It’s the beginning of the new year which means dry January has taken hold and many are ditching after work drinks as part of the public health campaign. We asked you to tell us about the highs and lows of giving up booze – as well as your reasons for doing it. Here are five people’s experiences.
Graham Fordyce, 54, from London: My father was an alcoholic – I know it’s often too late to realise alcohol has control of you
My usual drinking pattern is full on and I seem to have a fair tolerance. There are not many nights in the week when I don’t have a drink, and sometimes that’ll be the best part of a bottle of wine or a couple of large beers – even both.
Dry January is a good time to get my drinking in check and take charge of it. I do it every year and I don’t have any trouble stopping. This year I quite welcomed it as Christmas was a very social fortnight and involved quite a lot of drinking.
Dry January is also good as I respond well to targets. Possibly because of social conditioning or schooling, but I have always been disciplined in that sense, so the idea of an imposed break is easy. It’s better for the fact that it’s from booze, as I have quite a brittle relationship with it and would happily carry on. My father was an alcoholic and I am very wary that it’s often too late to realise it has got control of you. Dry January is a useful litmus test, and it’s quite gratifying to know that I can say: “No more of that.”
The flipside is that I do find alcohol enjoyable and that’s why I would struggle to give it up completely. I have thought about extending Dry January this year, and the suggestion has been met with considerable amusement and scepticism. A friend of mine stopped drinking for a year and said it was very good for his head, but that it’s hard when you have social events coming up. I’m a keen cook and having friends round the table inevitably lends itself to drinking. To that end, January is more achievable as I can say: I will do it for this long and then I can go back to “normal” at the end of the month.
When I am not drinking I do feel much better. I wake up fresher and feeling physically stronger, even for avoiding just one drink. My job involves a bit of manual work and I ride a motorcycle, so when I wake up, the day ahead is much brighter if I haven’t had a drink.
Ideally, I would like to have a better relationship with alcohol. My partner doesn’t drink much and I would like to be more like that, although ironically she has more trouble with Dry January than I do. Dry January is a very good way of examining one’s relationship with booze and I’m relieved to realise that I don’t actually need to drink; it makes the fact of liking it a lot a bit less stressful.
Vinod Sehijpal, 35, from West Midlands: I almost failed on day one. I thought ‘maybe I will have a beer!’
I am more of a weekend drinker and towards the end of the year the “weekend” started to include Thursday and Friday, so I spent more of the week drinking than not drinking.
I decided at the start of the year – and following an indulgent Christmas period – I needed to be healthy. I almost failed on day one. I thought “maybe I will have a beer!” and my wife said, “aren’t you doing Dry January?”
It is just about breaking the habit. If beer or wine is in front of me then I find it hard to hold off, but so far I have not been out celebrating with friends or in a situation where there is lots of alcohol. It’s my birthday soon, which will be very hard.
I have also been spending time at the gym instead of drinking after work, and getting my diet in shape. Not drinking means I have more energy. It means I can wake up with a clear head. I associate beer or wine with relaxation but I have been able to chill out without them, which makes me think it’s more in the mind.
Penny Dinh, 20, from Exeter: The other day I stayed in the club until 1.30am and didn’t drink
I am a second-year university student and in my first term I drank a lot, about four to six units a day. I have definitely got more into drinking since being at uni – there is simply loads of social events, going out and meeting new people.
But I tend to injure myself while drunk or do something I regret. Back in November I fell over and badly bruised my knee. So I thought: “New year, new me – let’s try and regulate your drinking.” Bruising my knee was my first big wake-up call that heavy drinking can be damaging.
The first few days of quitting were really hard as I was revising for my exams and that’s usually when I feel like I need a cider. I was tempted but resisted. Now I feel better and I am still going out just as much, about five times a week, but without drinking. The other day I stayed in the club until 1.30am because I like socialising with my friends. I woke up without a hangover. It’s made me realise that I am just as excitable and energetic even without drink.
The past few weeks have taught me that when I start drinking again I want to regulate my drinking a bit more. There can be a lot of pressure to get really drunk as a student and play drinking games but I think I’ve learned that I don’t need to drink as much.
Adelaide Foster, 45, from Wakefield: Those who suffer from anxiety should consider their alcohol consumption
I usually drink on the weekends, a couple of bottles of wine or a pack of beer will be shared between me and my husband. My drinking levels crept up and up over the course of 2017. My ambition was always to have just a few drinks when I was out but there were times I would get completely drunk.
I did dry January last year too but found this year much easier, probably because I know I can do it. Also my husband is doing it this year which makes it a bit easier as we can support each other. Plus, there is no alcohol in the house.
I quit alcohol this month as I was fed up with hangovers, feeling under par and being a slave to the drink. I get really bad hangovers which would last all weekend and wipe me out for the week as well. I wanted to go out and have good time but not have to pay for it. I feel like I was drinking on the weekend because of habit and I needed it to relax.
When I’m not drinking I feel calm, in control and anxiety free. This has been the biggest change for me. People who suffer from anxiety in general should consider their alcohol consumption. We use it as a stress reliever but in reality it makes you less able to deal with stress.
There is a dry Jan app that I use; it has a calendar and you click off each day with a tea cup, or if [you] drink [you] put how much, and there are lots of groups on Facebook. That is where I get my support from, so you know it’s not just you that’s struggling or wanting a drink.
Julien Pierre Cote, 34, from Cambridge: I now sleep straight until my alarm rings. I used to wake around 3am
The first year I did dry January was about five years ago after my partner convinced me to give up drinking alcohol and coffee for a month. It was before dry January was a thing. We used to call it detox or no drinks January back then. We kept the tradition ever since.
The first week is the easy part. You are still knee deep into the “new year, new me” thing and you feel good about it (probably still hungover from the new year). I rarely drink during the week anyway so the first challenge was the first Friday and I made sure I had no temptation so I went straight back home after work. I had an early dinner and watched a film.
I feel fitter because I am exercising – not due to dry January yet, that will come in week three or four. I don’t feel ill but I have little concentration issues once in a while, but again that will go in a month. I get a little headache once in a while but nothing major. The only change I noticed after three or four days is that I fall asleep at normal times (11pm) and I sleep straight until my alarm rings. Before that I use to wake around 3am and it was very difficult to get back to sleep. I’m generally more positive and happier. No more mood swings
The second most important aspect of not drinking for a month after health is my wallet. It’s only when you stop drinking that you realise how expensive it is. I save £20-40 a week minimum.
