Calling time on wine: 100 days sober - starting 01/01/26

[reset100]

My wine drinking has slowly spiralled into a daily habit and I’m calling time on it. No drama, no rock bottom - just the realisation that it’s become a crutch and I want out of the swirl.

From 1st January, I’m committing to 100 days sober and I’d love others to join me. This isn’t about moderation or “just weekends” - it’s about a clean break and supporting each other to go completely alcohol-free for the full 100 days.

If alcohol has crept in as a daily default, if you’re tired of negotiating with yourself every evening, or if you simply want a proper reset with people who get it, you’re very welcome here.

No judgement. No pressure. Just accountability, honesty, and support.

For those that are dieting as well as doing dry Jan, my advice is just not to do too much at once or you’re more likely to fail IMHO. Last time I did this successfully I concentrated only on not drinking for January then I started dieting a bit in Feb and went no carb in March and list my whole fat bloated stomach! I’m not going to deprive myself of anything this month just focus on cutting out one thing only -wine!

I’d like to join please.

I’m hoping that with the 5:2 diet it won’t be too bad, as you can eat normally on 5 days out of 7. So you’re only really depriving yourself for 2 days, which psychologically seems bearable. If I struggle though I will postpone the diet for a month or 2. Giving up wine is my number one priority!

Hope everyone is doing okay on day 1. I’m planning a hot bath and an early night - I’ll hopefully be in bed by 9.15ish.

Hi all, happy new year! I'd like to join too please.
After a few dry Jans in previous years (or some of them not quite to the end but almost!), in 2025 I actually managed to stay sober for 7 months, until a 2 week holiday in August, never got fully back on the wagon after that which I'm quite sad about.
But feeling positive about starting again. I'm not quite sure what my long term plan is but I remember feeling so much better come March last year.
The sense of relief today knowing I won't have daily mental struggles about drinking...I do remember feeling bored and flat at times but thats to be expected.
Good luck everyone!

Good luck everyone 😍 I did this 2 years ago and haven’t drunk since. My main advice is don’t try to change EVERYTHING, alcohol, diet, fitness… Fix your relationship with alcohol and the rest will come later. You will (almost certainly) get sugar cravings - just eat it!! Good rays (cbd) drinks and sober instagram were my saviours in the early days. Feel the emotions and ups and downs (they will come) and saviour the early morning coffees when the world is waking up and you’re fresh headed. The good feelings do not come immediately, they take time. Life is still hard. But I (ex party girl) have no desire to drink again! I have achieved so much in the last 2 years, and feel confident and at peace with who I am for the first time. I hope this opens up a similar new world for many of you too 🤞

Feel the emotions and ups and downs (they will come) and saviour the early morning coffees when the world is waking up and you’re fresh headed. The good feelings do not come immediately, they take time. Life is still hard.

The emotional ups and downs are what I’m dreading. I really like the idea of savouring that morning coffee.

To people who have achieved 100 days before - did you really notice a difference between how you felt on April 10th (day 100) compared to January 31st? I’ve felt pretty good when I’ve done Dry January, so I’m curious how much better it’s possible to feel I suppose!

I felt good at the end of Jan but knew I could feel better. End of Feb felt great and by the end of march I felt fantastic. This was during lockdown and I only broke it in April as it was a friends 50th and we were allowed to go out! So I must do it again. But to answer your question I would say I felt twice as good by April as I did at the end of Jan!

Standing strong here! Got loads of unfinished alcohol in the house! Not sure what I’ll do with it!

That is inspiring, thanks @SwiftyFifty !

I’ve just ticked off day 1 on my Try Dry app - very satisfying. Only 99 days to go, lol.

One thing I’ve already noticed is I’m taking better care of myself - I’ve moisturised and flossed my teeth, two things I wouldn’t bother with if I was drinking. It’s only a tiny thing but feels good nonetheless.

I’m in too..horribly hungover today. Was dry retching in the toilet earlier, and cannot even remember watching the fireworks on tv last night…blackout drunk.
slept terribly and feel poisoned today.
Always do Dry January, last year did 3 months and the year before 4.
10th April is my birthday, so makes perfect sense to aim for that 💪

Well done. Hold in there this evening. Enjoy the morning. I agree with not trying too much. If it's nice snacks and treats that get you through the evenings, have something in the cupboards and let yourself eat it.

Good Evening all, long day out today and really could have done with a reward when I got home.. here I am sipping water. I won’t say it’s been easy but I was absolutely determined not to crack! @SwiftyFifty that’s very encouraging to hear, I’m going to keep reminding myself of that. @Happytosseyouafteralltheseyears I’ve also got far too much alcohol in the house which isn’t helpful. I think I might take it to a friends house out the way as the temptation is staring me in the face. 🫤 I hope you all wake up feeling refreshed tomorrow morning after a restful nights sleep. 😴 Night all.

Good morning - went to bed early to avoid giving in to the craving, not the best night's sleep but I know the benefits will pay off before too long. I need to change my evening routine to avoid the wine witch temptations long term. One day done, good luck all!

@freshstart2026I think it’s hard to answer because people lives are different and they drink for different reasons - to numb things (can include adhd etc), to cope with stress, to socialise and ‘feel confident’ or part of something, habit, loneliness, boredom etc etc. So whatever it is will be amplified when you stop. So the bigger and more difficult your reasons, all that becomes amplified when you stop. If you have a difficult home life at the time (eg relationship stress or whatever) it will be hard, if you don’t and your life is relatively peaceful you might feel good right away. I think you have to work out why you drink, why you started in the first place? What’s the trigger moment or time? What do you feel right in that moment? Self analyse yourself to find that out, because that’s what you have to replace/ cope with, and it’s different for everyone.

I dont know if anyone can relate to this.

I've always drunk alcohol to create that fuzzy happy feeling. The feeling that can push anxious thoughts and worries away and make me feel joyful and as though everything is wonderful.

That feeling is created nowadays (for me) after one small glass of wine. So I could stop then. But I don't. I always have 2 or 3 glasses (10 years ago i might have drunk a bottle) and then , after a couple of hours, I feel ill and anxious. And the ill feeling lasts hours.

And yet.....that joyful fuzzy feeling is what I keep going back for. Ignoring the ill anxiety feeling post alcohol

Its truly a form of madness imo 😳🙄🥺

im in. My weight has spiraled. Really need to do something . Thank you .

Welcome @Misspost and all the others joining in! I’ll spend some time later today doing a roll call. Please don’t anyone feel like they are not included - we are all absolutely in it together 🥰

Morning all. Last night was hard. I’m on holiday in an all-inclusive hotel, first time as a solo parent. My teenager had a big strop at me yesterday, I was also shattered from a busy end to 2025 and feeling full of dread for all that is waiting for me at home. I played charades with my kids during what would usually be cocktail hour at the hotel, then just drank water and left dinner before the daily dessert and pudding wine course. Last day here today, it’s a gorgeous place with lots of things to do, but am glad I’ve only got one more evening of being offered wine and fizz by enthusiastic waiters. Slept better than in ages.

@chatgptsbestmateI am similar to you! I have learnt that I absolutely cannot moderate. But alcohol is not designed for moderation and what you describe is normal for many people. For me I try to reframe happiness and enjoyment by what I want later not now. A bit like how daydreaming about a big holiday or event is better than the real thing? I think and imagine how I’ll feel tomorrow when I drink my coffee, or even later that night when I’m going up to bed, smug satisfied with a book or podcast, washed face and brushed teeth etc. It sounds dull and boring at first but it really isn’t. I used to secretly hate people who didn’t drink! Thought they had forgotten how to live. But I think that said more about me than them.

@Wishing14 that's a good idea! Kind of imagining how good I'll feel when I don't have any alcohol, rather than thinking about the fuzzy feeling (which doesn't last that long anyway!)

Playing it forward to the next day is so important. In the past when I've tried to give up I've written down how awful I feel. I think k I might start journaling my feelings at certain stages in the day.

My understanding is that this is the dopamine effect that alcohol has on the brain. The problem is that the fuzzy happy feeling you get from one or two glasses then requires 3/4/5 to make you feel the same way. Plus then all the other negative effects from alcohol, making you feel even more crap the next day.

Last year, I used an App called Reframe, which does require paying for (it’s not loads) to help me cut back. It gives you small manageable lessons daily which explain the neuroscience way better than that poor explanation there! I found it so useful in truth learning just exactly what alcohol is actually doing to your body.

I stopped Christmas Day, so it’s day 8 here for me. I’ve a minor cold following a busy festive period slightly negating the benefits of no booze, but in general I’m sleeping like a log!

@Onlymeandyou@needastrongoneagain1 thank you both. Such useful information

I often look at people who can easily say no to alcohol and aren't interested in it , and feel so envious!

If looking for a fiery ginger drink, check out online recipes for “ginger switchel”. It’s a traditional non-alcoholic drink mixing water, apple vinegar and chopped ginger with a sugar source - usually honey but could be brown sugar or maple syrup. You can vary ingredient ratios to your taste. For the strongest ginger taste, boil the water and ginger pieces together then once all ingredients are cool, mix and leave to gather strength in the fridge.
I drink it diluted in soda water - delicious, cheap and not overly sweet like many non-alcoholic drinks.