Why I'm taking a break from booze

And some tips if you feel like one too

Like many people in the UK I started drinking alcohol as a teenager. Alcohol felt like a window to adventure that widened my world and opened up new possibilities, who would we meet? Where would we go? What hilarious thing would unfold?

This attitude continued into my 20s, through university and starting work in a new city. But into my late 20s, I began to get a bit tired by it all. Another Thursday night at that same pub, another Saturday night out and then Sunday hungover. Often, I would plan to do other things with my weekends, maybe do some art or go to a park run, but inevitably I would end up out and drinking and whichever plans I’d made wouldn’t happen.

I stayed in this limbo for a few years, tired of booze but not knowing how to break free from the cycle. Alcohol was so ingrained in my life and relationships I didn’t know who I would be or what I would do without it. Then the hangovers started to get really bad, both physically and mentally. I was now in my 30s, and we’d all just been through a global pandemic, which had undoubtedly increased my anxiety. At the end of September 2021, one hangover really shook me. I was so filled with anxiety that I could barely get out of bed. It was scary. I realised that alcohol was no longer the window to adventure and possibility it once was. It was making my world smaller and taking way more than it gave.

So spurred on by that well-timed but awful hangover, I decided to give Sober October a go. After almost a decade of drinking fairly consistently, I hadn’t had a significant break from booze and felt like my body and mind needed it. I also wanted to see what would fill the space in my life that alcohol had taken up. On the first of October, I ordered a big crate of alcohol-free BrewDogs and some books about booze. (The classic technique of fixing a problem related to consumption with more but different consumption 🫠)

I found that first month hard, particularly navigating social situations without alcohol, but reading books about alcohol really helped. I found it fascinating, I was inhaling the books, finishing one every week (evidenced by this image from my Amazon order history😅).

Everything I read said 30 days wasn’t long enough for your body and mind to fully feel the effects of a break from alcohol. So I decided to go for 100 days, which would take me over Christmas and the New Year, the booziest times of the year. At the end of October, as a reward, I booked an 8-week evening upholstery course. It felt good to use the money and time I was saving from not drinking to do something creative. And it was nice to have something to look forward to on the weekday evenings through the winter. I loved it!

Although Christmas and new year were hard, they actually weren’t as bad as I thought, and generally, as time went by, it got much, much easier. I was really spurred on by the benefits of not drinking. My weekends felt longer. Waking up without a hangover on a Sunday was so refreshing! I found I had so much more time and energy, and my world opened up to new things and experiences. I actually got hobbies that weren’t just drinking and socialising! I had less anxiety, was sleeping better and my head was clearer.

I made it to 100 days at the beginning of January 2022, but by this point, I didn’t even feel like having a drink, so I kept going.

That first break from alcohol lasted for almost 6 months until summertime when I was tempted by a beer in the sun. Then come the end of September, after a summer of drinking in the sun, I was ready to have a break again. So I did Sober October once more, and this time I’ve kept going up until now (August 2023), 10 months! Minus one dreamy summer wedding that also fell on my birthday, where I had a few glasses of fizz.

I’m not saying I will never drink again, I don’t want to put that pressure on myself. I’m just going to keep not drinking until I fancy drinking again. Perhaps after swinging from one extreme (doing lots of drinking) to the other (doing no drinking), I’ll end up somewhere in the middle. But after alcohol being a big part of my life for so long, I’m really enjoying this break from it.

So if you feel like your mind and body could benefit from a break from alcohol, here are some things that might help!

Tips:

• Make sure you have some tasty alcohol-free drinks at home so you have something refreshing and cold to reach for when you would usually reach for your drink of choice.

• When you go out for social events, have something in mind that you’ll order to drink when you get there.

• Read some books on alcohol and sobriety (recommendations below)

• Keep track of the benefits you feel from not drinking, start a list in your phone or a notebook, and refer back to it when you have a bit of a wobble

• Don’t feel you need to explain yourself to other people. I used to worry loads in social situations about what I would say or how I would explain it. Having “I’m doing sober October” was helpful, but I soon realised that you don’t need to say anything. Most people don’t notice or care.

• Some people might be weird about it. You not drinking can bring up uncomfortable feelings about their relationship with alcohol, which can make them act strangely. Just remember it’s not about you

Books on alcohol

• The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober by Catherine Gray

• Sunshine Warm Sober By Catherine Gray

• Alcohol Explained by William Porter

• Quit Like a Woman by Hollie Whitaker

• Drink? by David Nutt

My favourite alcohol-free drinks

• Alcohol-free beer. There are so many good ones now! A few of my faves are Tiny Rebel Clwb Tropica, Big Drop Galactic Milk Stout and Bristol Beer Factory Clear Head

• Botivo, a botanical drink that is kind of kombucha-ey. It’s expensive but it’s so full of flavour you only need a few drops, so it lasts for ages. I mix it with soda water and ice.

• Cotwsolds Gin Essence Drops makes the best low-alcohol gin and tonic, and lasts for ages.

• Cans of flavoured sparkling water like Feel Good or Dash drinks

• Lyres Italian Spritz mix with 0% prosecco and soda for an alcohol free Aperol Spritz!

If you’re wondering whether you could benefit from a break from booze. Here are some questions to ask yourself

• Do you feel like alcohol adds to your life or takes away?

• Are you happy with the time and energy that alcohol currently takes up?

• Is alcohol stopping you from doing things you want to do?

If you decide to take a break from booze, I hope the tips in this article help. And let me know how you get on!

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