Give Dry January a Try.
One of the biggest mistakes you can make when trying to cultivate a new habit is the all-or-nothing-approach. If you’ve been thinking about participating in Dry January (AKA: opting out of drinking for the month), you don’t have to follow the all-or-nothing rule in order to get the benefits.
Here are a few tips about how to gracefully reduce the amount you drink, to improve your health and happiness in the new year.
1. Focus on the Why behind your Dry January.
Instead of exchanging gifts this year, some close friends and I decided to combine our points and air miles and spend a low-key weekend enjoying the famous Kings Spa and Sauna in Chicago. It was a dream.
Because my friend travels a lot for work, we ended up being upgraded to first class. A very rare treat for me. So, even though my plan had been to give Dry January a go this year, I decided to embrace the weekend experience and slowly sip my FREE glass of wine while I caught up with my friend about her holidays.
Why? Because the reason I wanted to drink less didn’t have to do with having one glass of wine. It had to do with drinking 3-4 (or more!) glasses of wine over the course of an evening — because I always want the fun times with friends to continue, and the story I’ve told myself is that the wine has to keep flownig —even though I know it’s not good for my health and it will make me foggy the next day.
So, I thought, “One drink. Let’s be social.”
Little did I know that while you’re offered a drink while everyone’s boarding, you have to drink that beverage before the flight takes off. So instead of sipping, I was gulping as they closed the airplane door.
Great way to start Dry January, right?
2. Remember, you always have a choice!
But then I reminded myself that I always have a choice. I didn’t have to drink it all —even though I had asked for it. Even if it felt wasteful. It didn’t align with how I wanted to drink. So, I gave the rest of my drink to the steward and when they came around during the flight, I got sparkling water instead. And you know what, I enjoyed my sparkling beverage just as much as the wine and the conversation still flowed.
3. Plan your response ahead of time.
If you’re concerned that you won’t stick with your goal of not drinking, or drinking less. Creating bright lines to help clarify when you drink and when you don’t — clear lines of what you will and will not be doing. So, if you know you’re headed to a social event where there will be drinking, you can plan your response ahead of time. When someone asks you if you want a drink, you can say, “I’m not drinking this month.” or “I only drink on the weekends.”, or “I only drink with meals.”, or “I’m not drinking tonight.”
4. State it with confidence.
Notice that I’m not saying, “I’m trying”, but stating it as a fact. I AM these new habits. I am a person who doesn’t drink during the week, tonight, this week, etc.
Don’t feel the need to explain yourself or justify your choice. It’s your body, it’s your choice. If you do want to share why you’ve decided to change your drinking habit, focus on the reasons why it’s important to you — not for anyone else. You may be surprised by how positively people respond.
5. Distract yourself.
New environments help us make new choices. So, instead of catching up with friends over a drink. Try inviting old friends (or new friends) to do new things. Want to grab an early breakfast? Want to go skiing? Want to go to a movie at the Trylon? Want to try salsa dancing? Want to come over for tea and watercolors? Want to try climbing? By choosing to place ourselves in new environments, or have new experiences, we also create more space for us to make more conscious choices about our behavior— or when and how we drink.
6. Drink Mindfully.
If you do decide to drink, drink something you really enjoy, and be fully present as you drink it.
When I implementing this bright line in my own life, I realized that I was often taking sips of my drink as a reflex or that I was actually thirsty and really wanted a glass of water, instead.
To drink mindfully, pretend you’re doing a taste test. Take a moment. Breathe out. Look at the color of the beverage. Notice how it smells. Breathe in and take a sip. Let it coat your tongue. Think about what flavors are present. Then breathe out. How has the flavor changed? What do you like about it? How does it make you feel? What flavors linger? Doing this every time you take a sip will allow you to more fully savor the experience. If you realize you don’t like what you’re drinking— ask yourself why you would continue to drink it.
7. Don’t be too hard on yourself.
One of the biggest obstacles you face when creating a new habit can be negative self-talk. Or self-harrasment when you don’t meet a goal. Negative self-talk drains us of energy and makes it harder to make progress. So, remember that you’re human and shifting behaviors takes energy. You’re bound to “mess-up”. That doesn’t mean you’ve failed. Reconnect with the reasons why you’re trying to drink less and stay positive. Then one day you’ll realize you’ve created a new, healthy habit groove and you drink less than you used to — or at least more intentinally.
Check out more mindful living articles.
