(Because You Don’t Have to Hit Bottom to Choose a Better Life)

Six years ago, I made one of the most powerful decisions of my life:

I stopped drinking.

Not because I hit bottom.
Not because I lost it all.

But because I was slowly losing myself.

I was high-functioning.
I was successful.
I was spiraling — and smiling through it.

Wine had become the way I coped.
Until it wasn’t.

This week, I’m sharing a truth I lived for years — and telling it more fully, more publicly, than I ever have before.

Because I haven’t been silent these past six years.
I’ve been honest.
I’ve coached women.

I’ve written and spoken and supported others walking this path.

But this?
This is the story behind the story.
This is the whole truth — shared from a place of deep knowing, healing, and clarity.

Why I stopped drinking — and started truly living.

Sobriety didn’t make everything perfect.
But it made everything possible.

I got my Freedom back.

My senses.
My laughter.
My presence.
My integrity.
My voice.
My faith.
My joy.

My relationships with my KIDS.

You don’t need to hit rock bottom to question your relationship with alcohol.
You don’t need to wait for a crisis.
You don’t need anyone’s permission.

You just get to want more for your life.
More clarity. More connection. More truth.
More nights you remember and mornings you’re proud of.

This episode is for anyone who’s quietly wondering…
“Could life be better without this?”

The answer is yes.
And you don’t have to walk that road alone.

Learn more about Redefining Sober and working with me to change your relationship with alcohol here. I'm happy to set up a call or answer any of your questions. Just know - I'm here.

Thank you for listening to Hope Comes to Visit. If this episode resonated with you, please follow, rate, and share the show — it helps others find their way to these conversations.

New episodes drop every Monday and Friday, so you can begin and end your week with a little light and a lot of hope.

For more stories, reflections, and ways to connect, visit www.DanielleElliottSmith.com or follow along on Instagram @daniellesmithtv.

There are conversations… and then there are the ones that stay with you.
This is one of those.

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Dan Peters—psychologist, executive coach, author, and host of Make It a Great One—for a deeply honest and hope-filled conversation about the power of purpose, presence, and embracing your own evolution.

We talk about:

• Letting go of expectations and choosing alignment over achievement
• Why slowing down might be the most productive thing you do
• Parenting with awareness and heart
• What it means to live from your values in a world that often tells us to hustle harder

Dan shares the story behind his own podcast, his path to creating impact through quiet leadership, and how “making it a great one” can be a way of living, not just a catchy phrase.

If you’ve ever found yourself wondering, Am I doing this right? Am I becoming who I’m meant to be? — this conversation will remind you that you’re not alone.

And that’s the heartbeat of Hope Comes to Visit: real stories, tender truths, and reminders that even in the in-between, you’re not alone—and transformation is possible.

Thank you for listening to Hope Comes to Visit. If this episode resonated with you, please follow, rate, and share the show — it helps others find their way to these conversations.

New episodes drop every Monday and Friday, so you can begin and end your week with a little light and a lot of hope.

For more stories, reflections, and ways to connect, visit www.DanielleElliottSmith.com or follow along on Instagram @daniellesmithtv.

Hope in Action: A Story of Light and Consistency
with the radiant @CarlaBirnberg

There are people who show up with such unwavering integrity that you feel braver just being near them. That’s how I feel about Carla Birnberg.

In this episode of Hope Comes to Visit, we explore what it means to lead a mission-driven life — one grounded in heart work, radical consistency, and a commitment to showing up even when no one’s watching.

Together, we dive into what it means to live a life rooted in mission — from the soul work she’s doing in Kenya through @NextStepFDN to the powerful practice of showing up consistently for yourself and your community.

We talk about:
Why consistency might be the most underrated superpower
Letting go of external expectations and stepping fully into your truth
What happens when we stop performing and start becoming
And how the Swahili name, Upili, serendipitously ties to my own word of the year: Light

Carla is wise, hilarious, deeply thoughtful, and real. You’ll love her.

This episode? It’s what hope looks like in motion.

Connect with Carla here:
Instagram -@CarlaBirnberg
https://carlabirnberg.substack.com/
The foundation -@NextStep_FDN
https://nextstepfdn.org/
Her project at NSF:
https://nextstepfdn.org/upili/
The WHY (animated, short & created in Kenya by an old Team member)
https://youtu.be/e0nHKIS0eAE?si=BtB55agBX7s2os2y
The book that started it all (the one Venus Williams blurbed)
https://a.co/d/9G97H9G

Thank you for listening to Hope Comes to Visit. If this episode resonated with you, please follow, rate, and share the show — it helps others find their way to these conversations.

New episodes drop every Monday and Friday, so you can begin and end your week with a little light and a lot of hope.

For more stories, reflections, and ways to connect, visit www.DanielleElliottSmith.com or follow along on Instagram @daniellesmithtv.