Is Mindful Drinking Bad For You?

If you are sober curious, this one’s for you...

- Olivia Blair and Chloe Bowen

As the summer months approach, there is no escaping the shift in culture when it comes to drinking alcohol: it’s all Aperol spritzes in rooftop bars and boozy bottomless brunches. And while nobody’s saying that those things aren’t super fun, for some, who are wanting to cut back on their drinking—or change their relationship with alcohol—it can all feel a bit, well, daunting.

In the last five years, we have seen a real surge in people choosing to not only stop drinking alcohol altogether, but to be open about their decision to go booze-free too (no doubt helped by the ever-growing option of cool alcoholfree beverages on offer nowadays). But alongside this, there’s a second wave of drinkers who are making changes: those known as ‘sober curious’ or ‘mindful drinkers’.

If you’ve heard these terms before, but aren’t fully aware of what they mean...wonder no more! We asked the totally brilliant UK-based Laura Willoughby MBE, founder of Club Soda (an organisation that offers support to and courses for those wanting to change their relationship with alcohol) to explain.

WHAT IS MINDFUL DRINKING?

Being a mindful drinker means you actively pay attention to how alcohol impacts your life— in all areas, from your quality of sleep to your relationships, to work. Exploring mindful drinking is a good middle ground, which could be thought of as similar to those who describe themselves as being ‘flexitarian’ after having reduced the amount of meat they consume. Unlike going teetotal, it doesn’t necessarily mean cutting out all forms of alcohol forever, but rather reducing your intake or perhaps taking a pause and doing a ‘sober sprint’ for a few months.