Remake Your January: 1 Day, 31 Times
Happy New Year! And welcome to Dryuary! Okaaayyyyy. Whomp whomp. That’s how I felt when January 1 actually rolled around. Despite feeling excited and confident about the idea of dropping alcohol for 31 days (why the hell did I agree to this), when I lay my head on my pillow at 10:35pm on New Year’s Eve (That’s right! I went to bed EARLY!), I was less than thrilled about the concept of a sober January. You see, I had a tough year. We all did. There’s no need to list everything that happened, we were all there, living through it. But I also had the added stress of a divorce that was finalized in July, and the bonus of some pretty serious mental health challenges faced by one of my children. These issues came to a head over the holiday break. At the same time I had decided to forgo alcohol for January, 2021.
Was I tempted to beg off? Absolutely. Would Kristin have let me? Questionable. LOL. But I decided to keep on with the plan as December ticked down last week. We re-released our eighth episode, “Woman on the Remake: Going Dry” on New Year’s Eve. Perfect timing, right? New Year’s resolutions and all that. We knew there were many women out there who were hearing that whisper Angie talked about-- “I drink too much.” I’m one of them. Especially this year. I was using alcohol to relax, to cope with the pandemic, to celebrate the end of another day of quarantine survived, to numb my brain from thinking of everything that seemed to be awful in my life, you name it. Let’s be clear. I don’t over-drink very often. We’re talking about a cocktail or two, max. Okay, three on a bad night. But that’s a cocktail or two nearly every single night. For YEARS. And there seemed to be more bad nights than there used to be. I mean, it’s been a HORRIBLE year.
So as January 1 dawned, I felt a tiny bit excited about the healthier me that will emerge over the next 31 days. I drank a lot of Spindrift sparkling water that first night. Last night was easy-- I went for a socially distanced Christmas celebration that had been put off due to those mental health issues I mentioned. Didn’t get home until 9:30 pm. Whew. Now it’s Sunday, and I go back to work tomorrow. And, like always (I say this every year), nothing better really happened on New Year’s Day. It’s still the same old stuff from 2020. COVID-19, politics, growing civil unrest, a mental health crisis, dealing with being a divorced woman, etc. So I’m sitting here writing this, trying to psyche myself up for a quiet night at home when I know it’s that quiet time when my brain decides to torment me.
I’ve gotten my old pandemic cross-stitch project dragged back out, I’ve bought a couple of boxes of herbal tea to pour up if my mouth gets dry, and two new books to read. One of them is called Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol. Maybe I’ll crack it open tonight if my poor eyes are struggling with those tiny stitches. But I know I’ll make it to the end. What do I have to lose besides an over-dependence on alcohol? Oh yeah-- a few pounds. And poor sleep. And those liquor store charges on my credit card. Now that I’m thinking about it, this little plan is sounding better and better!
Kristin and I would love for you to join us on this 31 day journey. We’ve already heard from several of you that you are. Keep in touch with us. Let us hear from you. In 31 days we will all be better than we are today!
XO,
Leigh
