Want to Stop Drinking? These 5 “Alcohol Free” Resources might Help

Not drinking – and/or when you want to stop drinking but haven’t – can sometimes feel like a lonely place.

Facing your relationship with alcohol, whether making the decision to stop drinking entirely or deciding to implement a more mindful relationship with alcohol, goes against our social norm.

Life without alcohol is a better life for me.

My choices are more intentional and every day I work towards my long-term dreams and goals.

My focus is not on staying sober, it is on living and being happy.

It took a while to get here and it took a long time for me to realise that one of the reasons I wanted to drink, and potentially the main reason I found it difficult to stop drinking at first, was because I associated drinking with companionship. I felt unlovable and was subconsciously convinced that my friends, my colleagues, and my family wouldn’t like me without the booze! I used alcohol as the glue for my relationships and the thought of not having alcohol scared me.

Would I lose friends? Would I still be fun (I know now that I am and there’s plenty of ways to have fun & celebrate without booze)

Who would I talk to about not drinking when all my friends, colleagues and family still drink? Would I feel even more alone?

Know that you are not alone if you want to stop drinking and there is plenty out there to support you on your journey.

I’ve found community to be so important and friends and the recommendations below have been key to me enjoying and sticking with my alcohol-free journey. Just yesterday I posted in one of the groups as I was stressing before the Christmas Party and the support and guidance I received was invaluable – and not drinking on the night was actually easy!

Below are the movements and resources that I have interacted with throughout my journey so far, it is subjective & so personal but they have helped and inspired me enormously.

UK Based

Stephanie Chivers Steph offers confidential and flexible, coaching programmes that teach you how to stop drinking and start living. She is centred on getting you results and offers both a 1-2-1 programme and a supported group programme. She also runs a supportive Facebook group for women who are stopping drinking.

Steph has two options to help you stop drinking:

Self-led coaching programme: Stop drinking and start living, with Facebook group accountability, £49. Find out more here.
1-1 and intensive coaching. Individual support to achieve sobriety and your goals. Find out more and book a chat with Steph.

Club Soda A UK community. Club Soda have a great website, host regular Sunday webinars and events in London. They also have a very active facebook group with plenty of like minded people on hand to offer their anecdotes and advice. Check them out now.

US Based

Annie Grace, The Naked Mind Last but not least, I found Annie Grace through her book This Naked Mind (I have written more on sobriety books here) and I highly recommend her work. Annie has developed a FREE 30 day Alcohol Experiment that you can join.

Hip Sobriety Holly’s website is a fantastic resource wherever you are in the world. The Hip Sobriety Manifesto speaks to me, as do her posts around creating your sober toolkit, and her blog is super honest. Find Hip Sobriety here.

Home Podcast I’m the sort of person who immerses herself in whatever it is I’m interested in (note this blog) and having a podcast to listen too alongside the other resources I’ve listed has been super helpful for me. Run by Holly from Hip Sobriety and Laura McKowen – who also has a great blog – this open, honest podcast is very accessible, covers many topics related to life alcohol-free and features interviews with many women (and men) who work around the topic. Listen here.