How to Stop Reacting and Start Regulating Your Nervous System
If you have spent years in the industry, you may already know the pattern from the front of the house to the back.
When the restaurant starts to become busy during service, tension between colleagues can rise.
It can be quite common, like a few years ago when a chef scolded me for ringing in the wrong steak for a set party menu —Why the fuck are you ringing the fillet mignon, and not the New York striploin?
Alcohol and the Hospitality Brain and How to Break the Cycle of Drinking
“Changing the way you think can change the way you drink.”
I spent over 25 years working in restaurants before I realized how deep the drinking culture had its hooks in me. It became normal to roll into each shift hungover from late-night partying.
It wasn't until my mid-thirties that I stopped and actually looked at my relationship with alcohol, not with judgment, but with honesty. What I experienced and realized was that I was drinking on autopilot for most of my adult life, surrounded by an industry that made it not just acceptable but practically ceremonial.
Why You Feel Like Trash After Every Shift and How Alcohol is Contributing
You clock out at midnight, legs aching, and feeling exhausted from your high-intensity shift.
Someone suggests one drink to decompress. Then it's two, followed by 2 am, and you're finally home, the feeling of guilt begins to seep through.
Sound familiar?