Aaron Kendal • June 30, 2022
Going Sober. Six Months Later...
At the end of 2021, I decided that I wanted to do the full year of 2022 completely sober. I don’t have a problem with alcohol or alcoholism, I was more just curious to see what my life would be like without alcohol in it.
So far, we’ve flew past 6 months sober and it’s been great. I’ve loved waking up with no hangovers or “hangxiety” (anxiousness during a hangover).
It hasn’t been 100% easy and without it’s challenges. There were moments where I’ve been tempted to call it off earlier and to just have a drink but that’s when I knew i had to stay disciplined and stick with it.
After six months, I thought i’d share 3 of the benefits that i’ve found and experienced.
I manage and deal with anxious feelings better
I don’t have anxiety in sense of a mental health disorder, but I do feel anxious every day. After going sober, I do still feel anxious from time to time, but it’s a lot rarer that the anxiousness holds me back from doing something.
I feel that i’ve ended up redefining what anxious feelings is signalling to me. If I notice i’m starting to feel anxious about pitching an idea to someone or meeting new people, I tell myself that it’s because i’m about to do something that I’m a bit uncomfortable with but in order to get comfortable I need to do whatever it is anyway.
Another consequence of not drinking is that there’s no dutch courage, there’s no boosting my confidence or extrovertedness from alcohol. Likewise there’s no escaping/ignoring my problems by having a few drinks or going out. I feel like i’ve developed a more logical and rational way for me to deal with any issues or problems, one where I try to tackle each issues immediately so as to not let them all team up like the avengers.
I don’t feel socially compelled to do anything
I wasn’t sure on how to word this one but i just don’t feel the need to do anything just because everyone else is doing it.