A Timeline of the Sober-Curious Movement Before Sober NYE on CNN

All across the country, individuals are opening sober bars, which are filled with mocktails and non-alcoholic drinks such as kombucha. Alcoholism, according to studies, affects one in eight adults in the United States, and for many sobriety is the only option for overcoming the disorder. If you are going to drink, make it a conscious, deliberate choice.

When you know you’ll be in a social setting that involves alcohol, preparing your response ahead of time helps you stick to your decision in a situation where you might feel swayed. If you’re weighing the benefits of short-term sobriety, Turner recommends focusing on what you’ll gain, not what you’ll lose. You may not feel a need to quit entirely, but you think taking a break might help you find more productive ways of managing eco sober house challenges. To get some insight on sober curiosity and alcohol moderation, we reached out to Cyndi Turner, LCSW, LSATP, MAC. Still, people widely accept alcohol as a tool to manage stress, celebrate joyous events, or weather life challenges like a job loss or breakup. If you’re ready to leave behind the hazy memories of drunken mistakes, or you’re simply eager to focus on your wellness, the best time to start is now.

But if you’re sober curious, you can remind yourself that there are many ways to socialize that don’t involve drinking, like seeing a movie or playing a sport. Before diving into the sober curious lifestyle, ask why it appeals to you. If you decide to practice being sober curious, there are strategies that can help with your transition. If you’re starting to wonder whether giving up drinking might have a positive impact on your life, know that you’re not alone with these thoughts. A growing number of “sober curious” people are starting to take a closer look at the role alcohol plays in their life. Not too long ago, a group of women in a bar who were not drinking alcohol would have seemed kind of strange.

No Amount Of Alcohol Is Good For Your Health, Global Study Says

When you remove alcohol from your life for a designated period of time, you can better understand the role it plays in your life and how significant it is for you. Many aspects of some cultures revolve around alcohol — networking events, date nights, celebratory champagne toasts — so it isn’t always easy to avoid alcohol entirely. ”—and then, based on the answer, decide whether you want to move forward and have the drink. “The focus is not on just abstinence, but on the choices we make when the stressors in our lives drive us to relieve them with alcohol rather than in more healthy ways,” says Peimer. Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

The only requirement for membership is the desire to stop drinking. Members attend meetings, where they remain as anonymous as they choose to be. Some chapters give out milestone chips noting how long a member has remained sober. Still, younger generations are looking beyond church basements to find support when easing up on tossing it back. In a society where so many social events revolve around the consumption of alcohol, it may be difficult to say “no” when friends ask you to join them at a bar.

You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or condition. Always check with your doctor before changing your diet, altering your sleep habits, taking supplements, eco sober house boston or starting a new fitness routine. As mentioned, there are tons of NA options on the market—so choose beverages that seem interesting, tasty, and that you’ll be genuinely excited to try.

That’s all a bulwark against the equally robust uptick in distilleries, breweries, and wineries sober travelers find in the unlikeliest places. Still, many destinations—Muslim countries in particular—have strong traditions around non-alcoholic drinks. On a recent trip to Egypt, I delighted in the frothy, not-too-sweet mint lemonade on most menus. Traveling sober is a growing trend, especially among millennials and Generation Z, who are drinking less than prior generations.

Sober Grid

The sober curious movement can be seen as part of a larger trend toward health and wellness. Many people are becoming more interested in taking care of their bodies, and are looking for ways to reduce the negative impact of alcohol on their health. They are also concerned about the social and emotional effects of drinking and are seeking alternatives to traditional drinking culture. Many people think that, when it comes to alcohol use, it’s all-or-nothing; you either pursue full sobriety or you drink whatever and whenever you want. There’s a movement aimed at helping people want to better understand their relationship to alcohol and make healthier choices for themselves without necessarily giving up alcohol completely. Many sober curious people who notice troubling patterns in their alcohol use find that a few weeks or months of sobriety helps them practice more moderate and mindful drinking going forward.

• This reexamination of drinking culture is typified by the sober-curious movement, a term coined by journalist Ruby Warrington, who wanted to reduce her alcohol intake without fully abstaining.
• NielsenIQ BASES has seen 15x the number of non-alcohol launches tested in 2021 compared to 2020.
• Exercise increases endorphins, which are the “feel-good” chemicals in the brain.
• They’re going without alcohol for 30 days, they explain, and are documenting their experience in a podcast and on Instagram at #boozelessATX.
• The dating app is free to download and use, but if you prefer, you can opt to upgrade your subscription if you want to experience exclusive features like an ad-free platform, profile boosts, and read receipts.

It turns out that figuring out how to navigate new relationships while sober doesn’t have to be intimidating. With sobriety becoming a much more popular lifestyle choice,feeling confident while soberand on a date has never been easier. One of the benefits of the sober curious movement is the positive impact it can have on mental health. Many people find that alcohol exacerbates feelings of anxiety and depression and that reducing or eliminating alcohol consumption can lead to improved mental well-being. By exploring a more mindful lifestyle, people are also learning to cope with stress and emotions in healthier ways, such as through exercise, meditation, or therapy.

If you want to practice a sober lifestyle

Though some individuals have been sober curious for decades, the term was created by Warrington. Her event series called Club SÖDA NYC stands for Sober or Debating Abstinence and features panels, writing workshops, and sober retreats. A growing moderation movement harnesses strategies from meditation to cut back on alcohol.

If you want to change your relationship to alcohol—but also really enjoy the taste of beer, wine, or other alcoholic drinks? From tailgating at sporting events and celebrating weddings to attending happy hours and networking events, we celebrate many of life’s greatest events with champagne, wine, beer, and cocktails. Do you hate the all-or-nothing mentality that comes with sobriety?

Feeling very grateful and very blessed.” Her longtime friend Lena Dunham told a podcast last fall that she was “never a drinker.” Blake Lively doesn’t drink. Neither do Jennifer Lopez, Natalie Portman, Kim Kardashian West, Zendaya, Christina Ricci, Jennifer Hudson, Sarah Silverman, and Lucy Hale. Rumer Willis tried a sober January in 2017 and just kept going, she announced on Instagram six months later. These days, I’m comfortable traveling almost anywhere and abstaining. Many companies host booze-free, recovery-focused tours, including yoga retreats by Soul Bliss Journeys and cruises organized by Sober Vacations.

Celebrities have been open about their choice to cut back on drinking.

Think about whether alcohol will add value to your experience — what difference will drinking make to your time at a party or your night at the bar? And if you’re drinking to try to enjoy an event where you’re not having a good time, consider just going home. There is limited scientific evidence on the efficacy of using mindfulness to moderate drinking behaviors. A 2017 study of 68 heavy drinkers in Britain found that those who received 11 minutes of mindfulness instruction reduced their alcohol consumption significantly the next week.

“The goal is not to isolate and to socialize in environments where there is no temptation to drink because alcohol is not served or part of the equation,” explains Hafeez. For example, if you value being an effective and helpful employee at work, how does alcohol get in the way of that? You might notice that alcohol negatively affects your sleep and leads to fatigue the next day, which impacts your performance at work. Nonalcoholic beer, wine, and liquors are also available for anyone looking for an alternative that looks and tastes more similar to alcohol. “It kind of starts me off on the right foot. And if I end up having a glass of wine later, at least I started with water and lemon,” she said.

The non-alcoholic drinks market is buzzing, with ​both ​beverage makers and restaurants offering booze-free ​beverages. Hanging out with friends who drink alcohol in large quantities can increase the likelihood that you will feel pressured to drink as well. Consider taking a break from friends who might, whether they mean to or not, make you feel pressured to drink socially. Whether it’s to improve your physical health or state of mind, it can be beneficial to explore the role alcohol plays in your life.

Being sober curious does come with health benefits, even if you decide to drink sometimes. This movement gives people the chance to be more mindful of their drinking habits and decide for themselves what they want their relationship with alcohol to look like. Many people who quit drinking find themselves with more free time than usual. https://soberhome.net/ Dedicating this time to self-care and satisfying hobbies can help you stay motivated to maintain a sober curious lifestyle. A media report which comes to a conclusion such as “drinking wine every day lowers your risk of heart disease” gets more clicks, and our confirmation bias allows us to take these things at face value.

Kin Euphorics, a wellness brand that sells drinks infused with so-called functional mushrooms, welcomed Hadid as a cofounder in 2021, and Katy Perry launched a line of nonalcoholic aperitifs earlier this year. Bella Hadid, too, has spoken on numerous occasions about taking a break from drinking starting in mid-2021. The supermodel recently said she drinks sometimes but cut out hard liquor. A bevy of nonalcoholic wines, beers, and liquors have cropped up in response to the sober-curious movement. Surveys and studies suggest fewer young people have been drinking alcohol over the past decade.

Even if there are positive effects of low-moderate alcohol consumption, we still need to look at the bigger picture. Regular alcohol use can increase the risk of some types of cancer and the risk of cognitive decline, even if you stick within recommended levels. He welcomes to Sans Bar people who are in recovery and those just curious about the sober life, as long as they are substance free when they arrive and while they’re there. “Those early days of abstinence from alcohol were so tough, because I had no friends,” he says. Chris Marshall of Austin, Texas, has been sober for the past 12 years.

“I go to sober parties and parties where people are drinking. I just like being active and hanging out,” Jason, 24, told the BBC. “It’s been eye-opening for me to realize you can be young and sober and have very full friendships.” Millie Gooch, the founder of Sober Girl Society, told Insider’s Rachel Hosie that “sober curious” is a purposefully ambiguous phrase, as the movement includes all kinds of gray-area drinkers.

Seedlip, the world’s first distilled non-alcohol spirit company, has generated 170% growth year-over-year since launching, according to The Financial Times. With packaging, branding, and a price-point that emulates that of premium gin, Forbes reports that Seedlip bottles can be found on the shelves of Michelin star restaurants and consumers’ homes alike. Now distributing to over 25 countries, this zero-proof start-up championed the sober curious category early on.