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Hello, darling heart, and welcome to the drink less, live better podcast. This is the podcast that helps you to see that drinking
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less doesn't need to be stressful, lonely, or boring. I'm your host, Sarah Williamson, and I decided to have a year alcohol
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free as a little life experiment and haven't looked back. With my experience and training, I now help other women with their
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alcohol free or drink less adventures. I'm here to tell you that you can relax, connect, and have fun without alcohol in your
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life. Join me here each week to find out how. Today I'd like to tell you a story about making new friends when I didn't have
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the crutch of alcohol to rely on for confidence. In my twenties, I had old school and university friends who I'd bonded with
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because we shared an educational or locational background and a love of drinking. I dated usually over a drink or 2 because,
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well, because I did, and they did, and it seemed as if everyone else did. After work activities and socialising always revolved
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around drinking. In my thirties, I met a whole wave of new friends. We all had children in our mid to late twenties and early
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thirties and bonded over play groups, walks with the babies, tea or coffee round at each other's houses, and baby centred
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groups, all of which we enjoyed as much for our children as for ourselves. Meeting with people who were sharing a similar
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experience to me was so important at that time. I'm gonna say that again, and I'm gonna come back to it again in a minute.
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Meeting with people who were sharing a similar experience to me was so important. As my thirties were ticking along, I went
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back to work part time and then full time. My babies became toddlers and then school age children. We moved house. Life was
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good, better than that, brilliant even. I had everything from my wildest dreams: physical and emotional health, a brilliant
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husband, 2 fabulous children, a supportive extended family, a lovely house in a beautiful town, a dog, a job with a nice boss
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and colleagues, money to go on holiday, and lots of friends to spend time with. Everything was good. Whilst my daytime activities
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never revolved around drinking, my evening socialising always did. I was often the friend who organised the social activities,
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and I don't think it ever occurred to me that I could organize fun that didn't involve dinner or the pub. It was just the
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go to activity. As I started to drink less, I more often asked my friends if they fancied a walk or brunch rather than an
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evening out, and no one has ever said no yet. We do still go for nights out, but I am so happy to have alcohol free drinks,
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and I never care about what my friends are drinking. So that brings me here. I'm 43 years old today. I went out cold free
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when I was 41, and I thought I probably had already met most of my friends for life. I'm so lucky that I have my uni friends,
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my old work colleagues, and friends with kids the same age as mine, and, of course, my I'm a slightly newer version of myself,
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Sarah version 2.0 perhaps, and I haven't lost anyone who really mattered along the way. Back to something I said earlier,
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meeting with people who are sharing a similar experience is so important. It was important when I was a new mum and had no
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idea what I was doing, and so it has turned out to be important now when I am newly alcohol free, and at times I have had
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no idea what I'm doing or if this is really the right choice for me. I want to be bolstered by other people around me who
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have followed a similar thought process to me and decided that alcohol doesn't deserve a place in their lives right now. I
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want to have fun, laugh, talk about future goals and dreams, both mine and other people's, tell stories, and share experiences.
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I want to go out as Sarah version 2.0 and know and like other people in the same position as me. I want to wake up hangover
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free and carry on a conversation where we left off, not struggle to piece together vague memories of last night. New friends
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are important to me in my forties in a way I didn't know was possible. Thank you to some of my very favorite sober people
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who I spent this last weekend with. Nita, Khalees, Lee and Joe. All of you, I am so thankful to have you in my life as new
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friends. Thank you for listening to this episode. Please listen in again next time. You can sign up to my 5 day drink less
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experiment and find out about working with me one to 1 at drink less live better dot com. It would make me happier than a
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Buddhist monk. If you would please subscribe, 5 star review, and comment on my podcast on whichever platform you listen. Imagine
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it like the tasting notes on the finest wine I am never going to drink. Thank you, and PS, I believe in you.
