Arrivederci dry January – Ciao to Smooth, Robust and Aged February

LifestyleWellness

Jan 31

Bye-Bye Dry January

Well – that was interesting. I’m pouring into my wine glass to toast the end of DRY JANUARY.

And to celebrate, I’ve had a bottle of La Crema Pinot Noir chilling to 55º all month long. However, before I pop that cork, I’m taking a look back at the changes that no alcohol made on my constantly-evolving midlife body.

Quick BackStory

At the start of 2023, I wrote two posts::

The UN-Resolution for 2023

Which I’m 1000% in favor of, but that piece preceded a post that could, maybe, possibly, perrrhaps, be seen as a resolution…

Go dry for January {But I was only in for a 31-day challenge, which is totally doable…right?}

WHY!? was the question I got from my BFF, along with a horror-stricken face at the thought of 3-for-3 margarita night never happening again.

I’m joking. Never have I ever seen 3-for-3 margarita night, and if there is such a thing, it’s your obligation to share it. Also, my BFF didn’t ask, but she didn’t have to - she already knows I randomly try strange things I read about.

Let The Non-Resolution Dry January Experiment Begin

The symptoms I was pinpointing in this menopause stage::

a better night’s sleep
improving my brain-fog / memory
was my irritated stomach alcohol-related

Dry January Semi-Results

To be completely accurate, I need to resume a few evenings with a glass of wine to test how –or if– my sleep has changed. I’m relying on my Apple Watch data, since I haven’t felt like I slept well since 2001 {pregnancy number one}. The sacrifices we give for our Babé’s

Two Changes Noticed

1/ I’ve been waking up later in the mornings, around 5:30-6:00am. Bonus, since in the last year I’ve been waking up around 4:00am and staring at the ceiling fan thinking, “I hate that color and should really change it to black.”

And other random thoughts because I CAN NOT SLEEP.

2/ My agitated stomach kraken hasn’t been stabbing and gnawing at my insides as much. This one is odd to explain. I don’t get sick - I’ve just noticed when I sometimes drink alcohol, I get pinpricks, or a constant pinching feeling in my lower abdomen {I’ve unaffectionately named them Kraken}.

3/ Brain fog/short-term memory - undecided.

Final Takeaways for Dry January

I enjoy wine.

I enjoy girls’ margarita night.

So unless it’s medically necessary, I don’t plan on taking up a dry year. However, a Dry January reset each year…mayyyybe. Possibly. Perchance.

A dry January also lead to the discovery of mocktail nights. Plus, becoming obsessed with Betty Buzz drinks. Nope, not a partnership {however, if you’re reading this cute, sweet Blake Lively, I’m 1-million-percent in😉}.

Non-Alcoholic Drink Ideas

I started a new Pinterest Board to keep all the creative drinks in one place. Including one that I adapted to my own concoction…

Lemon-Lime Pom {video here}

Lemon & lime ice cubes
Betty Buzz lemon lime club soda
POM juice
Pomegranate seeds

Pour. Mix. Drink!

Betty Buzz lemon lime, Pom juice, mocktail drink

apple fizz non alcoholic drink, Betty Buzz

Lemon lime non-alcoholic mocktail, Betty Buzz

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