Comments on: Sunday life: in which i give up booze for February

By: Sobering Thoughts « My life more ordinary

Sobering Thoughts « My life more ordinary — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 02:12:47 +0000

[...] at 2:12 am by mylifemoreordinary A couple of weeks ago, Sarah Wilson wrote in her Sunday Live column about taking part in FebFast. This event, and the similar OctSober, encourages participants to [...]

By: Casey Hibbard

Casey Hibbard — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:25:48 +0000

Hi Sarah,

Wow, what a great story about your break from drinking. As a woman, I get really tired of the nosy, “Are you pregnant?” questions whenever I don’t drink. Please people, don’t ask this!

By: Sarah

Sarah — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:42:16 +0000

Hoorah to all of you who’ve joined up. Febfast has tripled the number of people involved this year. I love this. More people getting into a headspace where they can reflect on why they reach for a drink…

By: Sarah

Sarah — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:38:07 +0000

Jo, thanks for the link. Very auspicious…Life Matters is my dream radio program. xx

By: Robyn

Robyn — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:01:31 +0000

I read your article last Sunday and for some reason it just really hit home. I have wanted to cut back (or out) for such a long time and now I have joined Feb Fast and feel very committed. The time is now right for me and I feeling very positive about it. Thanks Sarah!

By: Booze-free life « Reporting live from Aussie

Booze-free life « Reporting live from Aussie — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 12:50:07 +0000

[...] Sarah Wilson just wrote a nice little piece on that issue that really says everything. [...]

By: jo-living savvy

jo-living savvy — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 10:33:09 +0000

Sarah, last year on the ABC RadioNational program Lfematters they had an insightful and informative talk on women and drinking. I connected with the stories being shared and it took me back to several years ago where my one glass of night turned into two or more but the thing that freaked me out is that I could go to dinner and polish off a bottle with seemingly little impact …that was a wake up call to me that things needed to change that and for the best part of 4 years being pregnant or breastfeeding….gave me the opportunity to change the pattern.

Worth a listen – http://www.abc.net.au/rn/lifematters/stories/2009/2688627.htm

By: Heidi

Heidi — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:49:16 +0000

fascinating.
i gave up drinking alcohol about two weeks ago now. for good (altho i forgive my friends & husband for not believing as it has been a very short time so far!). I used to binge drink a lot but not for years. I realised that drinking causes me suffering. Even just those couple of beers/wines can do it. Not at the time of course. And i think it’s simply the suffering resulting from trying to distract myself emotionally, its the same suffering i get if i’ve stayed up late surfing blogs. I have tried for years to cut my drinking to levels where it won’t cause that suffering but i still get the enjoyment & the feeling of fitting in – e.g. just a small glass of wine with dinner, just one beer at party, but then i realised that is actually much easier to just go cold turkey. for a long time i’ve had a ‘no drugs’ policy. not that i am ever offered any with my lifestyle as it is these days but i know that if i was in a situation where they were offered if i didn’t have my policy i might just say yes without thinking thru the consequences & whether that is really what i want to do (like when the hairdresser asked me if i wanted foils the other day – yes it looks good but i can’t afford 2hrs at the hairdresser!). the thing is with booze it is enjoyable so even when i had a ‘two drinks max’ policy i would sometimes go over it.
it’s been interesting to see when i’ve been most tempted to drink. parties haven’t been a problem (altho to be honest i have been more bored than usual, will have to use yr tips for staying present, always mean to do that but i find it so difficult to remember when with a group of people) but yesterday when i accepted job offer i was so tempted to get a beer out of the fridge – i want to drink when i’m tired, excited, stressed, on holiday, when it’s really hot, if i’ve worked really hard, if i’m eating certain food or with certain people or in certain settings, the list of triggers goes on. but it’s working, that particular suffering (my teacher) is gone. and it feels so good to have that certainty – never again.
i am drinking more sugary soft drinks tho so i don’t know if i’m any better off from a physical health perspective!

By: FebFast:Making a Difference

FebFast:Making a Difference — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:48:07 +0000

[...] and at the same time support a great charity fundraiser. I read a post by Sarah Wilson yesterday: Sunday life: in which i give up booze for February . I had read about Febfast from Max Allen a wine writer in the Weekend Australian Magazine last [...]

By: Jan-Maree

Jan-Maree — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 04:09:32 +0000

Hi Sarah,
I was sent this link by a friend, we are in Melbourne. I love your article. I have not heard of this “FebFast”until now and I applaud you. It scares me the amount of young people I see binge drinking in their teens and 20’s. I also did this until my late 30’s. I am now mid 50’s and am still cleaning up the wreakage from my past drinking life, the damage is not always obvious when we are drinking, it can cause long term problems. Isn’t it funny how some people are frightened or don’t trust you if you don’t drink alcohol…what does it say about them.
Whilst I won’t be signing up for FebFast, I wish everyone giving it a go all the very best. I will give up Chocolate for February x J-M
My fun blog – A Creative Life.