Dry Jan 2026- anyone care to join in?

[BigButtons]

Since there doesn’t seem to be a dedicated dry Jam thread I thought I would start one and see if I get any company.
I so need this. Drinking has made me feel sluggish, anxiety ridden and awful. I remembered how great I felt doing it last year but slipped back into old habits far too easily.

Start of day 8. I have quite a busy evening planned so tonight wont be an issue but i think this weekend is going to be tricky 🙈. DH has a gym class at 9.30 an otherwise I would book in. He has become quite unfit in the last year as he has taken up a hobby that involves lots of sitting so I am glad he is going but could have done with the early morning gym session to keep me on track.

My habits is between half to 2 thirds of bottle of wine a night and with enormous effort I manage sometimes to be AF Monday to Thursday. Generally not more than 7 days AF a month. I managed Sept AF as felt I'd drunk too much on holiday in August, then I decide to only drink at weekends then it creeps back to daily 😒

I am feelings really raaaaaahhhhh. This evening. I don 't want a drink but i want what drinks gives me if that makes sense? Everything just feels raw. I am having an AF beer. The thought of another af free weekend is also depressing. yes I know I am not in the right mindset at all. I am absolutely fine up until about 6 pm then it all goes to shit in my head. 6 pm wasn't even a time when I would pour myself something, it was usually later.
I think it is knowing I will not be having anything at all.
Positives for me are much better sleep and feeling so much caner during the day . Very little anxiety is a huge bonus too.

Taking a time out tonight and raising a glass to Murphy.

Day 8 almost completed. My trigger time is late afternoon and when I am making dinner. Had a wobble tonight, but held fast and did not drink.

My sleep is all over the place. Lots of REM, but no dreams remembered, and very little deep sleep - 8 minutes last night.

Those are some big positives @BigButtons, worth hanging on to if you can hold out.

Keeping busy, making some plans that don’t focus around alcohol might help. You’re doing really well, I guess thinking through how you would feel if you had a drink might help. I know I’d be really annoyed with myself.

It helps that I am working quite a lot of the weekends in January so not really missing the wine nights too much but we will see, think Saturday night might be when I feel it.

Stressful afternoon - really felt the need to relieve that stress with a glass of something alcoholic. So I pulled out the old faithfulls.
Had a Kombucha instead - it didn't do the trick.
Tried some Phil & Kirsty. Lit a fire. Then decided I was too tired to cook - so we're having a Deliveroo, which does feel like a bit of a weight off.

Glad I didn't crack but it's the first time I've channeled Father Jack this Dry Jan. Drink! Drink! Drink!

Feeling better now?

Beautiful boy!!

Could have poured one tonight from feeling a little stressed. But I did not give in. It was af cider strawberry. Meh ...

Another day done!

Sleep well all

Day 8 done and dusted. I found today hard as a I really wanted a glass of wine. I had visions of a sipping a nice red wine whilst watching a good film tonight. However by the time I got dc1 home from his activity dh was watching some murder documentary on TV which he had been watching last night. It put me off the thought of wine as I wanted to watch a decent film with a wine not a depressing show. I am now in bed as its so blooming cold outside. We have a lot of snow and its icy and now about minus 5🥶. I was meant to hike tomorrow morning but the hills will very super icy so have had to postpone it.

Day 8 done. We had a leftover Christmas pud tonight and I flamed it with cognac without thinking, so I’m not counting the alcohol as it burned off (that’s my position and I’m sticking to it. )😀
I used to drink wine that costs about £7-8 a bottle almost every day.
8 days =£56-64 saved so far: definitely worth sticking with it!

Another day done - well done everyone. Had my first cbd drink tonight - in a nice glass with lots of ice. It was a brand called little ricks - it tasted nice enough, it was a raspberry lemonade flavour. I feel like maybe it did have a mellowing relaxing effect? Or maybe that’s just psychological 😂

Day 8 done for me too. Thursday is usually a day we’d have a wine or two so tonight would have been a bit of a test, but I had an appointment this afternoon so worked a little later to make up time and as soon as I finished I jumped straight in to making dinner, washed up and then took DDog out for a quick walk before the snow started. By that time it was 8pm so I was past wine witch time.

Ive been quite tired the last couple of days and have had a low level headache most of the day. Going to put that down to the return to work after the holidays and trying to catch up. Definitely sleeping better and my skin looks better too, although that may be because i’ve been more consistent with my skincare routine rather than the effect of Dry Jan.

Well done everyone, keep going 💪🏼

Danger day for me since it's Friday!! I've even voluteered to drop and collect DS and friends to a party to keep me busy during the time I'd normally be decompressing with a g and t ha!

Yes this will be my big test today. I’m feeling pretty confident at the moment.

I'm also trying to lose some weight, and what usually happens is that I weigh myself on Friday morning, and then again on Monday. Because I usually drink at the weekends, all the achievements of the week then vanish over the weekend and on Monday I'm pretty much back where I was the previous week - which is very frustrating! Since my scales are showing a positive result this Friday morning, I'm going to use that as additional motivation to get me through Friday and Saturday nights..

Happy Friday all!
Hope everyone is feeling as optimistic as possible going into the weekend.

If anyone is looking for an AF free wine.. Last weekend I tried the aldi sauv blanc and it was vile. Yesterday I picked up some asda own called studio zero. I dont normally drink rose but thought i would give it a go seen as the white i had before was awful.

Anyway, I tried a glass last night and it is great! First sip gives you that warm feeling going down your throught that actual wine does. (Hope that makes sense!).

This will now be my go to drink. The other drink I have been really liking is sparkling water with elderflower cordial, a wedge of lime and lots of ice.

@Eyesopenwideawake I meant to say, I am very sorry for your loss 💐

Feeling proud of myself today as a Thursday night is usually my night to open a bottle of wine as it's always a particularly exhausting day and it's something I look forward to. We had no wine in the house but unfortunately dh had done the shopping during the day and didn't know whether to buy me a bottle of wine or not so went ahead and bought one. I resisted though, even though it was sitting all cold there in the fridge...I must say this thread helped just a tiny bit because I thought I can't face confessing on here that I had wine!

I'm trying not to to have AF wine because I'm worried it will just continue the basic habit of drinking in the evening, but I might give it a go because maybe it could be a permanent switch going forwards now, if I can find a nice one. I like the sound of the Asda one from @Crocodocodile but we don't have an Asda near us. Any other good ones? I like a nice dry white.

I took a photo of myself on January 1st, after drinking a ridiculous amount of fizz on NYE.. I felt absolutely terrible mentally and physically. Really really awful hangover. My face was puffy and red, my eyes bloodshot. I looked battered.
Took a photo this morning in the same light, and omg the difference after just 9 days is amazing. I am planning on pushing through to the end of March but might even go further if I can.

I've been looking for this thread but couldn't find it! Can I join? I've done Dry Jan before and a few years back I managed to stretch it out to a dry year, but I always backslide into an unhealthy wine habit. Not had any alcohol so far this year but have had the flu so it's been easy. Now I've recovered temptation is creeping back in but I'm not going to fold.

I’ve passed the witching hour and haven’t drunk. Feeling really pleased with myself that I’ve got through 2 Fridays without a drink. I cooked tea sipping a kombucha, ate and went for a walk. By the time I got back the time for opening the wine had passed. Hope you’re all doing ok.

Can I join? I have done DJ for the past couple of years and always feel great for it. I do have AF beer to substitute but can’t drink much of it.

I shouldn’t be doing this I know but I’m planning on having a lovely bottle of bubbly in the fridge for early Feb when we are keeping everything crossed for some good exam news.

Lots of luck with your weekends!

Another day done. Guinness Zero tonight.
Have more energy and am sleeping better.