Wellbeing Hub

Check out our Wellbeing Hub with health and fitness tips to make the most of your sober month!


Surviving Go Sober

By Sarah Gibson on

Tips from psychologist Sarah Gibson

Thinking of taking on Go Sober? Wondering if you’ve got the willpower to see it through? For so many Brits, the prospect of a dry thirty-one day stretch can seem as gruelling as any marathon. Psychologist Sarah Gibson shares a few tips to help you rise to the challenge.


Link your goals to what you value

Remind yourself each and every day of how Go Sober relates to the kind of person you want to be: someone who helps people who are dealing with serious illness, someone who invests in their own health, someone who embraces challenge. Remember that such values-oriented action can have profound psychological wellbeing benefits as well as the obvious physical benefits of abstaining. It’s not just a win-win. It’s a win-win-win.


Be aware that there will be challenging times

Urges inevitably arise when we first change a habitual behaviour, especially when a drink after a bad day can feel so damn good. Interestingly, it’s not as much about having huge reserves of willpower to eliminate these urges, as it is about managing the reality that we humans are simply not wired to avoid pleasurable stimuli. Rather than trying to block out an urge to drink (which has been shown to make the urge “rebound”), try these mindfulness strategies, based on the approach of expert coach and therapist, Dr Russ Harris, to stay on track.


Recognise where your urges come from

Recognise that the urge to have a drink is simply a combination of thoughts, bodily sensations and feelings, NOT an order that must be followed on autopilot. The urge itself may feel uncomfortable, but it cannot harm you in any way. In fact, the real harm tends to arise from how we respond to the urge. Trying to make the discomfort of an urge disappear, either by willing it away or by giving into it, moves us further away from the goal of abstaining. And this moves us further away from the values that we are trying to live up to by taking on Go Sober.


Accept the urge to drink when it turns up

Rather than judging the urge as “bad”, simply notice it as it arises and acknowledge it. Make room for it. This is not the same as wanting or embracing the urge. It’s just letting it be. Observe it as you would a passing car, or leaves on a stream. Breathe into and around the uncomfortable bodily sensations that accompany the urge, imagining that part of your body “expanding” around the sensation. While the goal here is not to control or minimise the discomfort, you will probably find that this “expansion” technique reduces it as a welcome side-effect!


Notice that cravings will intensify and subside

Like waves on the ocean, cravings come and go. Watch this unfold in your mind’s eye with detached fascination, as if you were a curious scientist. Now notice that you have experienced a strong urge mindfully, without it pushing you around! Notice that your valued goals can guide your behaviour during Go Sober, rather than your urges! High five yourself! 


Set yourself up for success

You might talk to your after-work wingman to explain why you’ll be laying low, without being judgemental. Set yourself up for success by avoiding bars and clubs until you’re feeling more confident. Find a really delicious non-alcoholic substitute drink for the times you are mingling with people who are drinking. And when you can’t avoid an upcoming trigger, like a wedding, date, or work function, practise the mindfulness response to urges outlined above in advance. You wouldn’t run a marathon without limbering up first, would you?


Note: if you think you might have a problem with alcohol, it’s important to recognise that Go Sober does not represent a “cure”. More serious alcohol issues require skilled professional help to be resolved – talk to your doctor.

Now’s the time! Go Sober this October

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10 Hacks to get you through Go Sober

By Juliet Hodges, Bupa UK on

Bupa UK’s behaviour change advisor Juliet Hodges shares her top ten hacks to help all those who are going booze-free.

Believe in yourself

You might be feeling apprehensive about a whole month without alcohol and wondering if you have the willpower to last a full 31 days. Research shows that yes, you do – as long as you believe you do. People who believe that willpower is unlimited tend to be better at dealing with tasks that require self-control, and also tend to be happier. Tell yourself that you can do it, and it’s more likely that you will!

Get your friends on board

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Setting goals

By Mel Ingram on

Many of us set ourselves tasks and goals to achieve what we feel will make a difference to our lives. Sometimes we find it difficult to achieve these goals as the journey becomes too long, too hard or it simply gets overshadowed by other ‘higher priority’ tasks and therefore these goals are pushed to the side.

Start by asking yourself some simple questions that can help you take control of your life and achieve your goals –

  • What are you trying to achieve?
  • What are your habits and what do you want to change?
  • What have you achieved in life?
  • Do you live in the moment?

What are trying to achieve and what is your ultimate goal?

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Tips on cutting down after your Sober October

By Go Sober Team on


Carry on your good work from October through to November and beyond. Here are some practical tips if you want to try to cut down on the amount of alcohol you’re drinking.

Quench your thirst! 

Before you start drinking, quench your thirst with a non-alcoholic drink.

Drink slowly

Have a drink of water with your alcoholic drink.

Make every second drink non-alcoholic

Alternate between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. This will help space out your drinks.

Eat when you drink

Eat food when you’re drinking, but avoid salty foods – these make you thirstier.

Dilute your alcoholic drinks

For example, a shandy (beer with lemonade) or a wine spritzer (wine with mineral water).

Treat yourself

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