A Year Without Drinking Alcohol

**Good morning/afternoon/evening to whoever is reading this. Happy New Year! **

I uploaded my first ever YouTube video this week (yay) which is entitled: A Year Without Drinking Alcohol.
In May, I wrote a blogpost talking about my decision to give up drinking for a year at the age of 22. I was only 5 months into my teetotalism when the blog was written so I thought I would do a little update on full completion of the year. (If you’re interested in reading the blogpost you can find it here: https://www.girlonpause.com/blog/a-year-without-alcohol- )
The year has been a challenge (in so many ways as I’m sure you can relate to) but attempting to steer clear of any drink with an alcohol percentage did at first add to the stress. Many people took to drinking more to cope with the added pressures of lockdown (more than ¼ increased their alcohol consumption according to alcoholchange.org.uk, with younger people (18-34) having increased it the most). However, as the year progressed I found not drinking to be a breeze; with the lack of social engagement to contend with, I was able to form a habit of only drinking non-alcoholic beverages. These 12 months have been transformative for me; I’ve gained confidence in the knowledge that I don’t need that buzz to be fun, or cool, or outgoing, I only need to be me.
To find out how I went on check out the video below:
Until next time x
You can find more from Girl on Pause at www.girlonpause.com or keep up to date with my attempts to romanticise every-day life on my Instagram: @girlonpause and my new Facebook page ‘Girl on Pause’.