When I quit drinking…

How much do you let other people influence what you do?

The glass in this picture is filled with 100% fake wine, because last year I quit drinking. 

Did I do it by choice? Nope! Did I do it because I had a health issue that wouldn’t go away and at that point I was down to try ANYTHING? Yes. 

But the hardest about not drinking for me wasn’t not being able to drink, it was feeling like I was spoiling everyone else’s fun, and (even though this might sound crazy) letting people down when I said I didn’t want to drink with them. I felt like I was making other people feel uncomfortable, and that made me feel ummm….very uncomfortable.

But as things got better I found out that not drinking was something I actually kind of liked! The absence of hangovers was pretty cool, and being about to talk in full sentences and accurately express the things inside my head at 11pm on a night out was strangely empowering.

Which leads me to the question I want to ask you: what do you continue to do, even though it isn’t good for you or making you happy, because you don’t want to make other people feel uncomfortable?  

The answer is probably “a shit-ton!” Because you’re a human person. 

I personally think that if we as people are going to be as epic as we are capable of being, we have to be okay with being uncomfortable, and remember that it is not our job to make other people comfortable all the time. It’s our job to be respectful, sensitive, kind and caring, but it’s not our job to put other people’s comfort above all other things, including our own well-being. 

So here’s to not drinking, or drinking, or going for a run in the morning, or watching an hour of TV in the morning, and doing it because we WANT to do it, and we feel good about it 🎉 (YESSSSSSSS!)