What is Sober Curious?

To be sober curious means to question, challenge, and change your thoughts and beliefs around your relationship with alcohol. It means to no longer want to blindly drink at social events because everyone else is, it’s the desire to see what hangover free Sundays are like, and to want an alternative to booze either short term, occasionally, or forever.

Tired of spending a lot of money on booze, feeling like garbage after a few drinks, and feeling the need to be buzzed in order to be less self-conscious and anxious? If so, it sounds like the sober curious movement is for you!

Sober curious isn’t the same as recovering from alcohol addiction. Those of us who are alcoholics usually aren’t able to choose to be “sometimes sober” as our brains simply don’t work that way.   Those of us with serious alcohol issues experience depression, anxiety, dangerous behaviours, negative physical and mental effects when we drink so choosing complete sobriety is often the only way of “overcoming” our alcoholism.

Excessive social drinking is often expected of people.  This is true especially for people in their 20s and more often than not people give in to these pressures and end up having their time, money, and energy wasted after an evening out with friends. Sure, some nights drinking with friends is actually worth it and you bond and have way more fun than expected. But does that happen every time? The sober-curious individual will start to question this- “maybe we’d have more fun and get to have real and meaningful conversations if we had a picnic in the park instead.”

Topics like “Dry January”, “Sober October”, for example, have been gaining popularity over recent years and it’s not hard to see why. More information on the negative effects of boozin’ (see what they are here!) is becoming more widespread and more people are having the courage to announce they’re choosing not to drink. These trends of cutting out alcohol for a while can be either followed for personal reasons, to support a charity, for a physical and mental detox, or just for the challenge. Some people also chose to omit other vices such as marijuana, sugar, coffee, or to limit their social media time. Lots of people have announced weight loss after a month off of drinking, better skin, repaired relationships, more productivity, increased self-esteem, among other awesome outcomes. Quitting for a month can do a lot of good and if the thought to keep abstaining is there when the month is up, go with it! There’s a lot of tips, resources, and information right here on Sober City so stick around and get inspired.