Celebrating the holidays or special occasions sober can be both empowering and rewarding, but it does require some preparation. Whether your day is packed with family traditions, festive gatherings, or quiet moments of reflection, these tips can help you enjoy every moment without the need for alcohol.

As I move deeper into my hangover-free journey, I remain open to exploring new practices and approaches to empower my journey. A few months ago, I began diving into Buddhist teachings and reading more about the 8 Step Recovery Program. This experience has been incredibly insightful, inspiring, and transformative. I wanted to share some of what I’ve learned from this journey, offering a fresh perspective for those navigating their own paths to recovery.

Unlike the traditional 12-step program, the 8 Step Recovery Program is rooted in Buddhist principles. It emphasizes mindfulness, self-awareness, and the impermanence of suffering, which I find deeply relatable and easier to digest.

Changing your relationship with alcohol—or choosing to go alcohol-free—can feel daunting, especially when it comes to friendships. How do you maintain your current connections? How do you form new ones? These fears are completely normal, particularly when many of our social bonds have been built around drinking.

I’ll admit, even now in my hangover-free life, I still laugh at the wild stories from my drinking days. Those moments—fueled by white wine, questionable decisions, and scandalous behavior—can feel like the stuff of legends. Back then, alcohol often seemed like a shortcut to connection and the glue that held friendships together.

But the truth is, genuine friendships are about much more than drunken nights and shared shots. Real connection takes time, trust, and the ability to be there for each other—whether you’re swinging from the chandeliers or meeting for a hangover-free brunch.

If anything, removing alcohol from the equation reveals the true depth of your relationships. It highlights who your real friends are—the ones who value you for who you are, not for the drinks you share or the parties you attend together.

Living alcohol-free can feel like a spotlight shining on your relationships. Without the social lubrication of booze, you see friendships for what they truly are. This clarity can be liberating but also challenging, especially if you feel disconnected from your usual social group or left out in certain situations.

In my experience, the friendships that truly matter will survive and thrive, regardless of whether or not you drink. And those that don’t? They often fall away because they were built on shallow foundations—requiring a drink in hand to keep them afloat.

For me, going alcohol-free hasn’t just meant letting go of unaligned friendships; it’s also created space for deeper connections and new friendships that reflect my values. By embracing alcohol-free events, workshops, and activities, I’ve opened myself up to a world of meaningful relationships while continuing to nurture my most important older friendships.

As I’ve grown, I’ve also become more intentional about my relationships. I’ve learned to value quality over quantity, seeking out connections that truly serve me and letting go of those that don’t.

Two years ago, I took my first big solo trip: a journey to Bali. It came on the heels of the biggest breakup of my life, and I was determined to reconnect with myself (yes, very Eat, Pray, Love vibes). Bali was originally a trip my ex and I had dreamed of taking together, but I realized I didn’t want my life—or my travel dreams—to depend on someone else. The world is vast, and while we can’t control when we’ll meet our “travel plus one,” we can control how we choose to live our lives.

It was my first time traveling so far alone, and I’ll admit, I felt anxious about going. But instead of letting fear hold me back, I leaned into the opportunity to create new experiences—by myself, for myself. I wanted to deepen my self-trust, nurture my self-love, and prove that I was more than capable of filling my own cup without relying on someone else to do it for me.

The trip was nothing short of transformative. I took myself to solo dinners, ventured out on day trips, made new friends, and explored at my own pace. I crafted a bucket list of everything I wanted to experience—without needing to compromise for anyone else. The only person I had to answer to was me, and it felt empowering.

Traveling sober can be both freeing and challenging. On one hand, I feel safe and grounded; on the other, I don’t have alcohol to turn to in moments of anxiety, loneliness, or uncertainty—moments that are inevitable, even fleeting, on any journey. Alcohol used to smooth over those feelings. 

Instead of escaping discomfort, I learned to sit with my emotions. I got to know myself more deeply, processed my feelings fully, and discovered the art of self-soothing. I found adventure and confidence within and learned to validate and love myself without seeking it externally. It was a profound reminder that I am enough, just as I am.

You don’t need to fly to Bali to experience this kind of self-discovery. It’s about carving out space to connect with yourself and remembering that, no matter what, you’ll always have you. The greatest love of your life is yourself, and investing time to nurture that relationship is one of the most powerful things you can do.

So, whether you’re planning a solo weekend getaway or a trip halfway across the world, I encourage you to take that leap. You don’t need a special occasion or a companion to start exploring. You got this!

Whether you’re practicing sobriety, cutting back, or simply exploring a different way to enjoy the nightlife, hangover-free clubbing can be a refreshing and rewarding experience. With the right mindset and a few savvy tips, you can dance the night away, fully present and energised, without a drop of alcohol. In this blog, we’ll share our top tips for making the most of your sober clubbing experience, ensuring your night is filled with fun, connection, and unforgettable memories.

I have spent most of my life living in too muchness. This was never more present than when it came to my drinking and drug taking. A true life of muchness.

I was either not drinking, going to the gym every day, juicing, going to yoga and going to bed at 10:00pm or going out for 2 days straight and bouncing between high and hungover. This translated to every area of my life. I was either fully IN or fully OUT.

I can’t tell you how many times I have seen sober coaches, sober Instagram pages, sober podcasts, books or articles shame moderation. I believe that the concept moderation isn’t here to be shamed but to be shared because the majority of us wouldn’t have even got to more positive drinking habits or indeed sobriety without it.

The concept of moderation to anyone with a difficult relationship with alcohol can seem like a unicorn that they can almost touch but as much as they try they somehow just end up back on the drinking horse. It can seem like an impossible dance back and forth trying to reach the promised lands of moderation.

I spent my life in this dance for years. Wanting my drinking habits to be better, thinking that this time would be different, thinking I could just have one or two (and sometimes I could). Then I would always end back into my cycle and feel deflated, guilty and like I had let myself down again. I know how difficult this can feel but I think there is much value in moderation and much to be learned from the concept. 

I have noted below my tops reasons why I think moderation shouldn’t be shamed and can actually empower us on our journey; 

Moderation can feel like a less scary place to explore than sobriety – moderation can often be the first step into a sobriety journey. Many people start to think that their drinking habits are having a negative effect in their life and want this to change. The thought of giving up alcohol FOREVER or for a long period can seem terrifying but moderation gives us a first step into exploring a life with less alcohol.

Moderation can highlight the help you actually need – you might arrive at moderation thinking you will just start to have one or two on a night out and slowly start to realise that you are drinking more than you intended and that moderation isn’t actually possible for you (no judgement by the way its a difficult place to straddle for sure). This can often lead to people reaching out for further support and looking into other options (hello sobriety).

Some people can genuinely moderate – I know people that are moderate drinkers, I know people that have had serious drug and drink issues and can have the occasional drink. I realise this might not be the majority but these people exist and who are we to take that away or shame this option when for some people it really works and helps them to lead a healthier and happier life.

Moderation can make sobriety easier – the thing is if you have tried to moderate and it hasn’t worked out for you it might make it easier to land in a totally alcohol-free life. It can make you feel like you have explored all avenues and feel like an easier segway into sober living without feeling like there is something else you need to explore.

Moderation has helped me in my own journey from both sides of the coin. I have experienced this being useful  as I once had a very problematic relationship with alcohol and moderation was never an option for me despite trying so hard and this is what made me realise I needed to get sober. 

Then after my years of getting to the root cause of my drinking, therapy, changing daily habits, training in the many courses I have done around addiction and transformation and no longer needing to escape my life, I found myself in a situation where I was able to indeed just have one or two on occasion and the concept of moderation allowed me a space to explore.

I don’t think that without being 4 years totally sober and doing such deep work on myself I would have gotten to a space where an occasional drink was possible for me. My months of moderation also gave me greater insights into what alcohol gives me and the truth of that is that it makes me feel vibrationally lower and living alcohol-free is how I want to live my life. 

Moderation can be the reason someone gets to sobriety, moderation can be the reason someone is able to cut down their drinking and moderation can be the reason why someone is able to look at their relationship with alcohol in the first place.  Let’s not shame it!

If I were to ask you what your unhealthy habits are, what would you tell me?

Mine right now is scrolling on the internet on my phone before bed and first thing in the morning. I once had my morning routine sussed and my phone didn’t make an appearance until I had finished but bad habits have a way of creeping back in if we don’t become vigilant with them. This is also my accountability FYI that from tomorrow (Monday is always a great day to start a new habit by the way so do feel free to join me) I will get back into reading 20 minutes before bed and do a meditation when I first wake up. Accountability is key when we are looking to make a change. If you feel like it do let me know in the comments section what small or big change you would like to make this week and we can do this together!

A good example of when an unhealthy habit of mine spiralled is when I started socially smoking at college and then just like that I was going to the newsagent every morning and I became a daily smoker. What was once an unhealthy social habit soon becomes an unhealthy addiction. Smoking has also been the most difficult thing for me to kick. It has helped me deal with breakups and breakdowns in my hangover free life and given me something to help deal with difficult emotions. But each time I have picked it back up again I put it back down straight away and unlike my younger smoking days it stays firmly in the unhealthy habit category and does not spiral into the addiction category (progress not perfection right?).  Don’t get me wrong I have dealt with plenty of big things without resorting back to unhealthy behaviours but sometimes life happens and it all feels too much and we need to move through turbulent times with some sort of coping method (maybe yours is alcohol, drugs, sex, porn, online shopping, gambling, food or social media). 

I am telling you this because it’s important to recognise we are all human. I am by no means perfect and yes I have overcome a lot but we are still all just doing our best and navigating the rocky waters of life. The last few months in my life have been particularly difficult but I am pleased to report I have dealt with things through running, yoga, swimming, cups of tea and tapping with maybe some internet scrolling but like I said progress not perfection. I call this habit positive progress. 

But what happens when we can’t stop our unhealthy habit? 

I have recently been studying a new coaching course with the amazing Nikki Heyder (if you don’t follow her you definitely should) and this has been a topic we have been covering. I wanted to share this with you because we ALL have unhealthy habits of some sort but when exactly does this become an addiction?

There is no doubt about it, sober socialising can feel daunting at times. Even though I have been hangover free for 5 years and have had many many sober socialising experiences there are still moments I feel socially awkward, know I would feel more excited about the evening if I thought I was going to have a drink and question whether or not I actually want to go (because honestly staying in bed with a cup of tea is calling my name).

Regardless of whether you are sober sober, sober curious, hangover free or just taking a night off from time to time it can feel more challenging and more daunting than others. Today I wanted to write about some of the challenges you might face to let you know this is completely normal and that you are not alone.

I have listed below some challenges you might face…

Never have I ever had more regret than my drinking days and dating. I would wake up feeling anxious about what I said knowing I had over shared on every area of my life, potentially suggesting we should pick up drugs and most probably ending back at theirs. The sinking feeling of knowing I will probably not ever see them again. What I really wanted was to feel held and feel love even if it was for a fleeting moment. The cost of these fleeting moments were a spiral of self deprecation and feeling even worse about myself than I already did. This was the destructive cycle of my dating life pre 2018. Just about as destructive as my drinking and drug taking. I would most probably already be half cut by the time I even got to the date. I would often think of all the potential boyfriends that maybe would have been had I not been such a mess in my dating heyday (although now I am very grateful that none of them actually did become my boyfriend).

When I got sober I started my true journey of self love where I learnt to practice self love and not seek validation from external factors (in my case the opposite sex), I started to create boundaries in my dating life, get really intentional about the type of person and relationship I wanted. I started to get to know myself and figure out what I actually wanted instead of just caring if someone was good looking and was going to get drunk with me (no wonder things never really worked out).

Regardless where you are on your hangover free journey, which might be fully sober, mindful drinking or sober curious, I would always encourage a first date to be a sober one. I have found many benefits to sober dating from helping build my inner confidence away from alcohol, to making better dating choices and having better experiences to not wasting as much time as I can really ascertain how I actually feel about someone quicker. I don’t wake up feeling anxious although I definitely still overshare (I suppose I can’t blame alcohol for everything). It really has been a journey of self – discovery and growth that has allowed me to work on myself and given me insights into how I can show up better for myself and for others that I really don’t think I would have learnt had I still been in my booze infused dating bubble.

Below is my honest debrief of sober dating outlining the positives and negatives so you can make up your own mind about whether this could work for you.