The perils of Dry January

Note: the following occurred on this day last year:

In the dying days of 2015 we were assailed by adverts and media chatter for “Dry January”, the campaign to forgo alcohol for a whole month. We were told we’d be wealthier, healthier and happier.

This seemed like a good idea to me. But in my usual over-the-top manner, I decided to also forgo two other nasty habits I had developed for crisps and Red Bull. And not just for a month, but for as long as I could. They were habits I could manage when my hobby was long-distance walking as I burnt off any excess calories, but my more sedentary toddler-dominated lifestyle has prevented that.

Too give myself an incentive, I decided that any money saved on alcohol, crisps and Red Bull would be put into Robert’s bank account. I also decided I could eat ‘gift’ items: for instance if someone offered me a drink, I could accept. The only time this happened during January were some crisps served on my plate at a playgroup, which I ate with some glee.

So when January 31^st came along and although I had lost a little weight, I did not feel healthier. In fact, I’d been feeling a little ill. I was not wealthier – the money was going into Robert’s account. And there were times when a glass of wine would have made me happier, if only for relieving stress.

But I was looking forward to the next day when, if you believed the adverts and radio talk about “Dry January”, I would be a He-Man. An Alpha Male. Instead of carrying a rucksack up and down mountains, I would be carrying mountains over a rucksack. I would be an Adonis.

So what happened that next day, February 1^st? The end of “Dry January”? Did I feel better? Was I wealthier, healthier and happier?

Was I heck. I was being blue-lighted to Addenbrookes Hospital with Menengitis.

“Dry January”: don’t do it. It’s not good for your health.

(Note: I may have got correlation and causation somewhat confused in this post)