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You’ve probably heard of it: the first of January begins the Dry January, or alcohol-free month. A challenge whose unique rule is simple: do not consume alcohol from January 1st and until the end of the month. The explanations of Dr Philippe Batel, addictologist doctor and head of the addictology department at the Camille Claudel hospital center, a public mental health establishment in Charente.
Literally meaning “Dry January”, Dry January is rather a month that could be described as “sober”.
Indeed, the goal of this challenge is to spend the month of January without drinking a drop of alcohol. The objective is threefold:
- Reduce alcohol consumption;
- Put your body to rest;
- Measure the impact of alcohol in your everyday life and eventually rethink your consumption by being more reasoned.
Where does Dry January come from?
The Dry January started in Great Britain in 2013, following a campaign launched by the organization Alcohol Change UK. Starting with only 4,000 people, the movement has grown and is celebrating its 10th anniversary with more than 130,000 participants in 2022. “The numbers are indeed on the rise” confirms Philippe Batel, addictologist psychiatrist and head of the addiction service at the Charente public mental health establishment.
“The initiative is gaining momentum, and it’s interesting, because the relationship with alcohol is something that usually touches the intimate.”
If you want to take on the Dry January challenge, nothing could be simpler: just don’t drink a drop of alcohol for a month, from 1er to January 31. “It’s a way to put your body to rest, after the excesses linked to the end of the year celebrations” adds the addictologist.
But is it difficult to take the plunge in France, more than elsewhere, a country associated with a certain culture of alcohol and especially wine? “The first session of Dry January in France took place in 2019, it seems to me” remembers the doctor. “Indeed, at the start, it was quite confidential, I remember that the initiative had not been relayed by the MILDECA, the Interministerial Mission for the Fight against Drugs and Addictive Behaviours. We talk about it a little more today. today, especially in the media”.
Tools to help you get started
If you want to get started, support tools exist. For example, it is possible to watch the official Dry January 2023 campaign, where you can register to receive daily tips by email on how to replace alcohol, expert advice, recipes, etc. The official application of the Dry January website , baptized Try Dry, also allows you to find support to hold on over time.
The Damp January, a “lighter” alternative
If completely abstaining from drinking alcohol scares you, you can try Damp January, which consists of reducing its consumption, without stopping it completely. The Dryanuary.fr site also recalls “that there is no good point or bad point depending on whether or not he succeeds in the challenge: it is up to each person to make a personal choice with their own objectives and to see the effects”.
But beware, warns Philippe Batel, it is more difficult to reduce consumption than to stop it. “When you stop drinking completely, it’s difficult for the first five days, then the body gets used to it. When you reduce your consumption, you tend to be less strict in the reduction and to allow yourself more “gaps”, in a way” reminds the specialist.