Why You Should Break Up With Alcohol Before The Holidays
(Instead of Waiting Until The New Year)
I’ve been coaching casual drinkers who want to break up with alcohol since 2018. Typically, I quiet down in my business during the holidays in preparation for the sober Super Bowl: Dry January.
But this year, an interaction with a new student has me doing something different.
You see, while Dry January is a great time to dip a toe in the sober curious pond, I frequently see people start off the dry month with the best of intentions, secretly hoping that the short break will have some miraculous impact on their relationship with alcohol.
This is rarely the case.
Take my student, we’ll call her Barb, who came to me in early Fall, already knowing Dry January wasn’t going to move the needle in a meaningful way for yer. Barb told me she’d participated in Dry January several times with varying degrees of success.
Some years she’d extend her Dry January for several weeks, even months into the New Year.
Other times, she would ease back into moderation after taking the months off, sometimes doing other sober stints throughout the year.
Regardless of how she managed her year Barb had realized one defeating truth: By Fall, her relationship with alcohol was almost always back in the same spot (even if things had oh so slightly improved).
This year, Barb decided things were going to be different. Instead of waiting on the momentum of the New Year, she elected to conquer the one thing she hadn’t yet managed to do alcohol-free: The Holidays.
After reflecting on my conversation with Barb and my own experience coaching high-achieving, casual drinkers over the past few years, I was inspired by Barb’s intuition and want to share with you five brilliant reasons you should break up with alcohol NOW (before the holidays).
Disclaimer: These suggestions are intended for casual or social drinkers and are not intended as advice for anyone experiencing addiction or in recovery. These suggestions are also best for someone who has already dabbled in sober curiosity and tried other approaches to changing their relationship with alcohol.
1. If You Can Make It Through the Holidays, You Can Handle Anything Life Throws Your Way
The holiday season is full of social, emotional, and family-related challenges. The holidays are also ripe with opportunities to drink. It’s no wonder why many well-intended individuals on an alcohol-free journey mysteriously fall off the wagon during this time of year.
It’s easy to chalk it up to holiday stress, social obligations, or the appeal of a special occasion, but drinking through the holidays (particularly if you’ve been making moves to change your relationship with alcohol) typically ends in more regret than pleasure.
Recommitting to being alcohol-free now means you’re proving to yourself that you can handle even the toughest situations without numbing out. This is the ultimate confidence boost going into the new year.
2. Experience the Gift of Full Presence (No More Embarrassment or Regret)
Okay, this one is a little corny, but I also believe it wholeheartedly: The best present is your presence.
And, if we’re being honest, it’s incredibly difficult to be fully present when you’re simultaneously numbing out.
The heart of the holiday season is connection. While it’s easy to believe the lie that alcohol helps us connect better with others, it actually robs you of the chance to be truly present with your loved ones.
Not to mention the times “loosening up” during the holidays has resulted in heightened emotions, uncomfortable conversations, or embarrassing outbursts.
Choosing to remain sober through the festive season means you’ll be able to fully engage in conversation, create real memories, and - perhaps most importantly - wake up without a hangover clouding your joy.
3. You’ve Already Tried Dry January—It’s Time for Lasting Transformation
I’m making the assumption that you, like my student, Barb, have already tried Dry January once before only to find that it isn’t a magic bullet for changing your relationship with alcohol.
Although Dry January is great (I actually started my own alcohol-free journey this way!), it often lacks the real-life social challenges that come with the holiday season (or the rest of the year for that matter).
The result? Once you’re thrust back into the world packed with social situations and opportunities to drink, you realize sobriety isn’t as easy as it was when you were in relative isolation.
Of course, this doesn’t always mean imminent failure. But if you’re reading this as someone who has been dabbling in an alcohol-free lifestyle, I imagine you’ve had the surprising experience of realizing abstaining during Dry January doesn’t prepare you fully for navigating the rest of the year sober.
By recommitting to your alcohol-free journey during the holidays, you’re creating more sustainable, realistic change and setting yourself up for different results by putting in different effort.
4. Build Unshakable Confidence and Emotional Resilience
Don’t get me wrong, choosing to navigate the holidays alcohol-free will absolutely require a new level of commitment and resilience. But, if you can manage to do it (which I believe you can), you’ll leave the season with a level of self-esteem that absolutely cannot be matched.
Why? Well, let me share with you one of the core pillars of self-esteem: The internal belief that you are capable of handling whatever life throws at you.
What better way to prove this to yourself than navigating the most hectic time of the year without alcohol as liquid courage or an emotional lubricant?
Even if you stumble, every experience teaches you something about yourself, making you stronger and more prepared for the year ahead.
5. Start the New Year With Real Momentum, Not a Hangover
Stop waiting for a new year, a new month or a new week to commit to yourself. There will never be a convenient time to take a break from alcohol. And why Dry January may be the most socially acceptable or easy time to take a break; doing what’s socially acceptable or easy doesn’t always garner the best results.
Imagine instead, waking up on January 1st feeling clear, energized, and proud of yourself—not drained, hungover, or full of regret.
Quitting alcohol before the new year means you’re starting 2025 with intention, confidence, and a sense of accomplishment. You’re not waiting for change—you’re already living it. In my opinion, that’s a pretty badass tone to set for the year.
Let’s say you’ve been working on your relationship with alcohol and you’re feeling inspired by what I’ve shared in this article (yay!), but you’re not feeling super-confident with how to navigate this on your own - I get it!
Understanding how to handle social and emotional challenges are the two things that tend to trip the most well-intended sober curious folks up. So I’ve created an amazing option for you to help face your biggest challenges - like social anxiety, emotional overwhelm, and cravings - this holiday season. Just go here and check out my Holiday Breakthrough Bundle.