Most experiments start with curiosity—and a hunch that something might shift if you change just one thing. This one started with bloodwork.
My A1C—the marker that tracks blood sugar over time—came back higher than I wanted. I don't eat much sugar. I rarely snack. But there was one variable I hadn't examined closely: alcohol.
Even though beer, wine, and scotch aren't high in sugar, alcohol interferes with how the liver regulates blood sugar. My background in psychopharmacology—and a family history of type 2 diabetes—made this impossible to ignore. So I decided to run an experiment: three months without alcohol to see what happens when I remove one variable.
But I know my own wiring. I didn't wait to "miss" my evening ritual. I redesigned it.
The Loop You Can't Remove
Every habit lives inside a loop: cue → routine → reward. The cue triggers the routine, the reward reinforces it, and the brain learns to anticipate satisfaction.
With alcohol, the cue isn't just the drink itself. It's the glass in your hand, the sound of the cork, the pour that signals the day is shifting gears. The reward isn't just the buzz—it's the transition. The moment your shoulders drop and you exhale.
Take away the alcohol, and you don't just remove ethanol. You remove the entire context of reward.
That's why I didn't "tough it out." I rebuilt the ritual.
What I Replaced It With
I started experimenting with drinks that felt equally layered and adult—moments that told my brain, this still matters.
- Aplós Calme with ginger beer and bitters—botanical, quietly complex, with adaptogens that actually help with calm
- Non-alcoholic IPAs that deliver hop satisfaction and pair perfectly with pizza
- Tea-based drinks inspired by restaurant pairings—aromatic, layered enough to replace wine
Each one meets a slightly different need: flavor, texture, transition, ritual. Having options—not just one replacement—made the shift sustainable.
The first night, I poured Aplós Calme with ginger beer and bitters over ice in my favorite rocks glass. Same weight in my hand. Same signal. My brain exhaled before my body did.
It worked—not because I removed something, but because I designed something new to do the same job.
The Early Results
I'm now ten weeks in. Too soon to know what my A1C will show in December, but the early signals are striking:
- Within two weeks, I lost a few pounds without changing anything else
- I sleep soundly through the night—every single night
- My hands, which usually ache from arthritis, have been noticeably less sore
I'm not anti-alcohol. I'm pro-awareness. And this experiment reminded me how much our bodies tell us when we're willing to listen—and redesign.
From Personal Rituals to Team Behavior
This is exactly what I coach leaders on: lasting change doesn't come from removing the old—it comes from designing the new.
One client wanted their team to share knowledge more openly. But every meeting started with individual status reports—a ritual that rewarded hoarding information until your turn came. We redesigned the first ten minutes as a "What's Working" round where people shared one thing they'd learned from someone else that week.
Within a month, their Teams chats were buzzing with questions. Not because people suddenly became more collaborative—because the ritual made collaboration the natural path to reward.
You can't tell a team to think strategically while filling the calendar with back-to-back reactive meetings. You can't ask for better decisions without creating space to reflect. You can't expect new behavior from old systems.
Context cues behavior. The best leaders don't rely on discipline. They rely on design—building rituals that make the right action feel natural.
This Month's Experiment
Think about one behavior you'd like to see more of—in yourself or your team. Then ask:
- What's the cue that starts the current behavior?
- What's the reward people are really getting from it?
- How might you design a new ritual that delivers the same reward—but leads somewhere better?
Change sticks when you stop trying to force it—and start designing for it.
Warmly,
Angela
P.S. If you're curious about the specific drinks that have been replacing my evening ritual—or what actually takes the edge off without alcohol—just reply. I'll share my favorites.
