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When I decided to stop drinking in 2017, it was considered very strange.
Oddly enough, extensive questioning was necessary when you refused a glass of wine at a party. Oddly enough, invitations to said parties sold out faster than the time it took me to say “make mine with lime and soda.” Oddly enough, I thought about going out wearing a T-shirt that said, “No, I’m not pregnant, I’m just an alcoholic,” so I wouldn’t have to explain myself every time I dismissed a waiter carrying a tray of champagne. flutes.
When people made the effort to indulge my strange lifestyle choice, they would inevitably offer me a warm glass of elderflower cordial, as if I were a wood elf and not a problem drinker with pickled liver.
Fortunately, in 2024 things are very different, in part because it is now accepted that you do not have to be an alcoholic to adopt a sober lifestyle. There are all kinds of options available for people who, for whatever reason, have grown tired of drinking.
Take Nozeco, a brand of non-alcoholic prosecco (whose name makes me want to vomit almost as much as the thought of the binge drinking my body used to do) that’s popular among my friends who aren’t addicted to alcohol, but I don’t want to be a hungover dad anymore.
They are also in favor of a non-alcoholic G&T, a concept that would have been unthinkable for mothers a decade ago, who spent their days thinking only about “gin o’clock”. Thanks to the rise of “botanical” spirits, these alternatives are all the rage (even Aldi and Lidl make their own versions).
NHS statistics show that more and more young people are choosing not to drink; In 2022, 19 per cent of adults in the UK said they did not drink, compared to 16 per cent in 2011. Then there is Sober October, launched in 2014 by Macmillan Cancer Support as a fundraising challenge and now , in its tenth year, as ubiquitous as dry January.
Today, of course, is the first of November and I want to appeal to anyone who has woken up, fresh-faced and energized after having their own Sober October. Maybe you’re thinking about the delicious bottle of wine you’ll have with your dinner or the cocktail you’ll savor every sip when you meet up with friends tonight.
But what if… you didn’t? What if you went ahead and decided to have an alcohol-free November and a clear-headed Christmas? What if you joined the alcohol-free masses and simply didn’t drink grog all year round?
I don’t know a single person whose life has been made worse by becoming teetotal. Friends who fear they are drinking too much report that they feel better both mentally and physically, while “moderate” drinkers who drink alcohol only occasionally will tell me that their sleep improves radically by giving up their glass of wine at night.
All of this is backed by a ton of research. The International Agency for Research on Cancer classified alcohol as a Group 1 carcinogen many decades ago, grouping it alongside substances such as asbestos and radiation, while last year the World Health Organization declared there was “no safe level.” “of alcohol consumption. In short: if alcohol were invented now, it would not be allowed.
And yet, we still turn to this legal drug like an old familiar friend (the kind that stabs you in the back). And when I find myself fantasizing about an ice-cold glass of rose after a hard day, I remind myself of this even colder truth: Alcohol is a depressant that disguises itself remarkably well as a relaxant, and any problems you try to banish with alcohol will disappear. They only come back the next morning, bigger, meaner and much less docile.
With over seven alcohol-free years under my belt, I am often asked for advice on trying to quit alcohol. My biggest advice is to leave everything for one day. It’s vaguely scary to announce that you’re giving up alcohol for good and puts too much pressure on you. Focus on the 24 hours ahead of you and worry about the next 24 when you get there.
Be aware of sugar cravings, which were one of the most surprising parts of my journey to sobriety (that and the realization that I wasn’t a social party girl, just socially inept and shy).
I had always considered myself a tasty person, but it turned out I got all my sugar from wine, and when I stopped drinking pints of that, I started craving pints of Ben & Jerry’s.
I hear this all the time from teetotal people. They are terribly ashamed of the sugar that they cannot stop eating, without focusing on the benefits they bring to their body by eliminating alcohol. Then they try to give up sugar too and go on a diet, which only makes it harder for them to stay away from alcohol. This is why so many people end up stuck in cycles of restricting or binge drinking. You don’t have to give up everything at once, and you’ll find it easier to eliminate unhealthy things from your life if you focus on one vice at a time.
Focus on what you are adding to your life, rather than what is being taken away. The Chancellor may have reduced the price of a pint of beer, but drinkers still face high alcohol prices. There are applications that not only add up your days of abstinence, but also how much money you have saved; When I started my sobriety journey, I downloaded one of these to my phone and treated myself to a massage at the end of each month with money I hadn’t spent.
But above all, remember that quitting alcohol brings a richness to your life that can be seen in much more than just your bank balance. And, as the months of sobriety turn into years, you will begin to witness the immeasurable value of a life that is not drenched in alcohol.
Joy of an only child
Bryony with her daughter Edie, her only child who, according to her, is “perfection”
Many people are upset about the falling birth rate, which has reached a new low of 1.44 children per woman. As a mother of only 1 child, I have to defend those of us who refuse to give in to the pressure to have more children.
As beautiful as a large offspring may seem to some, it should not be inconceivable that there are women who cherish the idea of having an only child. When someone makes the mistake of rudely asking me if I’m disappointed that I didn’t have more after my daughter Edie, I tell them the truth: that we didn’t want to try to improve on perfection!
Three cheers for Saoirse Ronan, who said what all the women were thinking, while Paul Mescal and Eddie Redmayne joked about the idea of using a phone to defend yourself in the event of an attack.
“That’s what girls have to think about all the time,” the actress, 30, said on The Graham Norton Show a week ago, to huge applause.
She is right. How sad that even the most progressive men are so disconnected from the reality of women’s lives, especially as the clocks turn back and our thoughts turn to the dangers of walking home alone in the dark.
These things shouldn’t need explaining in 2024 (nor should we still worry about them), but kudos to Ronan for doing it.
Emma is right: the bus beats a Porsche!
I think Emma Raducanu is just being sensible in her transportation choices, says Bryony
Photos of Emma Raducanu boarding the bus have caused consternation among fans who are more used to seeing the 21-year-old driving around the city in a £125,000 Porsche. But Raducanu’s deal with the flashy car company has apparently already ended, so she was “forced” to use public transportation.
I think the young star is just being sensible. In London, you’re much safer from traffic wardens and Sadiq Khan’s much-hated Ulez scheme in a double-decker than in a high-end sports car.
Have you ever felt like life is a little…too much? Bestselling author and journalist Bryony Gordon is here to ditch the shame and dive headfirst into the trickier parts of life. Look for The Life of Bryony wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes released every Monday and Friday.