Why Your Nervous System Won't Calm Down in RecoveryWhy Your Nervous System Won't Calm Down in Recovery
The Now What Society
Two long-term sober women talk openly about anxiety, burnout and physical collapse despite years without alcohol. They share how stress, trauma and hormones keep the nervous system on edge and suggest small, realistic ways to start slowing down.
53:19•15 Sept 2026
Why Sober Women Still Feel Wired: Stress, Burnout and Your Nervous System
Episode Overview
- Stopping drinking doesn’t automatically calm a nervous system that has been on high alert for years.
- Chronic stress can show up as collapse, frequent illness, tight muscles, joint pain, or digestive issues.
- Understanding sympathetic (stress) and parasympathetic (rest) states helps explain why constant busyness feels addictive.
- Hormonal changes, especially in perimenopause, can intensify anxiety, fatigue and physical discomfort in recovery.
- Simple daily practices like a "mandatory timeout" with no phone or input can begin to ease an overloaded system.
“"It's not a flaw. There's nothing wrong with you. You are living the human experience."”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This candid chat on The Now What Society drops you straight into "the deep end" with hosts Lane Kennedy and Tamar Medford as they unpack why so many sober women still feel wired, worried and on edge long after the drink is gone.
You’ll hear Lane share a raw account of what she calls breaking her nervous system: collapsing into a year-long shutdown, endless scans, doctors shrugging their shoulders, and having to relearn how to pace life after pushing through stress for decades.
The irony isn’t lost on her: "I'm a mindfulness and meditation teacher and I broke my nervous system." Tamar reflects on her own burnout patterns, tech obsession, and a hip injury her physiotherapist linked to years of being stuck in a stress state.
Together they chat through sympathetic (stress) and parasympathetic (rest) responses, allostatic load, and how things like diet, music choices, family chaos, generational trauma, and perimenopausal hormone shifts can keep a body braced for disaster even in solid recovery.
They’re honest about how addiction simply shape-shifts into overwork, gym fixation, or technology binges: "What is that any different than alcohol or drugs?" This conversation is aimed squarely at women in long-term sobriety who’ve built good lives yet feel like their leg still won’t stop bouncing, their digestion is off, or they’re constantly sick or exhausted.
It’s unscripted, funny in places, and very down-to-earth, with practical nudges like putting yourself on a daily "mandatory timeout" and even switching your phone off for an hour. Above all, it’s a reminder that feeling frazzled doesn’t mean you’re broken: "It's not a flaw. There's nothing wrong with you. You are living the human experience." If your nervous system hasn’t got the memo that the threat is over, could it be time for your own timeout?
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