Chris ~ 14 days
“My relationship with sobriety has been anything but straightforward.
Growing up in Australia, binge drinking was expected from your late teens through university years. Yet during this same period, I harboured dreams of playing football professionally, which meant saying no to alcohol to maximise my chances. This early experience taught me that abstaining was possible, even when it went against cultural expectations.
Everything shifted in my early twenties when I was introduced to the party scene. Alcohol was seen as both the “safer” option and a gateway to available alternatives and this made it feel like the more “responsible choice” even as my consumption patterns became increasingly unhealthy.
My move to London for an advertising career only amplified these habits. I found myself immersed in pub culture and corporate lunches where drinking wasn't just expected, it was woven into the fabric of professional and social life. What had once been weekend indulgence became a regular weekday occurrence, and I began to recognise that I wasn't living upto my potential.
The turning point came when I committed to 75 Hard. This challenge reintroduced me to the person I had been before alcohol became central to my social life. I rediscovered my love for training and football, found consistent discipline in daily habits like reading and proper nutrition and witnessed the ripple effects throughout every aspect of my life. My relationships deepened, my career performance improved, my appetite for positive risk-taking increased and my confidence became genuine rather than chemically induced.
When 75 Hard ended, the choice to continue abstaining felt natural. I had become so content with this version of myself that change seemed unnecessary.
My first drink afterward was at my sister's wedding ~ a conscious decision to mark a milestone occasion rather than chase a feeling or boost social confidence. This experience revealed how fundamentally my relationship with alcohol had shifted.
Returning to Australia meant reconnecting with old friends and the environments where my unhealthy habits had originally developed. Yet something remarkable happened: where I once would have faced criticism for not drinking, those who witnessed my journey began respecting my choices without question.
I've been able to remain present and engaged in social situations while staying alcohol-free, proving to myself and others that sobriety doesn't mean social isolation.
I haven't taken a vow of permanent sobriety and I'm honest about that. There are still moments when I choose to drink in small doses. These occasions involve conscious decision-making, a battle with my own awareness that represents continual work in progress.
Today, I understand my limits and respect my boundaries. While I can envision a future where I embrace complete sobriety, I'm confident that I'm moving in that direction at a pace that feels authentic and sustainable.”
