The Problem With “Normal” Drinking – with William Porter

The Problem With “Normal” Drinking – with William Porter

From Sober Awkward by soberawkward

April 19, 2026 · 45 min · Season 13 · Episode 10

About this episode

The episode discusses the normalization of alcohol in society and its impact on mental health and personal choices.

Vic sits down with William Porter to unpack one of the biggest traps in drinking culture, how alcohol became so normal we stopped questioning it. From cracking a Red Stripe on a train at 7.30am in London to planning entire nights around that first drink, this episode explores the quiet, creeping ways alcohol becomes the main event without us even noticing. They dive into where cravings really come from, why our brains keep sending us back for more even when it makes us feel awful, and how growing up surrounded by booze can make drinking feel less like a choice and more like something we were always going to do. There’s also a moment so many of us will recognise, that slow realisation that feeling anxious, flat, and exhausted all the time might not just be “life”, it might be alcohol. This is the episode where things start to click, where the fog lifts a little, and where you begin to see the bigger picture. If you’ve ever woken up and thought “why am I doing this again?”, this one’s for you. 💛 Resources & Links William Porter - Alcohol Explained - https://amzn.asia/d/0j9Q896E 📘 Victoria’s memoir – A Thousand Wasted Sundays A brutally honest and hilarious look at motherhood…

People in this episode

Host: Vic

Guest: William Porter

Topics covered

  • drinking culture
  • alcohol cravings
  • mental health
  • sober living
  • parenthood
  • anxiety

Keywords

  • normal drinking
  • alcohol culture
  • cravings
  • mental health
  • sober community
  • anxiety
  • parenthood

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Alcohol Explained, A Thousand Wasted Sundays

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