’Tis the season to drink far too much and then vow that, next year, you’ll never drink again. Or at least, it used to be that season. These days, young people simply aren’t that interested in boozing. Gen Z drinks about 20% less alcohol per capita than millennials like me did at their age, according to a report from Berenberg Research.

While my generation grew up with it being completely normal – even encouraged – to drink irresponsibly, gen Z seems to be disarmingly sensible. They’ve managed to make sobriety trendy and have rebranded responsible drinking as being “sober curious”. Now a new trend has apparently taken off: “intermittent sobriety” – which, as far as I can tell, basically just means taking time off now and again from drinking.

I didn’t realize when I started intermittent sobriety that it had a catchy name, but I spent 2024 practicing it. I did dry January, like a lot of other people, and carried on from there, regularly abstaining for a few weeks or a month or so at a time. Some people do this naturally, of course. They don’t need to give it a label like “intermittent sobriety” because they don’t have a dysfunctional relationship with alcohol. If you’re that sort of person then, congratulations, this column is not for you!

Of course, the thing with alcohol is that it’s an inherently addictive substance. Some people may be more genetically predisposed to developing a dependency than others, but, given the right circumstances, anyone can develop an unhealthy relationship with booze. And you don’t need to be knocking back vodka at 7am to have an issue – you might just be using booze as a crutch or drinking more than you’d like.

Over the years, I’ve certainly found myself slipping into bad drinking habits and, a year ago, I realized that my relationship with booze needed a dramatic reset. While I didn’t want to tell myself that I could never drink again, committing to intermittent sobriety felt doable. At the time, I thought that regularly abstaining would be a sacrifice and a slog. But it has been incredibly valuable and something I’m going to keep doing going forward. While this is by no means presented as health advice, I’m going to share a few things I’ve found helpful in case you’re also feeling sober curious.

1 Often you just crave a ritual to help you wind down, not a drink

For a lot of us, a glass of wine in the evening is a comforting way to end the day: a nice little ritual that says it’s time to relax. You get a lot of the same satisfaction, I find, by having kombucha or sparkling water in a fancy wine glass instead. It’s easier to replace a habit with something else than to give something up entirely. And while some people who are trying to give up alcohol find non-alcoholic beers to be triggering, I’ve found them a great way to satisfy the craving for a more “grown-up” drink. I’ve even started to prefer them to the real thing.

2 Playing the tape forward is a good way to deal with cravings

I used to drink fairly mindlessly and order a drink at a restaurant or pour myself wine at the end of the day out of habit. Now when I get a craving, I’m far better at thinking about playing the tape forward and asking myself whether a drink is really worth feeling tired the next day. I’ve also trained myself to go through a system called Halt and ask if I’m “hungry, angry, lonely or tired”. Sometimes simply having a meal can take away an urge to drink.

3 Regular exercise makes a massive difference

I know, I know, it’s common sense. Nobody needs to be told that exercising is good for you. And yet here I am to repeat the obvious: exercising improves your mood, reduces stress and makes it much easier not to want a glass of wine after a bad day.

4 Alcohol really does ruin your sleep

Even a little bit of alcohol can reduce the amount of REM sleep you have. One of the biggest changes I’ve seen when I abstain from alcohol for a while is in the quality of my sleep. For a long time, I thought I had fatigue issues and it was just normal for me to wake up still feeling tired. Now I’ve realized that it was just alcohol. Quitting alcohol is like going from basic economy sleep to first class.

5 Reading more about the science of alcohol makes me want it less

Understanding how alcohol affects every single organ in the body has been helpful in encouraging me to abstain. Everyone knows that alcohol is bad for the liver, but I think the way it affects the brain is far less widely understood. Andrew Huberman isn’t always the most reliable narrator, but his podcast on what alcohol does to the body, brain and overall health has had more than 7m views for a reason and is worth a listen.

6 Hot sauce is a weirdly helpful way to curb cravings

According to one study, spicy food works in the same way as alcohol when it comes to activating your brain’s reward system. The study is fairly limited but I have certainly found that eating something super spicy gives me a buzz in the same way a drink might.

7 Different things work for different people

Not so long ago, people thought that a little bit of alcohol was good for you. Now it seems like there’s a headline every day announcing that simply getting within sniffing distance of a merlot will give you cancer. But as a couple of Harvard professors recently noted, the subject is more nuanced. “After countless studies, the data do not justify sweeping statements about the effects of moderate alcohol consumption on human health,” Kenneth Mukamal and Eric B Rimm wrote earlier this year.

As anti-alcohol sentiment rises, I think this nuance is important to bear in mind. I personally don’t find it useful to demonize alcohol or commit to never drinking anything again – yes, it might not be inherently healthy but there’s a reason even our most ancient ancestors were knocking the stuff back. For now, intermittent sobriety has helped me find a balance that works for me. For other people, however, committing to complete sobriety may be more viable.

Whatever you do, taking a break from alcohol is never a bad idea. It’s always useful to remember that there are better ways to raise your spirits than a stiff drink.

• Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist