Dry January: A Month With No Drinking

Table of Contents:

After the New Years Toast

The sun was shining bright on New Year's day at 7:00 AM; the weather was abnormally warm for January 1 in Colorado. I crawled out of bed, catching a glimpse of myself in the oversized mirror. I tried not to focus on the image that stared back. My eyes were red, and my body ached. The low-grade headache demanded my attention leading me to take an Advil while my coffee brewed.

As I sipped my coffee, I thought about last night. Due to COVID, we stayed home but decided to have a Karaoke Zoom party. The isolation throughout the year has taken a toll, and we desperately wanted to have fun! Though the turnout was less than hoped for, we had fun, and as the wine and champagne flowed, we all started to sing.

I drank more than usual and more than I wanted to, but it was New Year’s Eve, and that’s what most people do... Right?

Alcoholic Beverages: Rethinking The After Effects

As I sipped my coffee, hoping to feel better, I knew that I was not going to feel good today; the alcohol was still in my body, and no matter what, I felt lethargic and not productive. This was seriously affecting my plans for today. I had a long list of things I wanted to work on today. I didn’t like starting the new year feeling like crap!

The Dry January Challenge

As I scrolled on Facebook, an ad caught my eye “Dry January Challenge” apparently, there was a group of people who were committing to lay off “all” alcohol for one month. I have to say this sounded extreme and difficult at best, but I was intrigued, leading me to research the subject.

Some people attempted to quit drinking altogether some were taking a break. I have no interest in quitting altogether. I don’t drink any other alcohol but enjoy a glass of wine.

As the day ticked by and my unproductive, tired feeling continued, I became more interested in the idea. By the end of the day, I decided to try it! I was committed to 1 month of no alcohol and part of the Dry January movement! I was excited and felt great about this decision.

New Replacements for Drinking

Like a new diet, it’s easy at first, but then what? As the new week and new year started, I decided to set myself up for success by buying the things I needed to make mocktails. I even bought non-alcoholic wine. I thought of it as a “mind hack”. Maybe, I could trick my mind into thinking I was having my happy hour fix? This seemed like a great idea!

As the week went by, I had several mocktails in a wine glass, each time telling myself that I felt great and was not missing my everyday wine. I’ve heard that it takes thirty days to break a habit, so I planned to go thirty days without wine, and then slowly add it back, but on new terms. The terms would be no alcohol at all during the week. Then, 1 to 2 glasses on Friday and Saturday and None on Sunday. This would be a new pattern, and I would reduce my alcohol intake.

My husband said he would do it with me; this was great news and seemed the best way to succeed.

I will let you know how it goes!

Do you want to try it with me?

Stay Tuned,

Paula Marie