comes to

May 12, 2022 • 42:14

HLS S1E11: Pets, Plants & Recovery

HLS S1E11: Pets, Plants & Recovery

When it comes to almost any recovery team, pets are the real MVPs. In this episode, we talk through a long list of ways caring for pets (and plants!) can support us emotionally, physically, and mentally as we learn to live without drugs and alcohol. We also share personal stories about the dogs who saved us at different low points in our lives and the lessons they taught us along the way. Even our BIG SOBER ENERGY tip is dog-themed! The next session of our Intensive program starts soon! We're op

Apr 28, 2022 • 27:28

HLS S1E10: Food as a Tool for Recovery with Kiola Raines

HLS S1E10: Food as a Tool for Recovery with Kiola Raines

Can food help us recover from substance use disorder? The answer is YES, and our guest on today’s episode explains why. Nutrition coach Kiola Raines is passionate about helping people in recovery use food as a tool to boost their moods, lower anxiety, and nourish the parts of our brains that experience stress when we stop drinking. Hear her recommended list of “good mood food” and her suggestions for how to create a custom eating plan that supports your individual needs in sobriety. Kiola also b

Apr 14, 2022 • 44:17

HLS S1E9: How to Be a Sober Friend

HLS S1E9: How to Be a Sober Friend

Friendships can be some of the most rewarding experiences of our lives, but when we're drinking and using things can get...complicated. In this episode, we look back on how we functioned (or didn't) within our friendships while we were drinking, what has changed since we quit, and some of the challenges we didn't expect as sober people connecting with other sober people (especially during a pandemic). This week's BIG SOBER ENERGY tip offers some suggestions for how to deal with friends who fall

Mar 31, 2022 • 30:16

HLS S1E8: Divesting from Big Alcohol

HLS S1E8: Divesting from Big Alcohol

One upside of sobriety we did not expect was the validation of knowing our money no longer supports an industry that actively harms its customers and lies about the addictive nature of its product. In this episode, we uncover some of the gory details of how Big Alcohol functions, who it targets, and how it has fueled one of the most insidious myths about drinking and people with substance use disorder. We also take inspiration from author Craig Beck for our BIG SOBER ENERGY tip and Erin leads us

Mar 17, 2022 • 32:10

HLS S1E7: Erin's Journey With Liver Disease

HLS S1E7: Erin's Journey With Liver Disease

Today we hear about Erin’s long road with alcohol dependence and liver disease, from her first diagnosis of “fatty liver” to being told she might not survive the night in the hospital. It’s a tough story to hear, but one she’s 100 percent committed to sharing if it could help even one person avoid the hell she went through for so many years. In honor of this unusual episode, we decided to combine our movement and BIG SOBER ENERGY segments to bring you an extended interoception practice, som

Mar 3, 2022 • 43:47

HLS S1E6: Living In Integrity

HLS S1E6: Living In Integrity

How has recovery influenced our integrity? In this episode, we look back at our former selves with compassion and talk about how we saw ourselves striving to live in integrity even when hiding and minimizing our drinking made it difficult. We explore the problematic narrative that having substance use disorder automatically means someone is not living in integrity, and the flip side of that narrative: that drinking is a “truth serum” (also fake news!). This week’s BIG SOBER ENERGY tip challenges

Feb 17, 2022 • 26:28

HLS S1E5: Sobering Up Our Bank Accounts

HLS S1E5: Sobering Up Our Bank Accounts

No one likes to talk about money, especially if drinking or using caused your financial life to go off the rails. In this episode, we talk about some of our lowest money moments, the shame (and busted credit scores) we've worked to overcome, and how the process of recovering our bank account bears striking resemblance to recovery from substance use disorder. We also offer our BIG SOBER ENERGY tip: financial edition, and Erin talks us through a stress-relief practice, perfect for calming the anxi

Feb 3, 2022 • 27:29

HLS S1E4: Haters Gonna Hate

HLS S1E4: Haters Gonna Hate

We all know people become ten times braver and meaner behind a keyboard. So why do we still take negative comments so personally? In this episode, we read some of the less-than-positive comments people have made on HLS social media posts and unpack the harmful recovery narratives living between the lines. (Spoiler alert: We don't believe only one type of person develops problems with alcohol or that there's only one way to quit!)And, as always, we bring you a BIG SOBER ENERGY tip and a short med

Jan 20, 2022 • 33:47

HLS S1E3: Time Not In a Bottle

HLS S1E3: Time Not In a Bottle

There never seems to be enough time—especially if alcohol is taking up a disproportionate amount of space in your life. How much time do we waste thinking about drinking, worrying about what we did while we were drinking, or recovering from drinking? Alcohol and its aftereffects not only rob you of productivity and enjoyment, but for some of us, it literally creates blank space where our memories should have been. Yikes!In this episode, we rejoice in the many ways we’ve reclaimed our time (

Jan 6, 2022 • 20:11

HLS S1E2: The Skin We're In

HLS S1E2: The Skin We're In

Everyone wants to put their best face forward, but when we're chronically dehydrated and pumping our liver full of toxins, our poor skin takes a real beating from the inside. In this episode, we talk about what happens to your skin once you give up booze, why we look worse before we look better, and a skin-related mind-hack that can motivate us to get and stay sober. This week's BIG SOBER ENERGY tip will have your skin singing, plus Erin talks us through a modified version of the Pilates 100!Rel

Dec 14, 2021 • 23:27

HLS S1E1: The Perks of Sober Holidays

HLS S1E1: The Perks of Sober Holidays

The holidays are a time when sobriety can feel less than magical. The pressure to be jolly and merry is high. In reality, though, being alcohol-free is a gift! To celebrate that, we devote this episode to the things that make November through January noticeably more enjoyable, less stressful—and WAY less cringe-inducing—now that we're off the sauce. We also offer three helpful suggestions for navigating the holidays as a person in recovery, plus a short movement practice, and this episode's BIG

Nov 29, 2021 • 25:57

HLS S1E0: Welcome to the Hangover Liberation Society!

HLS S1E0: Welcome to the Hangover Liberation Society!

If you clicked on this podcast, chances are you know aaallll about the downside of drinking—the anxiety, damage to your body, lost days, lost relationships. And, yeah, it’s important to remember that stuff. But we're two sober movement teachers and coaches who wanted to create a podcast that goes beyond the downside of drinking and explores the upside of sobriety—and why ditching alcohol is so much more than just liberating yourself from hangovers (although that’s pretty good, too!). F

Nov 16, 2021 • 1:19

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