Author: HairWeavings Editorial Team

The combination of the media, the marketing campaigns and social norms encourage us to float through the festive season on a sea of booze.

It can be so easy just to go with the flow. How about playing it a bit differently this year? How about resisting the brainwashing? How about unplugging from the matrix?

How about trying an alcohol-free December?

Here are some reasons WHY you should try a Dry December together with some advice HOW to do it.

6 Reasons Why You Should Try an Alcohol-Free December

#1: December Is Always a Busy Time

The chances are that whatever your profession, you will be busy at work, busy socially, and of course busy creating that “perfect Christmas” for your family.

If you give up alcohol for December, you can actually claw back a lot of time. Time that is usually devoted to planning the drinking, drinking and getting over the drinking.

#2: Dry December Gives You an Advantage

Everybody does “Dry January” but only the seriously cool people do “Dry December” and then start the new year feeling fantastic – rather than exhausted and poisoned with excess food and alcohol.

You also get to join the rest of the world for Dry January, feeling rather smug as you already have plenty of alcohol-free days under your belt!

#3: Stressing Less Is a Bonus

You will reduce your stress as you “take control.” You will sleep better and steam through your “to-do” list and even begin to feel slightly superior to your pals as they struggle with their hangovers.

If your friends give you a hard time, just tell them you are doing 30 alcohol-free days to raise money for charity which you can do by signing up for Tribe Sober’s Annual Fundraiser.

#4: You Will Lose Weight!

We are surrounded by super-fattening foods during December, and after a glass of wine or two we just get stuck in. Staying sober means you can stay in control of what you are eating and drinking.

As an extra bonus you can opt out of the dieting misery train that we are all supposed to board come January 1st.

#5: Really Enjoy the Holidays

A lot of people worry that they cannot enjoy themselves without alcohol, but think about it. What makes a good Christmas? Being with your family and seeing the joy on the children’s faces as they open their presents – or numbing out with booze?

#6: An Experiment Worth Trying

At the very least a sober Christmas will be an interesting experiment – even if you hate it, you will have tried – and who knows, you may even decide to make a lifestyle change and go alcohol free.

6 Tips for an Alcohol-Free December

#1: Make It a Challenge

If this is your first alcohol-free Christmas, why not turn it into a challenge? Lower your expectations and don’t presume to enjoy the Holiday in quite the same way as usual.

Your goal is simply to get through December without alcohol. Your joy will come flooding in on January 1st when you wake up hangover free with no regrets and feeling proud of yourself – and ready to face 2024 with energy and optimism!

#2: Stock Up on Alcohol-Free Drinks

There are so many delicious choices around these days. Get a box delivered, fill up the fridge and experiment. Make some mocktails for the whole family – they can add alcohol to theirs!

#3: Get a Tracker

Although we can get sober trackers on our phones, there is something motivating about a paper tracker. You can colour in the alcohol-free days as you complete them and keep an eye on the big picture. Stick it on the fridge and get the family to help you stay on track.

If you would like to get one of our free trackers, then just email membership@tribesober.com and request a December Tracker which was designed for the holiday period.

#4: Remember That Christmas Is Just One Day

Mark Christmas Day and any parties you will be attending on your tracker. Make a plan to get through those events alcohol-free. Look at the whole month and notice that most of the days in December are just regular days! Don’t despair if you have a slip-up. Mark it on your tracker and get right back on the bus the next day.

#5: Find a Sobriety Partner

Connection is the opposite of addiction so get a Sober Buddy. Find a friend who will do a Dry December with you. If you would like lots of Sober Buddies, then maybe you should join Tribe Sober.

#6: Join a Fundraiser

To help you on your way, Tribe Sober has launched its Annual Fundraiser for the Earthchild Project which helps disadvantaged children in South Africa. Just $16 provides a child with yoga & life-skills classes for a whole year and provides you with online and community support for 30 days.

Just make a donation directly to Earthchild by clicking here and we’ll get right back to you.

Ready to Try an Alcohol-Free Lifestyle?

When we make a major lifestyle change, we need to connect with others on the same path. We need a Tribe! Tribe Sober has an international community of 400 members – all supporting and encouraging each other as they build their beautiful alcohol-free lives.

Use the coupon code “sixty” for a 20% discount on Annual Membership, and listen to the weekly Tribe Sober podcast – available on Apple & Spotify.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

How many years have you been drinking? Do you drink consistently – a glass or two of wine most evenings? Have you ever tried to take a break to test your dependence? Have you noticed an impact on your looks after a taking a break? Do you ever worry about your drinking? Are you aware of the health dangers of alcohol as you get older? Have you ever had a sober Thanksgiving or Christmas?

It is my profound good fortune to be spending this week with an amazing human being called Julie: she is and has been one of my best friends for 25 years. We live quite different lives, and almost entirely in different parts of the world, but we have an unerring commitment to each other.

If ever I need her, she will be on the next plane to be by my side, and vice versa. We are not blood sisters, but we are most definitely soul sisters. I have a few of these amazing women in my inner circle, and they always feature in my daily morning gratitudes.

Although I was not blessed with a sibling circle, I was most certainly blessed with a girlfriend circle, and that is in and of itself a privilege.

Why Is Deep Friendship Important? 

Our relationship has matured and become richer as the years have passed, much like a good marriage may, if you are lucky enough to experience that.

We have both lived through challenging times: like loss of both our parents, plus a sibling for me, and a husband for her; both of us having husbands who we nursed through brain tumours, and to an extent, relationship issues which in retrospect (at least on my part), I put down to both of us being gypsy souls whereby we are free spirits who are fiercely independent and have a deep rooted need to live life on our own terms.

This is not particularly conducive to a deep and connected marriage, and I will be the first to admit that after two marriages, I feel I make a much better ex-wife than wife. I say that because my relationship with my two exes is idyllic; we care about each other, and I would do anything to help either of them as they would me.

Through the years, these life circumstances have been a very bonding force for Julie and I, and although we have shared painful experiences, our friendship has deepened for that very reason. As Nietzsche said, “That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.”

Nurturing Our Friendship

Thus, we make a pact to spend quality time together as often as we possibly can. We have slept in a Bedouin tent in the middle of Wadi Rum (Jordan), we have climbed up the steep hill to visit the Tian Tan Buddha in Hong Kong, and we have enjoyed spiritual connection on a retreat in Nepal.

Covid put a dent in our committed meet ups, but as and when lockdown eased up two and a half years ago, we finally got to spend almost two weeks together in Corfu. I flew in from Florida, and Julie flew in from Dubai: it takes effort, it takes commitment, it takes financial resources, but where there is a will there is a way.

As I write today, we are making that happen in Portugal on a one-week sojourn, staying in a hotel with a magical view overlooking an old castle guarding the port of CasCais. We are so aligned in our thoughts that whichever of us is the first to rise will be staring pensively out of the patio doors at the pink tinged sunrise on the horizon, lost in our own deep thoughts because that is who we are.

Having So Much in Common

We are like clones, and often we are thinking about the same subject, which is really rather spooky. Last night I was beyond excited to witness a stunning orange moon and on sharing that Julie leapt out of her bed to come see it too. We have both, to some extent, retained our childlike qualities and that continues to bond us even in our seventh decade.

If you have human beings in your inner circle that continue to bring out that childlike quality, please embrace it: such moments will enhance your sense of well-being dramatically.

We chose to pay a premium for a sea view room because we both have an overwhelming need to be near the ocean. We both like to sleep pretty early, we both like to dabble in watercolor painting, we both enjoy the practice of reading angel cards every morning.

Then we both need to walk in nature and move our bodies constantly with stretching exercises, we both are a little OCD about the number of steps showing up on our Fitbits. Being with a friend who makes you feel so comfortable is truly a wonderful thing.

We have enjoyed shopping together, foot massages, good food, good wine, good green tea. The point being, just taking time to enjoy the friendship journey is an incredibly valuable one.

No Pressure, Ever

Equally important is the ability to give each other space as and when needed, and again, we are intuitive to each other’s needs. No pressure is ever applied: if I want to go walk and Julie doesn’t, so be it. If Julie wants to spend time editing her fabulous soon-to-be-released book. (Find her at www.Julie-Lewis.com.)

Because yet another aspect of our deep friendship is that we are both ambivert: we love our time together, but we both have a deep need for alone time to recharge our batteries. Julie has a delightful saying that I have adopted since we arrived in Portugal: “You do you, and I’ll do me.” It has become another classic laughter-inducing saying that I am sure we will be using for years to come.

My Hopes for Our Future Friendship

In the busy world we live in today, I highly recommend you make a conscious effort to spend time with your best and closest friends: even if that means the occasional lunch date or a day on the town enjoying time outside your family environment or daily routine. It does us good to participate in moments of uncomplicated camaraderie, embracing fun and laughter that only friends can evoke.

My greatest wish is that Julie and I will always have good mental health that will enable us to remember and cherish wonderful memories we have built in the past. That we will always be there for each other in the present no matter where, no matter when.

That we will stay committed in the future to planning fabulous, fun trips that bring us together physically, spiritually and emotionally for as long as we are capable of getting on planes and crisscrossing through the open skies to get our friendship fix. Simply put, that we will continue to feed our best friends’ joy through our 60s, 70s, 80s and beyond.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Do you spend quality time with your inner circle of friends? How important is it to you to nurture friendships in later life? Are your friendships deeper and more meaningful in your 60s?

Originally posted at: Alexia Echevarria’s Gingham Ruffle Shirt

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Originally posted at: Kiki Barth’s White Sunglasses

Amazon Holiday Gift Guide 2023

While I shop for gifts many places let’s be real, I normally buy most of them from Amazon. And while it’s hard to nail down the best of the best, here are my picks of things I own, have been gifted or have given someone else that I love! Because as always with Amazon the holidays are Prime time to shop.

The Realest Housewife,

Big Blonde Hair

Click Here to Shop My Holiday Gift Picks

All of which I’ve gifted, have or am gifting this year!

Click Here for More Picks

Originally posted at: Amazon Holiday Gift Guide 2023