Holly took her last drink on January 4, 2007.  This is her story of living alcohol-free (AF).     Finding Your Better You – Odette’s weekly message.   Odette and Holly met in treatment.  In 2013, they went to Montecatini together to work on their eating disorders.  Odette believed that if she could stop her obsession with food and reach a healthy weight, she would be normal.  However, she didn’t address the emotional reasons behind her eating disorder.  A few years later, she found herself using alcohol as her new coping mechanism.  The behaviors that led to her unhealthy relationship with food mirrored the behaviors of her relationship with alcohol.    Up to 35% of people who abused alcohol also have an eating disorder. This rate is 11 times greater than the general population.    For more information on these statistics, see:  https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/     The stigma for eating disorders is greater than the stigma for alcohol use disorder, so many people struggle in silence.    Odette believes the only way out is through.    Get to the root cause of your addiction.  Be aware of co-occurring addictions.  Don’t run away from your feelings or numb them with a substance.  Find a community.  Get professional help.  When seeking help, be specific.  Find a therapist specializing in addiction, whether it is alcohol, food, drugs, or whatever else.  Get specific.     Don’t feel perpetually stuck in addiction whack-a-mole.  We can do hard things.     [9:14] Odette introduces Holly   Holly took her last drink on January 4, 2007.  Holly is from Montana.  She moved to Southern California over 15 years ago for graduate school.  She currently works for Mental Health Systems as an employment specialist, helping those with behavioral health issues get employment.  On the weekends, she works for a rehab in San Diego as a rehab specialist.  Holly has fun playing games.  Codeword is her latest favorite.  She also enjoys listening to books, music and hanging out with her dog Hannay.   [11:56] Tell me about your history with drinking   Holly started experimenting with alcohol in college.  She grew up in a conservative home.  She was allowed to drink with adults present, but her family was traditional with alcohol use.  Holly didn’t drink in high school.  She was a rule follower.   Her drinking took off when she was 21, when it was legal and escalated after her engagement.  She attended Fuller Theological Seminary, intending to become a Presbyterian minister. She drank heavily every day and hid her drinking.    [13:39] Did you start questioning your drinking habits at that time?   When Holly lived in Montana, she drank like everyone else.  When she moved to California, she would order two drinks at a time and was starting to understand that wasn’t normal.  She needed a drink before she went out and then went home afterward to drink alone.  She isolated and that isolation led to depression.  Alcohol exacerbated the depression.  Toward the end of her drinking, she was put on several psychiatric holds (5150).   [15:17] Were you rationalizing your drinking as something sophisticated?   On paper, Holly was very functional.  She was a straight-A student, on the Dean’s list, she held to part-time jobs.  She aced Hebrew.   [16:40] Did you have a therapist?  Was your therapist able to discern the alcohol issues from the depression issues?   Holly had a therapist and kept drinking.  She hid her drinking from her therapist.  She was annoyed that her therapist occasionally suggested her attending a meeting.   [17:33] Walk me through the progression of your drinking.   Holly noted that two years after moving to California, she couldn’t stop drinking.  She would wake up in the morning and drink to recover from the night before.  She also struggled with an Eating disorder.  Alcohol was the only calories she could keep in her body.  She was physically and mentally depleting.   She had suicidal ideations and felt if she got rid of herself, she would