6 Benefits Of Dry January!
Or taking any month off of alcohol! Positive outcomes, who may benefit, tips to try it, and resources below.
I want to start by giving a disclaimer as a mental health professional that not everyone can try dry January, cold turkey, on their own. If you have an alcohol use disorder or have a dependence on alcohol, you may experience withdrawal which is dangerous and you must run this by your therapist, health providers, and get support first. You may need a medical detox, a substance use program, additional mental health support and beyond.
Another disclaimer that even someone who does not need this level of support, but uses alcohol pretty frequently and has built the habit, may not feel these positive benefits AT FIRST. I say at first, because it is likely that most people WILL experience these over time. Some people do after 2 weeks and then some people feel very sleepy, groggy, and anxious for a month - that’s the alcohol detoxing your body. I will say if that’s you, give it 60 days or 90 days to really experience these effects. Do not make a conclusion that dry January isn’t effective, that’s not true. Alcohol is an addictive substance regardless of your relationship, so you may not be an addict or alcoholic, but still feel these effects. No shame!
Now to get into it! You may be wondering what Dry Jan even is? Dry January like many other movements, “sober october,” and so on is a month long challenge to not drink. Why would I ever do that? If that’s the question that comes to your mind, you may benefit from this challenge. I think most of us know alcohol has a lot of negative consequences, so taking a month off can help you better your mental health, physical health, and goals. Oh and if you are reading this outside of January 1st, that is fine! Don’t let all-or-nothing thinking make this be an excuse to not try it, you can start any day for any period of time.
Would I benefit? May come next for you. Here is the answer below…
You may benefit from trying dry Jan or a break from alcohol if:
You think this one month challenge is impossible
You think you’d be bored without drinking
You binge drink on the weekends
You have a couple glasses of wine with dinner most nights
You feel anxious, shame, irritable, stressed, or down the next day
Most mornings after are fueled with a hangover
You use alcohol to cope
You use alcohol to have fun
Alcohol ever made you do something you regret
You’d like to have a more mindful approach or try moderating after
The list goes on, a month off of drinking can bring a lot of positive benefits. Here are 6 benefits:
1. You’ll get to explore your relationship with alcohol
I know that might not sound all that exciting, but trust me - it’ll give you a lot of information that will benefit your life. Even if you try dry Jan with the expectation to drink again in February, you will learn SOMETHING whether positive or negative information. When you remove it for a month you see how easy or hard it is and what you feel and think. You are taking away most likely a coping strategy, which can be scary, but teaches you a lot. You’ll start to learn what leads you to drink in the first place and whether it benefits you or adds value to your life or not. Who knows, you could take it away and miss it, or you could see some pros and want to keep it going.
2. Your sleep will improve - both in quantity & quality
You probably think alcohol helps you get to sleep, because it may turn off the racing thoughts or make you tired, but it deeply negatively impacts your sleep. It can disrupt your REM & Deep cycles which are completely necessary for your overall functioning and wellness. Sleep is needed for regulating your mood and emotions, managing stress, appetite, brain health, cognitive functioning, focus and memory, muscle growth, decreasing anxiety, hormones, and more just to name a “few”! So even if you get 12 hours of sleep after drinking, you’re not getting the quality you need to repair and grow overnight. Research shows even 2+ drinks can harm your sleep. So, by cutting alcohol you will get more and better sleep which will provide another positive impact on your mental and physical health alike! More than one benefit here!
3. You will feel more clear-headed and energized
By removing hangovers the next day, that groggy sluggish feeling you get will be gone! Because you will no longer have alcohol in your system and you got better sleep, you’re also going to have way more energy. Your ability to focus, remember, and concentrate will be sharper. And, bonus you won’t have that crippling anxiety and shame from not remembering the night before.
4. Enhance your relationship with yourself
Theres a lot to this one, probably another blogs worth, but you will become a more authentic version of you. You may not realize how quickly alcohol becomes a crutch - you use it to de-stress, to get through a little social anxiety, to “have fun.” Once you face all of this substance free you realize what your true personality it, what your strengths are, and not what liquid courage does to make you more talkative or that numbed out vacant personality you get into at 2 am. Plus, you’ve done something super hard and faced some challenges by yourself, which only builds self-trust. You teach yourself that you can get through hard things and rely on you. You also face emotions and life stressors head on. You start getting to know yourself, your likes, interests, desires, values and needs on a whole deeper level. And lastly, you are probably more fun than you think! If it shows you’re a true introvert at heart, thats okay! You can learn how to live according to your energy levels.
5. You’ll have time for new hobbies, habits, and things that bring you pure joy
Have you been wanting to take up that fitness class, pottery class, try yoga, or finally get to the gym but every time you try you fall off because you’re hungover or you’d prefer to go out drinking? This is common so you’re not alone! When you remove drinking you actually have a lot more down time than you’d expect and you finally have the energy to take up those hobbies and habits and stick to them. Another piece to this is that you think you may be “bored” without it, but thats because you’ve relied on drinking to have fun. Try going out and doing something without drinking and you’ll find joy lies in the daily small moments. Also biologically, your dopamine system levels out and you can start getting that motivating dopamine hit from natural things again like you did before you started drinking - sunlight, movement, fresh air, achieving a goal, etc.
6. You will see who you *actually* connect with
This one may come off a little harsh! I think we as a society believe we are making friendships and connections when we’re drinking because we’re having a “fun time”, doing crazy things, on adventures, and having deep talks. That’s because your pre-frontal cortex (impulse control, decision making, etc) is messed with and you share things you probably wouldn’t with a stranger. You overshare, say things you meant to keep to yourself, and believe you’re building relationships - but its all manufactured and not natural. In the real world, it takes time to be vulnerable with other people and they should earn your trust first before disclosing private information. Also, when you’re drinking you are numbing out and not even fully there, so half the convos you don’t remember and you weren’t actually present for. Drinking makes it so that you tolerate others, or the situation. When you remove it, hang with those drinking friends again, you may find that you don’t relate. On the flip side, it’ll bring you closer to your true friends. When you hang with someone fully sober, that’s when you deeply and truly connect! So cutting drinking may cost you some people, but in the long run it’ll bring you the right people.
That was a lot! I want to say, it’s okay if you dont make it through dry Jan, its hard! The world we live in romanticizes and normalizes drinking for everything. And unfortunately, when you stop drinking you kind of are in the minority depending on your circle. It may make you feel a little alone, but if you really want to do this for the benefits above, hang in there and trust the process. There is hope on the other side.
If you are bought in and want to try this, here are my tips:
Start small, doesn’t matter if it’s dry Jan - just set your intention to do 1 week if you need!
Have some replacement drinks (whether that’s an NA drink or mocktail, seltzer water, an adaptogen blend, coffee, tea) get creative and something to hold or reach for.
Make a plan! Especially that first weekend or when 5pm rolls around, you’re habitualized to reach for the drink, so have a plan in place. Have a friend you’re seeing, a place to go, a movie to watch. Take the decision away by having structure.
Reach out for support - talk to your therapist, tell a friend, your family. I know not everyone’s supportive but there are plenty of sober groups out there (outside of just AA, smart recovery, etc which can be helpful if it works for you) that will make you feel less alone and bring on accountability!
Read quit-lit book or listen to a podcast. (Scroll to the bottom of this blog for some recommendations.)
Follow sober influencers. There’s actually a whole sober instagram and tik tok community out there, you just have to find it.
Journal! Buy a guided prompted one or use a blank one and document the experience. Write about your thoughts, feelings, and observations.
Take up 1 new habit! Take the class, go to the gym, walk an extra 10 minutes. Do something to fill your time that makes you feel good.
Eat whole foods and stay hydrated, it takes some time to replenish your nutrients and electrolytes lost from drinking, so the more you can nourish yourself the quicker you'll feel the good benefits kick in.
If you made it this far, thank you for reading! I almost guarantee you will thank yourself for trying this if you do it. And if you’re sober curious and want to hold off that’s okay! Dry January isn't the end all be all. Do it when you are READY.
If you resonate with this blog and would like to explore the curiosity, your relationship with alcohol, try dry january, attempt sobriety, or beyond with me, please schedule a 15 minute consultation with me to see if we are a good fit!
Follow along my instagram for more tools related to alcohol use and mental health.
If you are interested in resources to learn more:
Mental Health and Recovery Resources
Events/More Info
-https://thesobercurator.com/ which lists TONS of resources by state and has lots of information on events, venues, mocktails, etc.
Books:
-The Unexpected Joy Of Being Sober
-How To Eat To Change How You Drink
Podcasts or episodes:
Huberman Lab On Alcohol Use Science
Journals:
Specific coaches, groups, and programs: please email me directly and I can give you referrals of sober coaches, recovery centers, and programs I trust in NYC, NJ, Maryland, or virtual coaching in any state. This depends on need.
