What if your drinking habits aren’t really about alcohol at all, but about the quiet, powerful beliefs sitting beneath the surface? In this solo episode, Anna Donaghey dives into the “Pyramid of Belief”, a simple framework that explains how deeply-rooted feelings of “not enough” shape much of our behaviour, including drinking.
Using lived experience and insights from Dave Gray’s "Liminal Thinking," Anna breaks down how our early experiences, the culture we grow up in, and the swirl of online comparison, all reinforce beliefs like “I’m not smart enough,” “I’m not interesting enough,” and “I’m not enough, full stop.” She explores why alcohol so often becomes the go-to answer for the emotional discomfort those beliefs trigger and guides listeners through the first, vital steps to uncovering what they’re really thirsty for.
Highlights:
00:00 Welcome & intro
00:40 The "not enough" beliefs we rarely examine
01:13 Why this episode isn’t (really) about alcohol at first
02:14 What is the Pyramid of Belief
05:04 How our minds filter reality
05:57 How a single shame-triggering moment forms a core belief
09:03 Why you’re not flawed and how “not enough” beliefs got there
10:30 Anna Donaghey’s own formative “not smart enough” moment
13:39 The modern "comparison machine"
14:20 How alcohol soothes the “not enough” wound
16:15 Key question: “What is my drinking actually trying to answer for me?”
16:27 Find your own “I’m not enough” belief
17:47 What “I need...” before a drink reveals about your core beliefs
17:59 Why pinning down beliefs (not just thoughts) is tricky
18:42 Announcing a series exploring specific “not enough” beliefs
19:37 None of this is your fault
20:23 Resources & how to join The Big Drink Rethink community.
Anna’s book "What Are You Thirsty For? Rethinking Alcohol and The Life You Want", is now out in the world for you to buy!
The Thirsty For More Mindset Lab is Anna’s ‘inner circle’ - a calm, thoughtful space where conversations continue, patterns are explored, and things begin to make sense. Find out more at: https://thirstyformore.substack.com/
If you appreciate the podcast and would like to show a bit of love, you can donate the cost of a coffee here. It helps support the time and care that goes into making the show:https://buymeacoffee.com/bigdrinkrethink
About the host Anna:
Anna is a certified Alcohol Mindset Coach, trained by Annie Grace of This Naked Mind. Drawing on her own journey out of alcohol addiction, she now helps others explore and control their drinking. With a career spanning 25 years as a Strategist in the Advertising industry, she combines her own lived experiences, with great insight into what makes us tick and what influences us to behave the way we do.
