Seed of Hope

By Karolina Rzadkowolska

When I first started this journey, I never intended to quit drinking forever. I did dry January to reset, get healthy, and challenge myself to thirty days. Then I was going to go back to drinking with my new mindful skills in tow. But before I even started dry January, I had a little seed of hope inside me. I had read an article in a popular women's magazine about a lifetime moderate drinker who did dry January and was so much happier and reaping all these benefits, that she never went back. She called herself sober-curious and didn't identify as an alcoholic or go to AA meetings. Although I didn't know it at the time, this was my very first mindset shift. There was a very small but strong recognition that the same might happen for me. That I might be pleasantly surprised at the delightful life sans booze, and instead of "having to quit," I may just find I prefer a joyful teetotal life. 

Transformation is such a powerful thing. Just look at someone who has had a huge weight loss transformation. Sure, dieting, exercise, and changing the behaviors that were most comforting to them might be hard, but take anyone who has lost a significant amount of weight and ask them if they wish they could go back to their old sad selves who stress ate junk food and never moved and you will have a resounding hell no. You do not have to make a lifelong decision. Just try it, for a set number of days. Look at it as an experiment to find the best and happiest version of yourself. But plant a seed of hope that you may just fall in love with your new way of life.