Alcohol free January

Perhaps pour the rest of the wine down the sink or freeze it into ice cubes. It doesn't have to be the end.

I've declared, in advance, I'll be drinking on 22nd & 23rd as it's my birthday and friends are coming down from Cumbria ( by canoe?)

So I won't be completely dry, just 'damp ' as suzied so quaintly put it

You could just add a couple of days extra at the end to make up the days. Or just stick to no drinking Monday- Friday. So do a "damp January ".! But try not to use it as an excuse to slip back into old habits if you want to avoid that. I have made it to day 10, trying not to sound too virtuous, but we haven't been out anywhere and have put all the post Christmas / NY wine in the garage so avoiding temptation, and my OH is doing it with me so it's a bit easier.

Whoops fell off the wagon! No excuse I know but DH cooked such a lovely meal last night served up Master Chef style that I could not accompany it with just a glass of water!! Felt a bit unappreciative really. We did drink less though, less than half a bottle between us and really enjoyed it, rather than just drinking it and puring another one. The trouble is there is now another half bottle to finish tonight with the roast dinner! Think we might revise dry january to one bottle a week January!! A cop out I know but but so nice.

Anyone else fallen off yet?

NanKate - it's an ice cube mould in iceberg and titanic shapes - it's a bit of fun - and, as you know, you have to make your own fun when you're on a dry month ? ... There's an Amazon link further up in case you're in need of jazzing up your tipple ?

Only joking.....

It's not a fish etheltbags - it's a 'titanic' shaped ice cube together with a couple of icebergs - one of the grand-daughters bought it for DH at Christmas - he was amused

www.amazon.co.uk/Titanic-tray-Cube-Tray-Maker/dp/B005LUKHYI

Dry day 9 - who's up for a dry February...?

Have a nice evening ethel

time to go , Ana and her A team are on my back.

joggingirl why do you have little fish in your drink ,Im looking at your pic you posted yesterday (frid). Are they real

btw I am a therapist not a counsellor. I do massage and reflexology. I have to be extremely non judgemental. You lot just don't know me. My clients love me. (even if I wind them up a bit in fun).

It sounds like you have a real chocolate problem, how hard can it be simply to not eat chocolate for a month?

If someone cannot bear to be without even a small piece then they have a real dependency problem...

anya don't wind me up please-that's my job.
No I don't work in a call centre , I have done but never again.
Yes Im having a cuppa right now, why do you think Im called Ethel t bags.

He he thanks merlot Id forgotten. However I genuinely don't know how people can 'need; alcohol regularly, its ok as a very occasional treat but for me I cant give up chocolate so Im trying to have a January free of chocolate........ that's different

I think for many people on this thread the difficulty is not cutting out the alcohol as cutting out the HABIT of alcohol; relaxing in the evening with a glass of wine, always having a glass of wine with your lunch etc.

It is like always starting the day with a cup of coffee, or in my case that cup of coffee after lunch. It is decaf anyway, so I am not going for the caffeine fix but I am just in the habit of sitting down with the newspapers and cup of coffee after lunch and I would find it hard to break from that habit if I had to stop.

Wow - can you imagine turning up for your alcohol counselling session and coming across Ms Judgy pants? Would you ever return? Nope, thought not.

Recovering from a NYE hangover?

I'm sure I read somewhere that one of ethel's NY resolutions was to come on here and wind people up.

What took you so long, ethel?

Etheltbags That sounds very insensitive of you. There but for the grace of God go us all. Your don't know what other people's experiences have been and there is a genetic element towards alcohol addiction.

I know I can't take too much alcohol without getting sick which is a big incentive not to drink too much but I consider myself lucky.

What a sweet, non-judgemental little person you are ethelbags ...now you trundle back home and have a nice to refresh you after combining the pressure of work (in a call centre if I remember correctly - so stressful) with alcohol counselling. Please don't worry your pretty little head about us, you lovely, caring person

I have read these posts with interests, some of you sound like you have a real drink problem, how hard can it be simply to not drink alcohol for a month. If someone cannot bear to be without even a small one then they have a real alcohol dependency. Even someone who only has one glass a week can become dependant upon that one glass. I know this as I trained as an alcohol/drug rehab worker which I do along with my main job. I worry when I read some of these posts

Yes, not big, was it?

The soup was definately heated through
(polishes crown)

The alcohol burns off when heated, so providing it wasn't gazpacho you're ok.

Yes, but did you see the size of the glass allowed?

Er ...is a white wine stock cube allowed? I've just made soup with one.

However, I have stayed away from the bottles, a thin layer of dust may need removing from them sometime soon.

I watched the news last night, on the lowering of the 'safe' limits, especially for men. A pint of beer a day?? Yeah, right.

However I was somewhat cheered that 'women over 55' may benefit from a glass of red.

Did the ice cube come out like that by chance Jg or do you have some clever device ?

I have bought a bottle of the Fever Tree low cal ginger beer for tonight. It's good that non alcoholic drinks companies now exist. If we had gone back to my childhood it would have been a bottle of Tizer .

Anya is right Greyduster - you can do it - just stick with us - we'll see you alright That was a tough day and you did well

NanKate - I did reduce after my dry September and I was happy to be just enjoying a nice glass of wine with dinner. Then a few very stressful events hit and I found one glass became two ..... still within the 'old' safe limits though!

Now who knows...

Tonight's tipple was lime juice with elderflower cordial topped up with fever tree tonic - finished with a lime slice and a titanic ice cube - all served up in the new gin cocktail glasses I bought DH for Christmas ?

Day 8 done