When Alcohol Became Normal

In this episode of The Functional Cantina, I'm talking about how alcohol became part of my life long before I ever questioned it. For me, drinking started in high school and progressed in college, like it does for so many people. At the time, it felt normal. It was around friends, parties, celebrations, stress, fun, connection, and growing up. It was just something people did. But looking back now, I can see how alcohol slowly became woven into different seasons of my life. Not all at once. Not in some dramatic overnight way. More like a quiet thread running through memories, choices, social settings, and the way I learned to unwind or fit in. This episode is not about shame or judgement. It is about honesty. I'm sharing more of my own story, how my relationship with alcohol changed over the years, and why I eventually started asking harder questions about the role alcohol had played in my life. Because sometimes alcohol does not look like a problem at first. Sometimes it just looks normal. And that is exactly why we need to talk about it.