As November is upon us (and the Christmas decorations go up), many of us will be reflecting on our first month back at uni. This week I got in contact with my friend – and newly branded ‘Soberhero’ – Meryl, and asked her to look back on the past month going sober for Macmillan as part of their Sober October campaign.
Why did you choose to go sober for October?
My friend and I had a pretty heavy Fresher’s Week that ended with me falling face first into a bin and waking up with a black eye in the morning. We were joking about doing Sober October the following day and just as we were there was an advert on the TV about it and we decided it was meant to be. We thought it would be a perfect opportunity to drink less but also raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Why Macmillan?
Macmillan is an amazing charity supporting people currently suffering from cancer, as well as helping their families. They help right from the point where someone is diagnosed, through their treatment and beyond. We thought it would be fitting to go sober in October for Macmillan as this October marks ten years since my friend’s dad passed away from cancer. It seemed like a really nice way to raise awareness of the work Macmillan do and also raise money that will consequently help others who are currently being affected by cancer.
What was it like being the only sober ones on a night out?
I think the main difference is you are so aware, not only of yourself but also everyone else around you. As a result, you spot the people who really should be in bed and need a bit of help. This ranged from people passing out on chairs who really needed a glass of water and their bed, to breaking up a full on hair-pulling fight between two girls.
Can you really still have a good night without drinking?
Yes, 100%! We definitely have gone out less as you don’t get the tired feeling when you’re drunk, whereas sober by 1:30AM your body just wants to go to bed! Having said that, once you get over the fact that you’re sober, you realise that basically means you can just do what you want and dance however you want because everyone just assumes you’re drunk. It’s also really fun to see your friends drunk when you’re not drunk with them.
What has been your pre- drink of choice for October?
I started off with 17p Lidl diet lemonade which we quickly decided should never be drunk unless it’s being used as a mixer. After that I found I was getting tired on nights out and peaking early so I started having coffee at pres so the caffeine would keep me going.
How did people respond when you said you were doing Sober October?
There’s been a real range. A couple of friends were shocked and thought we would be boring and no fun. Luckily we proved them wrong and since then, a lot of them have started drinking less and even considered going on sober nights themselves. I found with my wider friendship group, family and particularly people on nights out, everyone was actually really impressed and really encouraging because it was to raise money for a great charity.
Do you think there’s too much of a drinking culture at university?
Really it’ll vary between unis, but Sober October has really shown me the emphasis that is put on excessive drinking at uni. I was also surprised by the number of people who thought they wouldn’t be able to have fun without alcohol which is think really demonstrates how much of an impact the culture has on students – people seemed shocked by the idea of choosing not to drink.
Do you think your views of drinking have changed after this?
Yeah definitely, I didn’t think they would but actually it has really shown me you really don’t need to be as drunk to have a good time. This sounds obvious but I think often it’s very easy to forget that getting drunk isn’t the aim of a night out.
Would you do it again?
Definitely. Probably not next year; you need to give the people you are asking to sponsor you a break but I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s been great to raise money for Macmillan and people have been really responsive and keen to donate. I have also really enjoyed being at uni and not always be drinking – you end up doing a bigger variety of different things which you can actually afford when you’re not buying alcohol!
Do you have any advice for students wanting to reduce/stop their alcohol intake?
I would just take the plunge and go sober for a month or 2 weeks, whatever suits you. I think after the first sober night out you start to feel more comfortable with drinking less on a night out then over time it just seems like less of a big deal. I also would definitely recommend doing it with someone else as you are then not the only sober one and if you do decide to come home a bit early or just need a conversation with someone who can string a sentence together you have someone with you. I would also suggest doing more non-alcoholic things in the evening, we found we went out for dinner a lot as we had the money to spend elsewhere which was really nice.
Did your plans for the 1st November involve alcohol?
Yes, I went on an extreme Halloween social on the 31st with all the extreme sports societies at the University. Being truly faithful to Sober October I didn’t drink until midnight but then I think drinks will be on me! I didn’t want to go too mad though as I think after a month of not drinking my tolerance would have completely gone so it probably wouldn’t have taken much!
You can still donate to Meryl and Beth at https://www.gosober.org.uk/teams/beth-wilson, or sign up to be a Soberhero yourself and raise money for Macmillan.