Hellobee

Two years ago, Mr. Starfish came home from a January business trip all excited to tell me about a conversation he’d had with a British colleague. While a group of them were at a business dinner, he noticed that everyone was drinking except the aforementioned British guy, who uncharacteristically ordered a club soda instead. When my husband asked him about it, he learned about Dry January. For those not in the know, Dry January is simply the practice of abstaining from alcohol in the first month of the year. My husband loved the idea of trying this – after the excessive drinking (and eating!) of the holiday season, it’s a way to get your health and habits back on track.

After hearing about this challenge two years ago, Mr. Starfish and I attempted Dry January together last year in January 2018. Mr. Starfish accomplished his goal. I did not. To be honest, last year my heart wasn’t really in the challenge. I had several social events on my calendar that month which included alcohol and I wasn’t interested in giving up that component. I also was under severe work stress last January and a glass of wine at the end of the day did wonders to help me through mounting work-related anger and frustration (thankfully, I left that job a few months after that and haven’t looked back!). Last year, I definitely cut back as a result of the Dry January challenge, but I still consumed alcohol five days or so during the month.

Coming in to January 2019, I was way more interested in the challenge. I felt that my drinking was becoming a habit and I wanted to see if I could moderate it. I also had no work or personal excuses. Mr. Starfish was also super stoked about repeating the challenge – he’d been successful the past year and felt empowered and healthier and in control because of it. Finally, this year felt different because Dry January has grown in popularity in the U.S. When we did Dry January last year, no one had really heard of it in our social circle. But this year, it’s popping up more frequently; articles like this one from the Wall Street Journal are not uncommon. For me, it has been helpful to see so many people embrace the idea and take on the challenge; I feel less isolated by the challenge.

Now writing this in mid-January halfway through the 2019 challenge, I am happy and proud to report that I have successfully abstained from alcohol so far. So I’m doing way, way better than last year, when I had cheated twice by this time!

It’s been really nice to have Mr. Starfish by my side during the challenge. Strangely, we’ve found that we crave the routine and taste and feeling of alcohol at opposite times, so it’s been great in that sense because we’ve been cheerleaders for the other at opportune moments.

The biggest positive side-effect that I’ve experienced has been fabulous sleep. I’m talking the best sleep that I’ve had since my two-year-old daughters were born! The kind of sleep where you wake up before your alarm buzzes and you feel truly refreshed. To be honest, I didn’t even realize that my new great sleep was tied to alcohol restraint until just a couple of days ago. For days on end, I was waking up feeling glorious from restful sleep and commenting to Mr. Starfish that, “I’m not sure what I’m doing, but I’m sleeping so great and I really hope it continues.” The lightbulb moment came recently when I was telling my boss about Dry January and he asked me if my sleep had improved. My mouth dropped open and I was like, “YESSSSS!!”

Another great side-effect has been money savings. I’m a wine lover and while I don’t have particularly expensive tastes, those bottles of weekly wine add up pretty quickly. Our restaurant checks are also running significantly lower than usual as those drinks are no longer running their hefty tab.

The last great side-effect has been weight loss. I easily put on about five pounds over the holidays with all the extra food and wine, but it has mostly slid off due to Dry January. Alcohol definitely packs a hefty calorie punch and losing those sugars and calories is helping my jeans fit much nicer these days.

The hardest part of giving up the alcohol for me has definitely been the routine component. When I get my two, two-year-old daughters down for the night after a long day of work, I really cherish pouring a glass of wine and watching trash TV (Married At First Sight, anyone?). Swapping out the wine glass for a bottle of sparkling water just doesn’t hold the same appeal. I also really missed the wine when I made a special dinner this past weekend – we always have this particular dish with a bottle of dry white wine and I really didn’t feel like the meal tasted as good without it. The final part that has been pretty tough is business trips – facing a four hour layover in a cold and drafty airport is a heck of a lot easier with a glass of wine (however overpriced it may be!)

I also want to point out that while I think this challenge is a great one for light-to-moderate drinkers, those with heavier drinking habits may put themselves at a health risk by quitting so abruptly. Last year, one of my older family members participated in the challenge and he is a pretty heavy drinker. He had a mental break during the month and while he also had a lot of other stuff going on, my gut feeling is that cutting the alcohol cold turkey like that was too much for his system. All this to say, I think it’s important to proceed with caution as you would with any other health challenge.

Have you tried Dry January? How are you feeling here at the mid-point of the challenge? While I’m definitely embracing the positives of the challenge at this halfway mark, I also will admit to day-dreaming about February 1^st and which bottle of wine I will pop open to share with Mr. Starfish as the challenge concludes!