Recently, I decided to take a few weeks off from alcohol. I typically drink three to four glasses of wine a week. Most people would say that isn’t much, but it was starting to feel like too much to me. My energy was low, I didn’t sleep or feel good after I drank, and my blood sugar levels weren’t looking so good. At first, I decided that I wouldn’t have any alcohol for a week. When that week was up, I decided to go for a month because I felt so good. After a month, I just kept adding time on with the caveat that if I wanted a drink, I’d have one.
When I told a friend about this she said, “Oh, you’re sober curious.” I’d never heard of this before, so a few quick Google searches led me to a whole host of information on a relatively new movement. Sober curious is exactly what it sounds like, getting curious about a life without alcohol. It’s not necessarily for those with a serious drinking problem, yet it probably could be. It’s more about trying something that you’re curious about without being attached to an outcome. I absolutely love the concept.
Living a Curious Life
Being curious is a high-energy state. It’s not judgmental and it’s not a demand. It’s simply an experiment, a concept, or an interesting challenge. I’m curious as to what my life will be like without alcohol in it. No diagnosis, no drama, no meetings, just curiosity. It’s playful and fun and doesn’t suggest that life will suck without that glass of wine. What a concept! It’s not fear based or deprivation based and there is no messaging that sounds like, “This is really going to suck, but it’s for your own good.”
What if we got curious about lots of things in life? I’m weight lifting curious. I’m running curious. I’m TV-free curious. I’m chocolate-free curious. Wait, I may have just taken this too far. Yet you get the idea. What if we decided not to torture or deprive ourselves, but rather just curiously try something new in our lives? It’s such a mindset shift from the typical deprivation type models that we see around diet, exercise, health, etc.
What if we got curious about lots of things in life? What if we decided not to torture or deprive ourselves, but rather just curiously try something new in our lives? #sobercurious #curiosity #mindset Click To TweetThe sober curious mindset has really worked for me. I’ve enjoyed this experience and surprisingly haven’t felt like I’m missing out on much. The door is also open for me to have a drink if that’s what I really want. My curiosity will dictate where I go with this. Currently, I’ve been sober curious for over three months. I feel fantastic. Some of why I feel so great is due to my awareness that this was easy and fun and not some miserable “have to” in my life. What do you want to get curious about in your life? Is there something you’ve wanted to do differently for years, but kept telling yourself you couldn’t or were too afraid to try? Why not try it now with curiosity and fun and see what happens? Let me know how you do.
Love,
Lisa Kaplin Psy. D. PCC