DRY JANUARY 2022! Been overindulging? Drinking crept up? Want to begin a healthy new you? This way please. All welcome!

[HPLikecraft]

It’s that time of year again... the late Christmas present to our livers!

You may be thinking of doing Dry January to:

*detox a little after seasonal overindulgence, or
*help you cut down a bit generally, or
*help you start to get out of a harmful alcohol habit, or
*just be a bit healthier for a month...

It’s good for all of those things!

I find the MN DJ threads excellent for support, encouragement, sharing info, ‘we’re in this together’ camaraderie, suggestions for grown up drinks, aversion techniques and just fun.

This is my fifth year of DJ and I swear it has made all the difference to me; it was so hard first time, but having succeeded I did dry June and October after that, and do so most years. It has broken my habit, banished much of the craving and reset my relationship with booze. I imagine it's added years to my life.

I won’t be finding DJ too difficult this year, but some will. Hopefully this thread will help.

Throw your hat in the ring, pull up a chair and let's do this together. 🙂☕️🧃

The DJ2022 Wagon creaks to a start in just 5 days, but always stops for latecomers 🙂

I'm with you, @HPLikecraft, and will also continue into February and maybe beyond, but in a less strict format. Moderate March? I'm thinking the occasional drink, on special occasions.

Morning all. I'm hoping to continue to half term, we are going on a ski holiday so I may have the odd drink in moderation there. I think like any diet plan, consciously chosing and planning a drink can be part of a healthy approach, as long as you have self control over the amount. I know for me, that meals/ group occasions I have trouble limiting myself but when DH and I drink at home we very rarely open a second bottle. Ideally for my sleep and anxiety I should stop at 2 drinks, which will be the next challenge to work on for me. I also drink too frequently in school holidays when DH is off work. Christmas and summer for me are when the weekend drinking only slides into drinking 4/5/6 days a week.

Hiya
I'm not thinking about when I'm going to stop - I'd like to reduce my intake for the long term and at the moment I'm doing OK so I am going to take an approach of dry at home and maybe drink on occasion if I'm out
I'm going to friends on Saturday so may have a drink then, we'll see

Morning all, well I’m sleeping much better! I thought it was a fluke but it seems to be a change that is sticking. Long may it last.

Day 19 and pleased with how it’s going, January always seems to drag but this year it’s not as bad, I think I have more on at the weekends that’s making it go by faster.

I'm very impressed by people planning to extend their DJ. I'm knocking off a day early as it is a friend's major birthday on 31st and there will be champagne... But I would love to sneak back inside the huddle a few days a week, as I usually drink every day - not much - just a glass, sometimes two. It would be great to break this habit.

Checking in for day 19, still AF. Keep going everyone.

Hello!
Day 19 checking in. I've managed a visit from Aunt Irma without wine!!
This week is busy but I'm coping so well, no stress and gaining in energy.

I've lost 2kg in weight and according to the try dry app I've saved about 200€!! That's a sobering thought if ever there were!!!

Have discovered kombucha. Lovely. A nice drink, not too sweet. Nice change from AF beer

So, where are we? Ah yes, day 19. Hope this Wednesday evening is not proving too challenging for anyone.

The end of today means January is 61.2% done. I think we can see light at the end of the tunnel now!

I tried Kombucha @Cherrymix, was not to impressed. The smell was somewhere between smelly feet and vinegar, taste unremarkable and it cost £2.75 for a diddy little bottle. Maybe I just didn't get a good one!

Hi all checking in on day 19. 61.2% sounds really good. I'm also going to be going beyond January into February and calling it Dry-uary. But taking it one step at a time.
The kombucha peach flavour in a brown plastic bottle on Sainsbury's is really nice @HPLikecraft some people say it's not real kombucha, I don't know but it's nice and it's not alcoholic so 👍🏼

Checking in Day 19, feeling good. The elderflower kombucha - largish bottle - Sainsbury's- is good I think. I mean it's obviously not wine but it's good in a wine glass I think. One glass will do me but it def works with a meal. Might go retro and try schloer soon.

I'm definitely up for extending but in a less rigid fashion. Moderate March sounds great. Might do dry November though I think, as last November was the peak of my lack of control.

Hello you lovely lot

Day 19. Go us!

Morning all.

I’ve done 15 days now. I started on 3rd and drank on two occasions.

I’ve changed my goal on the Try Dry app to Reducer rather than Dry January and I’ve put a goal of 8 weeks so will definitely be carrying in into February. Even after that I want to carry on. Not dry necessarily but definitely not drinking at home just because it’s 6 o’clock.

My mini goal now is a 7 day stretch as I haven’t done that yet. Am meeting a friend for dinner this evening but won’t drink. She has offered to pick me up but I’ll drive.

Hello Day 20. It’s been a while.
I managed my first night in the pub dry. It was tricky. Not because I missed the alcohol as such but that sense of joining in. Plus I was the butt of most jokes given the rest were drinking.
I must admit I did feel a bit flat getting home at midnight sober. That was until I realised my little one was still awake and not feeling well. I was able to soothe him and give medicine and stroke him until he got back to sleep. Just wouldn’t have been able to do that after a bottle of wine.
This morning he was fine again, not sure what that was all about but despite having less sleep in terms of hours, I still woke up feeling good. No hangover. No anxiety. A clear head. Totally worth it.

Toying with the idea of extending this into February.

My reservations are a couple of big events, one involves a hotel stay, which I would usually be so grateful for as an opportunity to drink without judgement or witnesses. To do it and stay sober almost feels like a waste (!!!) as that so rarely happens. The other is half term. I don’t know if I can get through that week without a drink.

I think I’ll mull it over with a cup of tea. Have a great day everyone.

Just panicked as this thread disappeared from my watchlist 😱. I realised then that's been basically a DJ lifeline, or sober tribe as PP mentioned above.

hello Day 20! This week is the first where I have had temptation with a big old family occasion but I didn't succumb. I've bought a soda stream so I can experiment with drinks, and am thinking about extending into early April when we have another family occasion where it would be nice to have a glass.

But let's get to end of January!

Day 17 here but this weekend will test me as am away/out for dinner and having a drink feels like part of the 'treat' experience. I'd be interested in carrying on into feb in some form though not totally dry.

20 days dry! I can't remember the last time I voluntarily did this. My face is noticeably less puffy and my cheeckbones are returning.

DC noticed vinegar smell with kombucha but agreed that it doesn't taste vinegary. We had lemon and ginger Remedy version from Tesco. £5 for 4 cans.

Will try others. Had a few cravings last night but soldiered on. Have signed up for an online class which involves reading a lot. Hoping that will get me out of my January rut

Day 20, I can hardly believe it.

My youngest dd tested positive for covid yesterday, she's really not that ill thankfully, a bit pale and fevered. I am testing negative but feeling totally wiped out. Probably psychosomatic. Have to say I had a fleeting feeling that some wine would perk me up but I won't go there, stuffing my face with chocolate and popcorn instead.

DD's cousins tested positive yesterday. We spent the weekend with them. We are still negative but I am feeling headachy and tired. I think psychosomatic also but we'll keep testing.

Day 20 checking in. Still AF and over 60% of the way, which is great! It seemed such a long month when starting on day one. So glad to still be going strong. Keep going everyone.

Hope you stay negative @FanGirlX, I too have a headache. I'm vexed as have no energy to exercise nor would I feel right going to a class knowing my dd has it. Try going out for a walk later.