Not many people kick off their sobriety journey with a pact made with their mum - but for Ryan and his mum, it worked. And it’s transformed both of their lives.

For Ryan, the energy he unlocked by quitting drinking didn’t just stay bottled up - it burst open a world of new opportunities. And he said yes to all of them.

Welcome to The Next Round -the podcast that explores what happens after you change your drinking. Whether you’re wondering how to fill all that new free time or feeling supercharged with so many ideas you need help saying no, this show is your source of inspiration for whatever comes next.

When Ryan gave up drinking, he didn't just close a door -he opened a portal. What followed wasn’t just sobriety, but a full-blown transformation that turned him into a festival-hopping, breathwork-leading, mushroom-coffee-brewing creative force. This is the story of what happens when you say no to booze and yes to everything else.

When Ryan gave up drinking, he didn’t just close a door -he opened a portal. What followed wasn’t just sobriety, but a full-blown transformation that turned him into a festival-hopping, breathwork-leading, mushroom-coffee-brewing creative force. This is the story of what happens when you say no to booze and yes to everything else.

Ryan didn’t just stop drinking. He and his mum made a pact, and it stuck. It became an anchor that kept him grounded when life threw him curveballs—grief, stress, pressure. And rather than slide back into old habits, he leaned into something new. Actually, many things new.

His first year of sobriety looked nothing like what you might expect. It began with a love story—he met his girlfriend at a sober-friendly community festival. She opened the door to a world of conscious living: breathwork, ice baths, and music-fueled self-exploration.

What followed was a summer of sober festivals, including Medicine Festival and Boom in Portugal—seven days of breathwork, dancing, Kung Fu, and sound healing in the mountains. He wasn’t just attending these gatherings. He was performing, drumming with his girlfriend’s band, and even leading guided meditations at immersive sound healing events. At Hackney Round Chapel, he took the stage after a 20-year hiatus and led a meditation through the chakra system, paired with a cup of Blue Lotus tea and sacred geometry visuals on the ceiling.

Then came the deepening. He enrolled in an eight-month breathwork facilitator course, digging into trauma, PTSD, and shadow work. He’s now running free sessions as part of his training and sees this as part of his longer-term path: helping others—especially men—through sobriety and healing.

But his creativity doesn’t stop there.

So he’s building “Holy Mush,” a tree-slab-cart-powered mushroom coffee business with a side of kindness and storytelling. Think Lion’s Mane espresso served with a dose of human connection. He’s also cooking up plans to document his journey on social media using first-person glasses.

You can find Ryan's podcast '

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It was a health scare that pushed Jeff out of his comfort zone. He was diagnosed with a fatty liver at 29.

Now he’s reversed fatty liver disease and gained an amazing and active personal life.

Welcome to the Next Round, when things that scare you have the potential to improve your life in ways you never imagined. Your next round can be more than getting better physically, it can help you create a new point of difference.

Meet Jeff Smith, he works in finance by day, a notoriously boozy industry, but in his spare time he now performs improv on stage, jumps into icy fjords, learnt his mother tongue Tagalog, and has even launched a podcast. Most importantly he has reversed a health condition that could have killed him.

When Jeff changed his drinking habits, he didn’t just remove something from his life- he unlocked a more exciting life and imporved his health to boot!

A health scare in his late twenties pushed him to re-evaluate how alcohol fit into his lifestyle. What followed wasn’t just abstinence – it was expansion. From improv stages to ecstatic dance and even launching his own podcast, Jeff’s life now pulses with more energy, creativity, and meaning than ever before.

The catalyst was a diagnosis: fatty liver. At just 29, Jeff found himself dealing with elevated liver enzymes, fatigue, and unpleasant stomach issues. His drinking wasn’t daily, but it was intense – classic binge behavior.

The health wake-up call forced him to stop. Cold. But instead of spiraling, he got curious.

His first discovery? A run club that served matcha instead of beer. That led to Club Soda events, then the Social Wellness Club, and eventually a plunge into activities he never imagined himself doing. Like ecstatic dance.

Even more surprising for an introvert in the corporate finance world? Improv.

Jeff also co-created a podcast with a university friend, “The English Footy Podcast.” With his evenings no longer lost to wine or recovery, he had time and clarity for passion projects. He even began learning Tagalog – his mother’s language – fulfilling a long-held desire to connect more deeply with his heritage.

But perhaps the most meaningful change came from social confidence.

Navigating the finance world – a bastion of long-standing drinking culture – hasn’t been easy. Jeff still finds pressure in client meetings and among old university friends who knew him as a drinker. But with confidence and a kombucha in hand, he’s learned to draw his own line.

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Anneka has a story many of us recognise — that moment where one drink turns into four, and suddenly you’ve lost the night again.

Like so many, she used alcohol to take the edge off anxiety. It worked — until it didn’t.

Now, she’s alcohol-free and in tune with a completely different kind of energy. She turns to her tarot cards — not just for guidance, but to help others explore their own stories too.

Welcome to The Next Round — the podcast that asks what happens after we stop drinking. Maybe you’re wondering what’s next for you. Who knows — maybe it’s written in the cards.

Like Anneka Davie, who’s turned her passion for tarot into a tool for self-discovery and connection. In this episode, she shares how ditching alcohol opened up a whole new path — and yes, she even pulls a few cards for me.

When Anneke Davie stopped drinking, she didn’t just give up wine – she made space for something entirely new. A quiet force emerged. It started with crystals, then crept into her life with the pull of tarot cards and the clarity of a new routine that no longer centred around hangovers or hazy memories.

She’d always been a binge drinker.

Like many, Anneke believed drinking gave her confidence, especially in social situations, but the next day was always brutal.

Her final drink came after a day at the races. Drunk and disoriented, she lost the diamond out of her engagement ring and found herself on hands and knees, scrabbling through the grass.

That was three years ago.

What came next wasn’t just sobriety – it was a reconnection with a part of herself that had been long dormant. As a child, she’d been fascinated by dreams, superstitions and horoscopes. Lockdown gave her the pause she needed to revisit that part of herself. Crystals came first, and soon her house was filled with them – much to the despair of her husband. But then came tarot. She found a reader on Instagram, began training, and started doing readings for herself. The cards became mirrors, windows, and conversation starters.

It wasn’t long before others began asking for readings, and what started as a hobby slowly began to evolve into something more purposeful. At a retreat, someone asked her for a reading and, despite feeling way out of her comfort zone.

The more distance she put between herself and alcohol, the stronger her sense of direction became.

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The Club Soda Tasting Room is at 39 Drury Lane, London, WC2B 5RR

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