“A few weekends
ago, I was reminded
how crap it feels
to be hungover.
An unavoidable
stream of lunches,
pub-based catch-
ups, birthdays
and engagement
brunches meant
too many G&Ts
and glasses of
prosecco, and
the consequent
hazy brain and
post-drinking
angst. Did I make
an idiot of myself?
Or say something
I shouldn’t have?
It’s the reason why,
about a year ago,
I decided to reduce
the amount of
alcohol I drink.Not because I
drank any more
than the average
woman my age,
but because I’d
started to hate
the way alcohol
made me feel and
was curious to see
what life would be
like without it. The
turning point was
a wedding where
I’d been sick and
spent days fretting
that the bride’s
radio silence was
not because she
was enjoying her
honeymoon but
because she was
angry at my
drunken antics.
I vowed to be
more mindful.
My next night out
was interesting- and surprisingly
fun. I enjoyed one
glass of wine,
then watched as
“What being sober
curious means to me”
Rebecca Gillam, 27, is a freelance journalistFriday night, lite!
Drinks with less alcohol that taste like the real thing
THE BEER
Beck’s Blue
Lager, $12.99
for six,
beerstore.
com.au
The German favourite
has the same crisp
taste. Made using
top-grade barley,
hops and glacier
water, it’s almost
non-alcoholic at
0.3 per cent.THE SPARKLING
Lindeman’s
Early Harvest
Sparkling, $11.99,
danmurphys.
com.au
Lighter in alcohol
(7.5 per cent) and
kJs, this refreshing,
clean sparkling wine
goes down nicely
for a champagne
taste (almost) on a
goon-bag budget.THE WINE
Evans & Tate
Cloud Dancer
Sauvignon
Blanc, $13.99,
danmurphys.
com.au
With a little less
alc (9.5 per cent)
than your regular
white vino, bring
this to a BYO dinner.
Tastes as a good
sauv blanc should.highly addictive poison,” says
Warrington, who, following many
failed attempts at reducing her
alcohol intake, decided the only
option was to pretty much abstain- a challenge aided by a career
change and move to NYC, where
she says alcohol isn’t a social focal
point. “I’ve realised how potent a
drug it is,” she says. “And emotional
addiction to alcohol will last a lot
longer than any physical addiction.”
A pressure cooker
We all know alcohol can be
detrimental to our health, but cut
down on it significantly and you may
be surprised, argues Warrington –
not only by the visible effects, such
as better skin, weight loss and more
energy, but also by the added
motivation in thought and action.
“I can trust myself to really be in
the moment – saying what needs
to be said and doing what needs to
be done,” she says of her new
predominantly non-drinking social,
professional and emotional life.
Warrington is a self-confessed
perfectionist; and cutting back the
amount she drinks (down to four or
five occasions a year) has reduced
self-criticism. “Women have high
standards of perfectionism placedeveryone else
got drunk, and
I suffered no
embarrassment
or sore head the
next day; I even
had the energy
to be productive.
I tried it again,
with the same
positive results.
Now, instead of
accidentally having
too much to drink,
I keep tabs on
what I’m having.
I overdo it now
and then – who’s
perfect? – but
those occasions
are becoming
fewer. When it
feels so much
better to live
semi-sober,
why would I
choose not to?”HIT
RE-WINED
SEPTEMBER 2017 womenshealth.com.au 119