I got quoted in this! I feel like such a celebrity! I was the Ava that talked about an unexpected drinking trigger being big event sex (yeah not on-brand for me at all) American studies have found that anxiety doubles the chances of becoming hooked on booze. “Anxiety and introversion can predispose towards addiction,” confirms neuroscientist Dr Marc Lewis. I read Catherine Gray's book The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober two years ago when I realized that alcohol had become a problem in my life and I needed guidance and support from other people who had successfully "made the switch" to an alcohol free life. It contained current research, data and great stories which were very helpful.

Sunshine Warm Sober: The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober Sunshine Warm Sober: The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober

This hotly anticipated sequel enlists the help of experts and case studies, turning a curious, playful gaze onto provocative questions. Is alcohol a parenting aid? Why are booze and cocaine such a horse and carriage? Once an addict, always an addict? How do you feel safe - from alcohol, others and yourself - in sobriety? Staying sober from year four on became, dare I say it, easy. But the less obvious yet more profound work began. I started finessing life skills that seemed like they were nothing to do with sobriety, yet they were totally related. I learned how to do things like say no (regularly), set boundaries (hate boundaries), ask for what I needed, preserve my energy for the parties I wanted to spend it on and learned how to open the chamber of shame (the things I’d done) in safe company. I’ll be frank, much of this was less fun, but ultimately more transformative. This book was less helpful for me personally, but I'm sure it will be brilliant for others. It's written with honesty and compassion and the stories she includes from her community helped me to walk in their shoes.I like Catherine gray. There is a sexy confidence to her and her writing even when she was a hot drunk mess. I do relate to her and glad I never met her in a dark Brixton bar when I too was a terrible drunk!

Sunshine Warm Sober: Unexpected sober joy that lasts - Goodreads

The new book from Catherine Gray - icon of the Quit Lit movement and author of The Unexpected Joy of Being SoberIn years dot to four of sobriety, I learned how to do the basics. How to breathe, socialise, date, dance, kiss, go to weddings, do Christmas, do life without alcohol. So here, we’re going to cover that which I haven’t told you about: years five, six and seven.

Sunshine Warm Sober: Unexpected sober joy that lasts

Laugh out loud funny in places. Truly sobering (ahem - intended) in others, this book is the companion you didn’t know you needed, once “you’ve totally gotten used to not feeling like an extra from Walking Dead on a Saturday morning” Alcohol acts as an anxiety eraser, one of the book’s experts told me. “It removes an adverse state,” says psychologist and neuroscientist Dr Judith Grisel. “If you’re using it to medicate anxiety, you’ll like it because it removes the anxiety. It’s a sedative, after all, and it reduces inhibitions. Those not prone to anxiety don’t like it as much. They’re more likely to dislike the sloppy feeling, or their words slurring. But if you’re anxious, you enjoy that blur. It becomes your antidote to anxiety.” If you find yourself at this dilemma junction, you’ve probably already spent many years trying and failing to ‘reduce volume’. Drinkers who don’t struggle to ‘moderate’ (ie. those who drink one or two and then stop) don’t really contemplate quitting booze. Why? The negatives of their drinking have probably not outweighed the positives yet. It’s hard to experience many negative offshoots from a few glasses of wine over the course of a week. So by the time people arrive at the notion of potentially quitting altogether, or ‘harm reduction’, they’ve most likely already established that they are not a moderate drinker anyhow. Few people are, as it happens. They’re rare. I can count the ‘moderate drinkers’ I know on one hand. So by all means, try a moderation experiment, many do before alighting on quitting altogether. It’s often the final ‘convincer’. The irony is; none is far easier than one. Cold turkey sounds petrifying, but it’s easier overall. I spent 21 years drinking and out of circa 3,277 nights drinking, I had one drink oh, let’s see… probably seven times, as a teen at a family party, the night before job interviews or when I’d run out of money and nobody would buy me a drink. I found one drink about as achievable as one-handed press-ups. So I wasn’t unhappy and I wasn’t bored, but my challenge in long-term recovery was this. How to finally feel safe. Safe from myself, safe from others, safe from my memories, and last but definitely not least, safe from alcohol and the ultra-pressurised culture around it. That’s what we’re going to explore here. My first book was about finding the ‘happy’. Here, we’re going to plunge into the ‘ever after’.

I enjoyed lots of this book, particularly the sections putting ‘stone cold drunk’ and ‘sunshine warm sober’ experiences side by side. It was so powerful and worth the price of the book for those. But a little disappointed there wasn’t more of that. And yet, I’ve now been totally alcohol-free for almost eight years. The curveball lesson for me was this: none is far easier than one. When I don’t drink, I stay responsible; when I drink, I become flagrantly irresponsible. Find the latest alcohol research and news, tips to help you cut down, stories from people who have experienced alcohol harm and so much more. This hotly anticipated sequel enlists the help of experts and case studies, turning a curious, playful gaze onto provocative questions. Is alcohol a parenting aid? Why are booze and cocaine such a horse and carriage? Once an addict, always an addict? How do you feel safe – from alcohol, others and yourself – in sobriety? In the summer, my drinking dug in harder, faster, stronger, more. Invitations to start drinking at lunchtime rolled in every weekends which meant that, before the sun had set, I’d already lost my ability to say three-syllable words – as well as some of my belongings and romantic standards.