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Lee Mengo, aka The Gay Sober (@thegaysober on Instagram) was a guest on the podcast in Series 2. First of all, he's a wonderful human being who you absolutely should be following if you aren't already... Secondly, if you haven't heard that episode yet, please go and listen to it asap... It's as hilarious as it is inspiring! Finally, Lee is such a brilliant AF champion, and one of the things he does is ask people to write a letter to themselves as if they were reading it on the day before they decided to give up alcohol. Here's Sharon's letter...
2nd September 2018
Dear Shazza (aka ‘The Drunken Dick’),
How you doing? Hanging? Again? Yeah, I know. Awful. But this time it’s actually going to be different isn’t it? This is the last time you’re ever going to experience the horror of the Hangover Hamster Wheel. You’re going to stop, climb off it, work your arse off and never touch a drop of the poison again. You don’t know it’s poison right now, you don’t actually think you can do it and you’re worried sick about facing an alcohol free life… but I’m going to give you a little taste now of what’s to come. You’ll love it, you’ll be surprised by it daily and you will never, ever feel as shit as you do right now ever again.
You are going to experience more positive changes than you ever thought possible and there is going to be something good in every single day you don’t drink.
Let’s start with time. You used to think spare time should be spent drinking. Clock watching for the most acceptable time to start on the rose. Not looking at the clock as it got later and later when really you should have stopped. So much time is wasted drinking and recovering – and you’re about to get the gift of time back. Your days will start fresh and bright and your mornings won’t be lost to a grey fog. You’ll have slept so well (eventually) you’ll start to love the mornings. You’ll start enjoying sunrise in the hills, sunset by the coast and days that last forever. Your weekends will literally double in length and you’ll love finding new things to fill them with. You will never ever tire of Sober Saturday and Sunday mornings even 90 weekends down the line. The gift of time will be yours to do as you please – all with a clear head, zero regret and a smile most days.
Your social circle is all about drinking. Wine O clock. Early doors at the pub. The best wine when dining out. Garden drinking in the sunshine. How the fuck will you cope without it and, more importantly, what will people think? You’ll find it hard at first, but once you get a couple of booze free, fresh weekends under your belt it will start to become easier. You need to say no to invites and situations where you are going to be surrounded by booze and drinkers. Don’t go to the pub. Don’t go to parties until you feel strong enough to tackle the inevitable questioning which comes mostly from the biggest drinkers. Your social circle will change massively. You’ll actually no longer want to do what you used to do and go to the places you used to ‘love’. You’ll grow beyond belief, you’ll make new sober friends and you’ll get involved in activities you used to take the piss out of. Sober Social anyone? You’ll be leading it – and best of all – you’ll be enjoying every minute. You’ll also experience the loudest laughter, sober; the funniest times with your family, sober; and overcome the biggest challenges, sober.
Finally, you are going to develop a strength you didn’t think possible and you are going change everything. The only way you are going to do this is by being brave and completely removing alcohol from your life. No compromises, no ‘just a glass’ rewards, no thoughts of moderation. Zero alcohol will bring you the biggest changes. You won’t care what people think anymore. You’ll be strong enough to face any situation. You’ll be brave enough to try new things with new people and you will love life more than you ever thought possible. You need to jump in to alcohol free life with both feet, hold your nose and then swim. You won’t drown. And there’s a whole new world out there who’ll do it with you and prove alcohol free life really is the gift that just keeps giving.
I know you don’t think any of this is possible right now – but just stop drinking, give yourself a chance and know that by completely removing alcohol from your life anything is possible and you will love the new life you’ve created for yourself.
Now go and tips those warm rose dregs down the sink, give those other minging bottles to the local charity raffle, start reading all the alcohol-free books you can get your hands on, join and alcohol free community, follow all the sober insta accounts and give it everything. No half arsed measures, only your full arse will do. First people will ask you why you’re doing it – then they’ll ask you how you’re doing it. Be brave, be proud and keep laughing.
Sober Shazza x