would anyone like to try a dry January with me?

[coppercolouredtop]

i really struggle with not drinking daily.

i have tried before and cheated. my dp hates how much i drink and i would like to try and see if i can do a month without and see if it breaks the habit a bit.

i can easily sink a bottle of wine plus a cocktail and still want more. i go two days without simply because i work nights two days a week.

i am getting fat. i am choosing drink over food. i am reliant on treating myself with alcohol almost daily.

i can give up anything else really easily - smoking? stopped with no help when i decided to stop.
put a box of chocolates in front of me and i can take a couple and leave the rest.
open a bottle of wine and its gone. and i want more and i dont get hangovers so there is no incentive to stop!
ive gained 6lb recently and i know its booze - dp and i used to work same hours and i moderated a bit better when he was around but now im not.
i know he hates what i drink and the annoying bint i become after the third glass.
i have lost motivation to do anything. i dont get up early. i cant be arsed to do much anymore ( i know i am depressed which doesnt help. and i think i depress the people around me)
despite being quite outgoing and bubbly i have no friends and no social life. my kids are grown up and dont see me much. i moved to a village i dont know 4 years ago and know not a soul. i also got pregnant which i was ecstatic about but then found the baby had a disability that would have been life altering for me and her, but i always felt being a mum kept me going and motivated and now my life feels completely empty and hollow. im in a job i hate. with a partner who doesnt like spending much time with me. my kids are gone, i have no friends here and alcohol fills the gaps.

ive decided to try and get to grips with that one problem and bin the booze for a month to see if it makes any difference to anything. (waist line would be good!) i never used to drink like this.. (though i did smoke about 3 cigarettes a day)

does anyone relate? anyone fancy giving this a go and supporting each other? im going to find it extremely difficult but i want to try it.

[singleascheeseslice]

Well done everyone! x

[whynot93]

28 days out of 31 isn't bad going so I'm pleased with that! I'd also say going forward I'd like to only drink on a Friday/Saturday. I feel so much better! Well done all 🙌

[MrsTerryPratcett]

Made it.

Very proud of myself!

[Christian77]

Yes!!

[CeciliaMcFlange]

Did it! Well done everyone on a totally dry DJ or a damp DJ. It's been a total revelation for me, just how much better I feel not drinking. I love and adore wine but think for me I just can't handle it brilliantly well, I don't/can't say no once I get going which isn't good for me, dh or the kids. DH said out of the blue that I've been much nicer recently, so am thinking of keeping going one day at a time for as long as I can.

I also worked out that at a conservative estimate I have been hungover for about 20 days/year for the last 30 years - which totals almost TWO YEARS of wasted time. Days and weeks and months of feeling shit.

[coppercolouredtop]

Well done all

Mine was definitely a damp jan rather than a dry jan

I'm wondering if this means I really do need to give up alcohol completely as I find it hard to even cut back.

But well done everyone who did it. 💐💐💐💐

[ZenNudist]

Well i saw in the new year and ended up with a massive hangover so gave up all January. I knew if i cracked once it would be too easy to cheat. I did drink 2 glasses of prosecco and half a gin & tonic on the 31st. I decided to finish dry January yesterday because i had a party to go to. Its half a g&t because i couldn't finish it!! Im not drinking again today.

I do feel better for not drinking. Felt shitty this morning and really felt those 2 proseccos.

Ive sat through quite a lot of social occasions stubbornly sober and its a shame to deny myself a nice glass of wine or a lovely g&t but i knew that would give licence to glugging whenever.

Quite happy to have a more sober February but going to try and enjoy the odd drink guilt free. Will it be a slippery slope???

[MrsTerryPratcett]

I'm wondering if this means I really do need to give up alcohol completely as I find it hard to even cut back.

Well that's the thing. DJ can be a test. If you easily do it, you probably don't have an issue.

However, you've had a rough month! So maybe the test isn't fair Let's meet again for Sober October and see how we do!

[Roussette]

After my 31 days I was back drinking last night. I had been looking forward to it lots. And yes, I did enjoy it. But... blimey, I have a thumping head this morning, and a horrible taste in my mouth. So yes, whilst it was enjoyable at the time, I have been reminded this morning of the effects.

I definitely am not drinking during the week for the forseeable future, unless I am on holiday because that had started creeping up, so if all I have done is stopped that, that is good.

[DavetheCat2001]

I ended up driving to my friends last night as the weather was filthy, and had one small glass of wine and then soft drinks.

I can feel that I had the one glass this morning in that my head feels a bit muzzy, but really glad I stopped at the one and didn't uber it after all!

I'm not going to drink again tonight or tomorrow I don't think.

[MumsyJ]

Well done to all of you, be it one day or 31 days 👍.

Where I'm not one of the dry January participants, I tend to give up alcohol throughout the period of lent, although hard, but I look forward to it yearly.

Once again, well done you all. X