OYNB is so much more than just giving up alcohol – Graham Prior

Going alcohol-free can open the gate to a more productive, enriching and nutritious life

I have always liked a drink. Like so many people, alcohol quietly became part of everyday life. I drank at least once or twice during the week, and I would always drink on a Friday night, Saturday night and a Sunday afternoon – that’s what weekends were for.

I loved going out, and drinking began to define who I was. I could always be relied upon to have a drink, and I would never disappoint.

When everyday drinking turns into every-night drinking

In the last few years, I started working more from home.

Graham drinking beer before his challenge

The regular midweek drinking slowly turned into drinking every night. That drink became the way I separated “work time” from “relax time” at home. I simply couldn’t imagine not having a drink, especially on a weekend.

But the side effects began to stack up:

• I started to put on weight

• Drinking led to poor food choices

• I felt too tired to exercise

• I was constantly battling the tiredness and lethargy that come with regular alcohol

I’d always been a positive, upbeat person, full of energy. But the constant cycle of drinking, bad diet and lack of exercise slowly turned me into a stereotypical couch potato.

A health wake-up call

To make things worse, a routine health check delivered a reality check:

• My blood pressure was at a worrying level

• My cholesterol was high

• The number on the scales shocked me

I couldn’t keep pretending that buying the next jeans size up was a solution. I was rapidly running out of sizes. It was

time to act.

Signing up to One Year No Beer

I signed up to One Year No Beer.

At the beginning, I honestly didn’t hold out much hope. Just one week alcohol-free felt impossible. I couldn’t imagine life without it:

• How would I socialise without drinking?

• How would I relax?

• How would I celebrate?

• How would I handle stressful situations?

Stopping drinking felt like a mountain that was far too high to climb. I was completely focused on what I thought I would be giving up.

Then, a few days into the programme, I watched an OYNB video that flipped everything.

Instead of focusing on what I’d lose, it focused on what I would gain:

• My energy back

• My sleep back

• My energetic mornings back

• My time back

• Control over my diet

That short video completely opened my eyes. From that moment on, my perspective began to shift.

My experience of the OYNB challenge

Graham after his challenge

“I am not sure if I could have made it this far without the support I have received via OYNB.”

The support I’ve received through OYNB has been incredible.

What helped most:

• Daily emails with advice, guidance and support

• A community of like-minded people all changing their relationship with alcohol

• A clear focus not just on “not drinking”, but on taking back control of my whole life

OYNB has shown me that this journey is about far more than removing alcohol – it’s about building a life I actually want to live.

The results: 10 months alcohol-free

It’s difficult to put into words how much OYNB has changed my life.

Since I stopped drinking 10 months ago, I have:

• Lost 5 stone (70 lb) in weight

• Completely reversed my high cholesterol

• Brought my blood pressure back into a healthy range

• Started sleeping better

• Improved my diet dramatically

• Become a much better father and husband

• Gained more energy than I know what to do with

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Going alcohol-free has also given me something just as valuable: time.

I now have time – and energy – for things I wouldn’t even have contemplated when I was drinking:

• I’ve set up a local walking group that meets once a month

• I’ve joined a running club

• I’ve started to play the saxophone again

• I go to regular spinning classes with my kids

The biggest change is on the inside

The internal changes have been the most dramatic of all:

• I’m more present with the people around me

• I’m calmer and more thoughtful

• I feel genuinely compassionate rather than just exhausted

• I have a new sense of clarity about what matters

Going alcohol-free hasn’t closed anything off for me.

It has opened the gate to a more productive, enriching and nutritious life.

And OYNB has given me the tools and the support to walk through it.