My FIRST Sober Christmas!

Day's 27, 28, 29 and 30.

Ho, Ho, Hello.

How are you? I hope you're doing well.

As I'm writing this, I am almost one month sober. ONE MONTH! Can you believe it? I have tried many times in the past to get sober and I have never made it this far before. If you know anything about my story, then you will know about my "Dry December" plan, but if you don't, let me tell you all about it!

November 27th 2023, I went out and got very drunk and had my first ever blackout. It was a really scary for me and the people around me. The morning after, I had a very long and hard conversation with myself about what I was doing to myself and my body. I sat my boyfriend down and told him that I had decided that I was going to be sober for the whole of December. I mean, if I could get through the booziest month of the British year sober, I could control my drinking in the future, right? I have since learnt that that isn't how it works. However, what I also learnt, is that I want to continue living my life sober. For that, I am thankful.

So, now that you know a bit about my original plan... let me tell you about my first sober Christmas!

I saw my Dad, his wife and my sisters a few times for meals just before Christmas, as my dad, his wife and their daughter were going away for Christmas day. Both of these meals were in pubs. The first was with both my Dad's and his wife's family. I was nervous for this first meal because I was VERY newly sober and hadn't yet visited any pubs because I was too scared. However, I took my water bottle and was vocal about my sobriety so that everyone knew not to offer me any drink. This meal went really well and I left when I felt that I needed to. The second meal was with my Dad, his wife and my two sisters. I was more relaxed about this one as I had already done a pub meal by this point. Again this one went well but I did go to my Dad's after and that is usually where we all go for family parties so my brain immediately thinks DRINK. I think this is where having younger siblings is really great though because they are an amazing distraction. They're so loving and innocent, they make up a million and one games and always want to be chatting. They made those first few outings so much easier. I hope that when they are old enough, I can properly explain to them what that means to me.

Then came Christmas Eve. We had a family gathering and I was again, nervous because it was at home. I found that one of my biggest issues with alcohol was drinking at home. It is just so easily done. Bottles all around, people making each other drinks, etc... For this gathering, I decided to call in the reinforcements... NA beverages. I know it may sound silly to some but I wanted to feel more involved and to not be the only one sat with a can of coke. I have had a lot of hate online over admitting that and I know that it isn't the best way to think but... this is all new to me and at the moment, NA drinks make me feel included and better. So, NA drinks I will try! I had some NA bucks fizz with my Nan and spent time making a fire with my boyfriend and my sister. We toasted marshmallows, played games, told jokes and played with the cats. I felt so... connected and present. Especially with my sister and that means so much to me. I felt so good going home sober and able to remember the memories we made.

Up next, the big one... Christmas Day. I honestly thought, going into this, that this day would be the hardest. However, I was WRONG. We first spent time with my boyfriends family who are just wonderful. They made an amazing dinner (best roasties EVER!!!) and then we played games, watched the kings speech and had a good old natter. It was so peaceful and easy, I had a great time. On the evening, we went to see more of my family for a little gathering. I took my NA drinks again but I actually stuck with some coke (cola)! My Nan had got a bottle for me, bless her. We ate even more food and my sister and I played all sorts of fun games. My Nan also has a cute little dog who was so much fun to play with. I think this was my least nerve racking day overall in the end! There are so many other distractions on Christmas day that alcohol was hardly on my mind.

My final lot of Christmas celebrations were on boxing day with my Mom, Stepdad and other sisters. (Side note/little game for you all - guess how many siblings I have and the answer will be at the end!) For boxing day, we went to my aunties house, it was so lovely to see them and to meet their doggies. There was a lot of alcohol around but I thought that if I made it through this much of Christmas without a drink, I wasn't giving up on that last day!!! Again, my sisters were an amazing help, as well as my parents. Somebody gifted me wine but my mom sneakily replaced it with a 24 pack of Pepsi Max for me and that really made my day. It was so thoughtful. If I'm honest, I got slightly emotional at the end of the day and felt wobbly because of something not Christmas related but I told my boyfriend and we ordered greasy food instead of getting ahold of Wine and I truly, truly am so proud of myself (and grateful for him reminding me of why I am sober) for not letting the wobble knock me back.

Overall, I had a great Christmas and found that I was so much more present and connected. I felt I was able to make such a bigger effort with my family and seeing everyone. I think that I was really lucky with the support I received. I won't lie and say it was easy because there were times where I just watched others taking sips of drink and was trying to remember the taste. But I didn't drink and that is the most amazing thing. I could not have done this last year or for years before that, I wasn't strong enough then. I'm so glad I have all of these amazing sober memories and NO HANGOVER!!! I am so greatful for all of the love and support, truly.

(Fizzy Grape Juice)

My tips for a successful sober Christmas: (all from lessons learnt by me this year)

- Your support systems presence is IMPORTANT. Surround yourself with people that respect your sobriety and that will hold you accountable.

- One day at a time... but don't forget your end goal. Remember WHY you are doing this.

- Be present and find distraction. Make memories with your loved ones, make some new traditions, play lots of games, help with the food or do whatever you can to distract yourself from drinking.

- Connect. If you have a sponsor or friends you can message if you are struggling, DO IT. Contact them, even just to say hi and to know that they are there should you need them.

- Breathe. Because you have got this. You are stronger then you think. Keep going. One day at a time!!!

That's all from me (and my NA wine ;) ). If you want to contact me or to follow my journey some more, you can find me on threads and insta as @imsoberpositive !! I would love to connect with you, to know what you think of these blogs and what you would like to see next.

Until next time,

Keep going & remember, one day at a time.

-P x

Sibling Count - Five sisters & One unknown (size of an olive right now) sibling on the way - lol, did you guess right?

imsoberpositive