DRY JANUARY 2025! Join us for a healthier start to the year! All welcome 🥤☕️🧋

[HPLikecraft]

It’s that time of year again!
If you need a detox, to lose weight, to be healthier, to undo some seasonal overindulgence, to sleep better, to look better, to have healthier skin, to save money, boost liver function, improve your memory, or to decrease your likelihood of dying earlier of various nasty illnesses (sorry for the sudden hard ball!) then you’ve come to the right place!

The MN DJ2025 Chat thread is for anyone who wants to reset their relationship with alcohol; whether you’re a weekend tippler or a problem heavier drinker.
This is a friendly, non-judgmental thread where we support and encourage each other, exchange ideas and information, share alcohol-free drinks recommendations etc.

Hopefully we’ll have some fun along the way. Please hop aboard the good ship DJ 2025, everyone welcome!

@MistletoeAndWine123 ooops! Thanks for the heads up, will get post removed. Should be on another thread but rest assured this event happened years ago 🤣

Sorry for rubbish OPing this weekend; more articles and encouragement tomorrow. Having trouble with autistic, aggressive teen.

Sorry about your health news @MabelsBeats that must be so challenging to come to terms with.

To all the fallers off, we’ll still get to the end together!

Also welcome to yet more 1st time posters… good to read your stories and have you along. 👋

Lastly, the end of today sees us…

61%

of the way through DJ2025!

Woo!!

Thinking of you @HPLikecraft sorry you’re having a rough day.

Today has gone ok, just getting everything ready for the week and taking it quiet and easy. I find once I’ve eaten my evening meal the craving goes for me, but I have too many sweet treats. I need to wean myself off sugar!

I'm grumpy today. Don't really know why, just fed up. I seriously thought about opening a bottle of something, but didn't.

I'm getting loads of spots. Really sore ones though. They're helping my mood loads, obvs.

Birthday this week. Cake will replace Prosecco! February will need to see some resetting of my relationship with sugar 😆

Day 20, woah. Can’t quite believe I’ve made it this far - I’m pleased with myself. I had a crap sleep last night as the DC woke me up. Feeling okay this morning in spite of - but I’d no doubt be struggling if I was hungover!

Another positive to not drinking is that I feel far more in control of my life - my money, my health and just myself. I also have far more time to do things like chores, which helps me a lot mentally. Now we’re coming up to week 3, I’ll be interested to see if more of those benefits to the brain from the article that @HPLikecraft posted start to kick in - I think it said increased mental clarity was one of them.

Happy birthday for this week @AlertCat !

I have found this thread really helpful with keeping me accountable. I also need to reset my relationship with sugar and wondered about doing a sugar free February? I wonder if anyone would like to join a supportive thread for that?

I would but although I cook most things from scratch, I’m really aware of how much sugar appears in food like bread and milk- I do wonder if practically I would be able to. But definitely worth trying to cut down on the cakes and bars of chocolate.

Thanks @newme2025 :-)

I would be interested in this. My immune system is in a really bad way at the moment, and as soon as I get over this latest bout of flu, I want to overhaul my diet and lifestyle, even though I eat pretty healthily. One thing I want to do is cut right back on sugar. I'll still have fruit but no refined sugar or refined flour as they can cause inflammation.

Dry Jan has been easy so far this year as I've had flu for most of it. I'm thinking of having at least 3-4 nights alcohol free each week, and only 1 glass of wine on the other nights, to cut right back, in Feb. Is anyone else up for doing Damp February (not totally dry but dry several nights a week and no excessive drinking)?

Thank you for keeping the thread going. Sorry you are having grief with your teen!

@fixingmylife I’d be totally on for a sugar free February! Please count me in if you’re doing a thread🙏🏻

Yes, I'd be up for a damp February support thread. Good idea.

Also regarding the sugar and flour. I find that cutting out all together like "Dry January" has been seems to work whereas moderation doesn't for me, anyway.

I'm back. Unfortunately, certain events pushed me right over the edge and my DJ did get derailed. Very impressed by those of you who have had troubles and managed to say on track. Anyway, I've put all that behind me and jumped back on. I know how much worse alcohol ultimately makes me feel, if I'm already feeling emotional.

And...I've been taking magnesium supplements and it's been a game-changer in terms of mood and sleep! Apparently, most of us are deficient these days, due to the depleted soil. I've also just ordered a SAD light that I can use while working at my desk, and I'm off to the gym this afternoon. Reframing DJ mentally as a reset and a glow up, not as deprivation!

This is what the article posted by @HPLikecraft said about week 3:

But after around three weeks of not drinking, he says: "The brain boosts we may notice include improvements in mood and memory, particularly our short-term memory. We might also find that we can retain information for longer, are less forgetful and more able to focus our attention."

Am looking forward to seeing if I notice any changes!

www.rte.ie/lifestyle/living/2025/0106/1489218-how-sobriety-changes-the-brain/

I’d be up for a damp, sugar free February 😂 I have no big social plans for February so no real reason to have a drink and would like to continue.

I'm prefer the realism-vibe of this thread to another one that's going! I do sort of think that you wouldn't be on a DJ support thread if you can cast aside alcohol after 21 days citing your now amazing skin, eyes, mood, weight loss, productivity, boundless energy....! Long may it continue for them, but I'm finding more support in those still recognising the call of the wine witch and those who know full well their drinking was becoming problematic, and that certain elements of being sober are a bit boring....

I'm yet to see any weight loss or sleep improvement! I just had to have a 2 hour nap as I was exhausted! And my post-60 skin will need more than 3 weeks off alcohol to 'glow'!

But someone did mention 'Damp February', where you apparently set 'moderation goals' and stick to them, an idea I currently like, but I'm not making any decisions til nearer the end of DJ!

I'd love a Damp February, for those of us who want to stay more moderate - and I'm already thinking of goals that might be easier now I've re-set things a bit. Really, I want to be like some of my friends who can happily have just one glass of wine on an evening out, maybe a beer on a nice summer evening, but can also go through a weekend without a drink and don't really notice or mind. Not sure if I've got that in me, though!

I think I'd definitely be in for damp Feb. Don't necessarily want to go entirely alcohol free, but definitely want to moderate and abstain sometimes!

Put me down for Damp February. (There's our next thread title!)

I am starting to see a very slight weight loss now that the Christmas Quality Street are gone (or at least, the good ones).

I generally try to avoid sugar most of the time, and I definitely find that the less I have, the less I want it and the easier it is to resist.

Damp Febraury sounds like a great idea. I know I have mils birthday so my current thinking is that I will allow myself to have a drink at specific times like that and Valentines. I need to stop the weekend drinking at home which has no social value.

I’d also be keen for a damp February thread. I really want to moderate after DJ is over and feel more motivated to do so than in previous years.

Had a difficult day at work and needless to say I’m wishing I could crack open a bottle of red. I won’t as want to achieve the 20 days milestone tonight/tomorrow. But it’s tempting and hard not to have that escape after a tough day.

Damp February sounds good to me. I was wondering if I could alternate which weekend s I drink on

I’m up for Damp February too.

I'm scrolling trying to find the poster who suggested Damp Feb! It sounds like a good idea!

It was @SereneCapybara!

I don't want to be seen pinching their idea!