If you want everything to change, you only have to change one thing… Everything!
Hi everyone, welcome to the first blog from TLC academy. This week’s topic will be on alcohol use. I will talk about my own personal experiences and how being alcohol free benefits me and can benefit you. There are so many lists out there that tell you how amazing your life can be if you decide to take a break from alcohol. If you Google it you’ll more than likely see a standard set of claims such as;
- Greater more nourishing sleep
- Glowing age defying skin
- Pounds or kilos dropping off the waistline
- More energy and motivation
- Increase in physical exercise capability
- No more hangovers
The list goes on and on. Rather than write an infinite amount on my list or add the classic disclaimer that ‘this list is not exhaustive’ I thought it would be easier to just choose one word that summarises ALL the benefits! Is this possible you might ask? It most certainly is particularly if it is your blog and you are chief writer and editor!!
So the one word that summarises the benefits of not drinking and describes what improves by simply taking a break from alcohol!
EVERYTHING!!
That is quite simply the honest truth in my experience. Every single aspect of your life can be improved by not drinking. This may sound like a bold statement to make and you may be sceptical of its validity (unless you are a non drinker by which you probably agree with me wholeheartedly!)
I was trying to think of one single situation where drinking alcohol would be a benefit, to almost destroy my well intended assumption. The truth is I couldn’t think of one.
You could argue that drinking is the social elixir that helps us to blend into the funzone of a gathering, that loosens us up and relaxes us from self consciousness and awkwardness. When actually what we should be asking ourselves is;
Why do we feel uncomfortable in our own skin?
Why do we feel better masquerading as a distorted version of ourselves?
Why do we feel we are not enough?
There’s a well known saying in the alcohol free world ‘nobody ever woke up regretting that they didn’t drink’.
Now this works on two different aspects of us that are intrinsically linked. The body and the mind!
The body never thanks us after a drinking sesh. Dehydration, stomach cramps, dry skin and poor sleep (this list is definitely not exhaustive!).
The mind is all out of sorts the next day, worried what we said, how we behaved, anxious and low in mood. Prone to be lacking in energy and optimism.Imagine waking up every single day feeling no regrets for the choices you made the night before. I’ve done that for the last 771 days and that really does mean EVERYTHING to me!!