Give Dry July a go as long as you can. The research shows even two weeks can show positive changes in wellbeing. Photo / Getty Images
For many, July is a month to rethink how much they drink, whether they're worried about heavy drinking or just looking for a reset.
Morgan Storrie was embarrassed to admit that laying off the grog felt like "a real challenge".
But 10 days into Dry July, she's coping well and is one of more than 8000 Kiwis sworn off alcohol for the month to raise money for cancer support charities.
The part-time customs officer had been wanting to cut back on her drinking, and the fundraising aspect of Dry July was a good incentive.
Like "most Kiwis" she enjoys a glass of wine with dinner, or "to get me through bed-and-bath with the kids".
"[Then] on a Friday night, usually with the neighbours, it might be three or four, maybe five drinks."
The initial response from friends to her doing Dry July was: "Oh wow, that's going to be a big, tough month", alongside concerns planned social events would be dampened.
"But that's not what it's all about," the 30-year-old says.
"I think my body has probably been a bit neglected, and hopefully this will kickstart some long-term habits, and improve my overall wellbeing and mental health."
By switching to soda water, she's feeling less "groggy", more hydrated, and sleeping soundly.
"Just overall, everything feels better."
A Mount Maunganui GP who has specialised in addiction since 2013 says the evidence is mounting that Dry July, which launched in New Zealand in 2012 and is run by Dry July NZ Trust, has real benefits, particularly if participants don't give up halfway through.
"There's evidence that the drinking patterns can change," Dr Tony Farrell says of staying sober for 31 days.
What's more, if supported online and donations are made by backers, there's a lot more incentive to see your pledge through.
"If people complete it, the evidence is that [longer-term] their drinking reduces, and that's really promising."
Benefits of being alcohol-free include better sleep; weight loss; increased productivity; increased energy; less irritability; reduced stomach upsets; increased exercise performance; and feeling more in control of all aspects of your life.
Farrell, who co-owns Mount Medical Centre, is one of just a handful of GPs in the country with a fellowship on addiction medicine and says there is no safe drinking amount.
"Studies are now saying that low-risk drinking is less than 10 standard drinks per week. We used to say 24, which is like three or four beers a night, which is nuts."
Twenty per cent of GP consultations relate to risky use of alcohol, and just 15 per cent of the country is abstinent from alcohol and those people notice how much others struggle with that, he says.
"'Are you sure you don't want a drink?' You find that people commonly ask, when in fact, you just don't want to take a drug right now, which is fine. We really want a situation where if someone chooses abstinence, they are included and welcomed, and they're still the same person, and you still have a lot of fun with them."
"I liken it to The Matrix," says Paula Wilson of drinking and living in a simulated reality.
"Once you are out of that world you can see what alcohol is doing to everyone."
For five years, the 49-year-old tried "moderation techniques", including Dry July, not drinking in February (the shortest month), not drinking on weekdays, and then only drinking if she went out, until realising she needed to "push pause" on alcohol for a longer period.
She did that on January 1 last year, and hasn't had a drink since.
There was no "rock bottom" or a single drinking incident that went terribly wrong, just the realisation that her beloved sauvignon blanc, and a ritual beer after a run, was taking up too much of her headspace.
"It doesn't have to be that full-blown end, and I think people tend to think it's us and them, the alcoholics. The rest of us are okay, just as long as we keep it in check. But I think lots of people would probably be better to have a lot less alcohol, and then maybe even none."
When Dry July rolls around, it's a reminder of how far she's come.
Dry July is great as a "starting point" to become dry-er, but she worries that for some, it might lead them to make August "just a terrible drinks fest".
Having previously tried Dry July, she knew she needed a longer period to get her mind off the booze, and settled on a three-month trial, which husband Duncan agreed to do with her.
The benefits were so great she's stayed off alcohol for a year and a half and said goodbye to its side effects.
"Even just sharing a bottle of wine with my husband, [I'd wake] at three o'clock in the morning with a wave of anxiety. Feeling like I'd done something wrong. That feeling probably wouldn't go away until mid-afternoon [the next day] and by then I'd start thinking: 'Well, maybe it might be quite nice to have a drink tonight', so I was just a cycle of feeling slightly anxious, and now, there's no cycle like that."
What's more, you think you're sleeping well until you stop drinking, she says.
"Sleep was incredible.
"I had improvements in my skin with less redness from alcohol you get with your capillaries; but mostly, the anxiety and feeling of missing out and low mood is definitely better. I'm much more stable all the time."
People do still question her decision to have an alcohol-removed "pink bubbly wine" or beer, over something stronger, but she's learnt to not let it worry her.
"There are plenty of people who don't have a problem, who just have one [glass] here or there, but I think they are in the minority. Most of us have a bit more than we want, at least some of the time."
And it's not too late to put down your glass.
While the majority of Dry Julyers take part from July 1, you can still sign up throughout July, and go dry for the remainder of the month and raise funds.
Donations are open until the end of August, and last year more than $1 million was raised.
Although Dry July participation is primarily about helping others whose lives have been affected by cancer, the individual health benefits can't be ignored.
Dr Nicki Jackson, executive director of New Zealand's Alcohol Healthwatch, says research papers by UK academic Dr Richard de Visser, around their Dry January event, shows it grows in popularity every year.
Key points from the studies include: registering is the first step to success; getting support along the way helps, but isn't essential; give it a go as long as you can - the research shows even two weeks can show positive changes in wellbeing, but it's best if you can commit to the whole month.
Self-reported benefits include reduced drinking; greater self-confidence to refuse a drink; and better physical health and psychological wellbeing.
The majority of participants reported they saved money (63 per cent), experienced improved sleep (56 per cent), had more energy (52 per cent), and had better health (50 per cent).
Rebound effects of greater consumption in the month after abstinence were limited to a small population.
What's more, people get to reassess their relationship with alcohol, Jackson says.
"From a policy perspective, this is really important as people get a sudden awareness of the pervasiveness of advertising and marketing in our environment. Participants can really see how much our environment promotes drinking."
Dry July is also an important reminder alcohol causes seven types of cancer, she says.
"We have very low levels of awareness of the alcohol-cancer links.
"When New Zealanders are asked about the risk factors for bowel and breast cancer, less than 10 per cent will mention alcohol. Yet breast cancer is the leading cause of alcohol-related death in New Zealand women.
"We simply must do more to increase awareness and save lives."
# Go to dryjuly.co.nz to sign up for the challenge. Funds raised this year go to Look Good Feel Better, Bowel Cancer NZ, Prostate Cancer Foundation NZ and Pinc and Steel.
# If you are worried about your drinking, visit your GP, and check out the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) on alcohol.org.nz
• Try drinking soda or sparkling water. The carbonation and bitterness will help with cravings.
• Make a point of doing something else at the time that you'd normally have a drink, such as going for a walk.
• Align yourself with others who are doing Dry July for support and plan some activities throughout the month.
- Source: Sam Dowdall, The Barter Barber. Sam has been dry for eight months.
What our reporter learned from spending a day volunteering with a vital community service.