I Did Dry January And I Feel Great

I have just finished a month without drinking a drop of alcohol. It’s the first time I have done it, and I wasn’t sure how I’d do because most of January ‘new starts’ I’ve embarked on in the past have failed.

I also wasn’t sure of the dry month’s success because I viewed it as having to give something up. After a month of not drinking, I don’t consider what I did as giving something up anymore.

My attitude towards the yoga challenge I also did in January was completely different. I was positive I would succeed. There were two reasons for that.

First, I already had a yoga background, although a sporadic one. Second, cultivating a daily yoga practice wasn’t about giving something up, but adding something new and enjoyable into my life.

Clearly, I didn’t think giving up (I really need to think of an alternative phrase than giving up) alcohol for a month was going to be enjoyable. I expected it to be tough.

Why Go Dry For A Month?

Why did I do it? Following the lockdowns, Christmas and New Year I had got into a habit, with my partner, of drinking alcohol every day.

I can feel some people raising eyebrows, asking,

‘What’s so bad about a glass of wine or a can of beer every day?’

Because most days it wouldn’t be just a glass of wine or a can of beer. When there was nothing to do yesterday, today or tomorrow, it was way too easy for a glass to turn into a bottle or a can into half a dozen cans. Sometimes even more.

And suddenly we both just felt fed up with it. We needed to take a break. And what followed was a dry January.

First Couple of Days

… Have been weird. I was so used to having a drink that I have drunk gallons of tea instead and spent the night having to get up and go to the toilet several times.

Do I miss having a drink? Yes, kind of. I miss the taste. Or maybe I miss the idea of having an alcoholic beverage to ‘switch off and relax’? Turns out that I don’t need alcohol to relax.

One Week Into the Project

… And I am feeling so much better.

I feel more alert and happier. I no longer automatically think of having some wine or beer when I get home from work.

I am sleeping better. The sleep is deeper, and I wake up less in the night. I also feel readier to get up in the mornings.

It was so great to wake up on Saturday and Sunday without a fuzzy head, and I got so much more done.

I’ve also lost some weight. About a kilogram (that’s roughly two pounds). It’s not a lot yet, but a start. My beer belly is shrinking, though there’s still more to lose on the waistline.

My skin is also looking clearer and I think my features are looking sharper.

My thinking has also shifted. When I embarked on the dry month, I was thinking how I was already looking forward to a beer when the month is over. Now, I’m not so sure.

I’m not saying that I’ll never drink again, but right now, I have no rush to have that drink when January is over. Maybe I’ll wait until the pubs reopen. Although that might be stretching it a little too far.

Day 15 - Halfway Through The Month

High-fiving myself today: I have made it halfway! When I started the dry January, I thought it might be tough because I was so used to having a drink after work and a bit more during weekends.

But it hasn’t been tough at all. It goes to show that it is about the mindset.

And that brings me to my earlier point how I viewed giving alcohol up for a month as a negative thing when it really isn’t so. By giving up the drink, I have gained a lot.

I’m halfway through and not only am I sleeping better; I have a more regular bedtime. When drinking, it was easy to stay up later, because I needed to finish my drink. Then I’d finish my drink while in the middle of watching a TV program and end up getting another one.

Often, especially on work mornings, I’d wake up groggy having gone to bed too late.

Not drinking has also been great for my creativity. I’m writing so much more. Just in the last two weeks I have gone back to writing book number two, which has been on a bit of hiatus for a while, and I have written three new short stories. I can’t wait to see how much I have written by the end of the month.

I’m also saving money.

According to Priory, the average person will have saved £44.88 on wine and £36 on lager in two weeks.

That’s the average person during normal times. Throw in several lockdowns and those figures will be a lot higher. So abstaining from alcohol is like putting money in the bank.

Bring on the rest of the month! And possibly beyond.

I Made It

I have reached the end of dry January. Honestly, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to do it, but after a weird start, it got easier and easier.

A friend asked if I’m looking forward to having a drink now the month is over. I am and I’m not.

When I first started, I thought I’d be pouring myself a beautiful pint of beer as soon as we get to February. But I haven’t done that yet because the dry month has changed my relationship to alcohol.

I used to see it as a way to switch off. During the month of abstinence, I realised it is just as easy to relax without a drink. I don’t miss having a beer to relax.

Neither do I miss the fuzzy head or hazy memories. Of course I will drink again, but I don’t want to drink to the extent where I can’t remember everything that happened the next day. Or waking up hangover and wasting a whole day.

Would I do dry month again? Definitely. And I might not wait a whole year until the next one. Or even sober October. I’m thinking I’ll do it again in June.

Would I recommend it to people? Absolutely.

If you have ever considered going dry for a month, do it.

Or if month seems too much, try a dry week. I pretty sure you won’t regret it.