ANA Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation® Blog: Exploring the Sober-Curious Movement
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Why people are trying sobriety and what it’s doing for their health
*** photo above is a mocktail (a shirley temple)
For the past decade or so, people have become increasingly curious about living life without alcohol — or at least without as much alcohol.
Challenges like “Dry January” or “Sober October” continue to grow in popularity. They involve abstaining from alcohol for 28 to 31 days. But many people are interested in exploring sobriety and the idea of drinking less even beyond those challenges. This shift in how people think about alcohol use is known as the sober-curious movement.
This curiosity about sobriety follows the public’s general shift in attitude towards wellness. A 2022 survey of more than 2,000 U.S. consumers found that interest in health, fitness, nutrition, sleep, and mindfulness continues to grow and remains a priority, especially among young people. It makes sense, then, that an increasingly healthier mindset might leave you wanting to understand the effects of alcohol on your mind and body.
What Does It Mean to Be Sober-Curious?
Being sober-curious is simply evaluating the role of alcohol in your life and considering whether you could have, or want, a healthier relationship with drinking. Thinking hard about how much you drink does not mean you are necessarily committing to abstinence. Sober-curious can mean many things, including giving up alcohol entirely, taking a break from drinking, or reducing the amount you drink.
Sober curiosity often begins with mindful drinking. You may find yourself:
- Focusing on the quality of the alcohol you drink instead of how much you drink
- Paying attention to the effects of alcohol on your body and mind
- Seeing what it feels like to socialize without drinking
For many people, drinking mindfully changes how they view drinking. A survey of more than 1,600 young adults, ages 18–29, showed that half of those who participated in temporary alcohol abstinence challenges reported drinking less after the challenge. And, 15% continued to abstain from drinking even after the challenge ended.
What Can Happen When You Limit or Cut Out Alcohol?
Whether you join the sober-curious movement to feel healthier, save money, or detox after the holiday season, you may like some of its benefits. As #healthynurse Sian Howells, BSN, RNC-OB, found after her first Dry January, the positive effects of eliminating alcohol can sometimes be hard to ignore.
When you limit drinking or stop it altogether, you may experience several noticeable health benefits, including improved:
- Digestion: In the short term, alcohol can cause bloating, acid reflux, diarrhea, and gastritis. Over time, it can also damage your liver and pancreas.
- Insulin sensitivity: Researchers found that when healthy people stopped drinking alcohol for a month, their insulin resistance decreased by 25%.
- Mental clarity: Heavy drinking can interfere with how your brain works and impair cognitive function, especially when it comes to memory and decision-making.
- Sleep: Alcohol can act as a sedative, but even small amounts of alcohol — 2 drinks for males or 1 drink for females — can decrease your sleep quality by nearly 10%. Drinking alcohol close to bedtime is especially detrimental because it can interfere with your sleep cycles.
- Weight management: Alcohol can contribute to weight gain because it is high in calories and may cause you to make poor food choices.
What you may not notice but should know is that reducing your alcohol intake can also reduce your risk for cancer, stroke, heart disease, and many other chronic health conditions.
Tips for Joining the Sober-Curious Movement
If you want to explore sobriety on any level or want to better understand how alcohol is affecting you mentally and physically, take these steps:
Journal about your drinking
If you need more motivation to change your drinking habits, consider journaling. Keep track of when you drink and why. Where are you when you tend to drink? How much do you usually drink? How do you feel afterward?
Being mindful of your drinking will guide your next steps, whether you decide to reduce your drinking or stop completely.
Limit your drinks
You can dip your toe in the water by reducing when or how much you drink. Consider only allowing yourself to drink alcohol on certain days of the week. Or set a limit for how many drinks you’ll have daily.
But keep in mind, strangely, it can often be easier to quit drinking altogether than to limit your drinking. Then, if you want to, you can reintroduce alcohol on a more limited basis.
Try sobriety
Take sobriety for a test run by participating in a month-long challenge. During that time, socialize with sober people if possible. You may also want to engage in activities that don’t center around drinking to make it easier.
If you are in a social setting involving alcohol, try an “alcohol-free” drink, like a mocktail or nonalcoholic beer. But be aware that some “nonalcoholic” beers can contain a small amount of alcohol. If you have a hankering for a drink at home, try creating your own alcohol-free drink.
Find support
The good news is that support for sober-curious people should be easy to find. Look for local social groups that prioritize sobriety or find an online sober-curious community. If you are participating in Dry January or Sober October, a quick search will provide tips, social media communities, and support resources.
Keeping Your Eye on the Prize: Your Health
Anytime you prioritize wellness and wonder how your actions affect your health, it’s a good thing. As you explore sober curiosity, try not to focus on deprivation or what you might be missing. Instead, reframe your choice to drink less as a conscious decision to improve your well-being.
Remember that you don’t have to explore sobriety alone. Like any new health endeavor, it’s often more effective (and more fun) when you have a partner. Grab a coworker, friend, or family member and see if they want to explore the sober-curious movement with you.
***If you or those close to you feel you have an issue with alcohol, please consult your healthcare provider and/or visit the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism’s webpages Treatment for Alcohol Problems: Finding and Getting Help.
Have you explored the sober-curious movement? Share with us in our discussion below.
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11/07/2024 1:51pm CST
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