Life On Being A Teetotal 25 Year Old

It's been 4 years since I last drank alcohol. Knowingly at least. 4 years since I turned my life around and I snatched back that part of me that was once the life and soul of the party. The type that didn't need a bottle of your Asda voddy to get you cutting shapes on the dance floor. 

I was complete without it before, and once again I was. 

So let's just jump back to Thursday night last week. It was a launch night at a hot new restaurant in town, OK so people were mostly there for the free bar all night, and a few bits of finger food tossed in for good measure. It was a nice evening, I'd already been spoken down to about not drinking by two separate bar staff. I'd already lied twice about why I wasn't drinking too.

'I'm driving!'.... 'Early start tomorrow, you know how it is'....

One more mocktail for the road I thought. I'd already had about 2 cartons of passionfruit juice, my sugar allowance had been reached for the week, but go on then. 

As I was handed the only one mocktail option of the night, within the first sip I'd realised I'd just had my first swig of rum in a very long time, and I was scared. 

OK, it was a sip. Only a sip, practically like having a chocolate champagne truffle. Whatcha gonna do? I honestly imagine the feeling is like a vegan being handed a quorn sausage, later realising it was actually a pork sausage. That sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, I'd worked so hard to avoid alcohol before, I felt like my abstinence from it had been ruined in a second. It had.

It seems that being teetotal actually seems to get harder and worse to explain when you get older. I'm never going to be that girl who can neck a bottle of prosecco with the girls before a night out, I'll never drink a dirty pint again (ain't that a shame), buying pretty cocktails for Insta will never happen for me. That's fine. 

It's the acceptance of other people, strangers even, that's hard. Will I always find this hard? Why do I find myself lying? Why am I made to feel so embarrassed about it?

The hardest part is that I don't have a choice. I was forced to give up alcohol and never look back if I wanted to get my health back on track, to stay out of hospital and be able to live my life. That's a small cost to pay for my health, fitness and being able to enjoy doing things that I once did. To find happiness once again. 

I never thought I would recover from pancreatitis, the pain, losing weight, the months of tests, the sadness - no one sees that. No one can understand unless they put themselves in your shoes. It's something that I always try to do with other people. Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always.

To the barman that once laughed in my face when I asked in a bar if they did mocktails. The barman last week who said I was boring and should be making the most of a free bar. The people who laugh and question how you could ever go on a night out sober. 

To all of those people who single me out and make me feel like a freak, you make it hard, but you make me more grateful than ever that I can say no to you. I'm just lucky it's easier than saying no to eating a whole packets of biscuit in one sitting. That aint easy.

I wonder in time if I will become more accepting of it too. The problem is knowing how life once was, knowing what it was like to get off your trolley. It needs to start from me, I need to be able to accept it before anyone else can.

I long to feel that gentle buzz from the alcohol reaching my bloodstream again, those best friends you meet in the club toilets, LUV your hair BBZ. Those first waking moments when you can't remember a thing that happened, slowly piecing it together by pictures, snapchat stories and text messages. I do miss it. For a social aspect at least, I won't ever let my guard down or let my hair down like I once did.

I still have fleeting moments where I think I should try it again. See what happens. 

But it's too big a risk to take. I can't afford to put myself back in a hospital bed for a few hours of fun. And that's just it, learning to accept that this is it from now on and for an eternity. There's no going back. No second chances.

I will never be able to drink alcohol again, when I'm 26, 30 or 50. This is my life and the sooner I can accept it for what it is, the sooner I can say up yours to those people that make me feel inferior.

Being teetotal is not an issue, and it never should be. 

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5 Signs That Your Body Needs An Alcohol Detox

It's Sunday morning. You're hanging. Between reaching for a glass of water and rushing to be sick, you utter the words 'I'm never drinking again?'. Sound familiar? Now let's not kid yourself, these famous last words never have the same impact when you're being pressured to go out the following Saturday. They're just empty words that don't really mean anything.

I've been there. EVERYONE has been there. I luckily took the decision 4 years ago to completely stop drinking, my pancreas was telling me to stop, my doctors were and it has taken me a long 3 years to get my health back on track, and start to feel myself again. Whilst not everyone will have to take as drastic measures as I did, it's so important to listen to those early warning signs. When you're coming up against peer pressure at uni from your friends, and family gatherings, it can be hard to say no and listen to what your body is trying to tell you. 

When your work and social life is so busy it can be hard to stop and realise if how you're feeling isn't actually because of stress and what you've been eating. So keep a look out for these 5 signs, and if any of them ring home with you it might be time for a little alcohol detox, however small or big. Trust me, you'll be thankful for this in 20, 30, 40 + years time...

1. Being Sick Every Time You Drink

No one likes being the person being sick on the night out, and despite what people think it's not always because you've drank too much. I was always sick whenever I drank, it didn't matter what the drink was or how much I had drank, it was just awful. It ruined my nights and I just couldn't understand why no one else was ever sick. As time went on it became clear why this was happening, and that my body was doing everything it could to reject it.

It's never a good sign when you're being sick before you even reach that drunk stage and before you've even gone out. The rise in popularity of drinks like prosecco is making people get drunk faster and can cause sickness which stems from the bubbles in the drink. So it twigged with me that having fizzy drinks as mixers probably has the same effect (damn you vodka and lemonade). But as a general rule of thumb, if you are always being sick it's probably best to have a detox for a while, switch to flat mixers and get it checked with a doctor to see if you have an intolerance to alcohol. It's more common than you think!

2. Awful Hangovers

Remember when you were 16 and could get drunk on 1 WKD and wake up the next day with no hangover? No, me neither. It's definitely true that your hangovers get worse with age, mine were AWFUL. It didn't help that alcohol made me so sick, but my hangovers were so bad that I could not get out of bed, I'd be so sick that I would end up with a kidney infection and my skin was in agony. As they continued to get worse, again I knew something was not right. 

If your hangovers are worse than hell you may want to think about a) drinking less (if you're drinking a whole bottle of voddy, well that's your answer but b) take a break from it for a while and cut your consumption down to see if that helps. 

3. Spotty Skin

If you're anything like me, you're probably 24 and still getting spots too, but if anything can make you break out faster than purchasing that Asda bottle of voddy, it's alcohol. If you are consistently drinking and waking up the next day to big, red and angry spots this is not good. 

Skin mapping helps us to identify where your spots are on your face and what body part could be linked to them, the most common areas for breakouts after drinking are your forehead and chin area. I think every time I used to drink I'd wake up to another 2 massive volcanoes on my forehead. This is a sign that your body is to trying to flush out the toxins from alcohol that are not agreeing with you, and if your insides aren't happy it's likely to start showing in your skin.

4. Bad Stomach

When you're busy, going out every weekend and not eating as well as maybe you should, it's so easy to think that having the occasional stomach blip is just down to stress or being busy. If it is something that continually happens it could be a sign of something a bit more sinister. I always put mine down to alcohol and the 4 dominoes pizzas and candy king pic n mix tubs I practically used to have at uni every week, whilst that didn't help matters, my stomach was trying to tell me something wasn't right. 

Drinking alcohol does not mix well with IBS, Chron's Disease, IBD and other digestive problems as it usually aggravates symptoms. In today's society and the common sedentary lifestyle, bad stomachs are a common problem, so we need to look after them!

5. Social Anxiety

It wasn't until I lived in Finland in my second year of uni that I started to feel really weird in social situations, I didn't know what was happening to me, I didn't even really know anything about anxiety at the time. I also didn't link this to acohol consumption until about 6 months later. 

This isn't something I've ever touched on before, but I may in more detail at a later date. I suffered from a touch of social anxiety for about a 6 month period. At this time I was drinking about 3-4 times a week with uni friends, as soon as I drank I used to feel so much more confident in social situations and how to act, but because of this it meant that when I wasn't drinking I couldn't handle normal social situations. It was honestly awful, not being able to look people in the eyes and getting a light headed feeling every time I was in a group gathering really knocked my confidence, forcing me to isolate myself in a place that wasn't even my home. It was like I depended on alcohol to be social, which I know I lot of people do as they feel more comfortable and social when they have a couple drinks.

Continuing to drink in social situations when you identify this problem is the worst thing you can do. If I was going to a house party I was in the mindset that if I had a glass before I went out I would be able to interact in a group with no problem. Alcohol tends to not go well with anxiety of any form anyway, so if you're spotting early signs give it a break. It only gets worse, it then takes a lot of time to unravel. The good news is you can get around it, it's not easy but it's not impossible.

How do you know when it's time to take an alcohol detox?

*Just as a mini disclaimer, I'm not a doctor and this isn't all factual evidence, but from my personal stories and experience with alcohol that I hope could really help someone. 

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10 Of The Best Non Alcoholic Christmas Drinks

Cheers, Kippis, Proost, Santé!, Salud etc...GUYS we are less than a week away from Christmas, and I can barely contain myself! I'm so ready for some time off work, and a lot of good food with my family and friends. It's the holiday of gluttony where all faddy diets and a sense of dignity go out the window, and you know what? We just don't care, because we can start afresh come January. Christmas and NYE are inextricably linked with alcohol, because come on guys you have to have alcohol to have a good time and put up with those cousins from your aunt half removed, right? Well I'll let you in a little secret. You can still have a fab time surrounded by those you love with a non alcoholic drink, whilst a) you'll be entering the next day hangover free b) you'll keep the calories down (although it kinda doesn't cancel out consuming 6,000 calories from the Christmas dinner) c) you can use delicious non alcoholic drinks to pace yourself and d) you're part of the growing population of teetotallers (yay us!) and you just want some delicious drinks of your own to enjoy.

A food baby is one thing, but spare yourself from a grizzly hangover the next day and opt for a soft drink at least once this holiday.

In no particular order, here's the 10 best non alcoholic drinks that you need to be sipping on this Christmas!

#1. Frobishers

Kicking the best of the bunch off with Frobishers, you'll probably have come across their neat little range of fruit juices and cordials at some point. They're readily available in many pubs and bars, and they're a much nicer option than opting for the normal (& in my opinion) boring OJ and coke! With the rise in teetotallers and those wanting to keep off the booze for the most part of Christmas, you can get really creative with mocktails and find your vice within the Frobishers range. The best thing is that you can buy cases and gift sets of these online, just make sure you order before the 21st of December if you want some delivered in time for the big day!

You just can't beat a classic juice with a Frobisher twist. They come in the cutest milk jar style bottles which FYI I am definitely saving and reusing! The juices are perfect for breakfasts and at any other time of the day that you want something a bit tasty, they do a whole host of different juices so you're sure to find one that hits the spot of your tastebuds!

Also in their range are the Frobishers cordials, and I'm not talking about your standard orange squash. These unique flavours range from lemon and mint to coconut and kaffir lime, which is definitely the one! They're perfect for bringing out during the Christmas festivities for something  a little bit different.

The Frobishers Classics are a slight sparkling range of drinks that are perfect for teetotallers for any occasion throughout the year. They're a posh alternative to some of your traditional favourites, with a little twist. The sparkling ginger is one of my favourites, it's definitely a winter warmer that is perfect for drinking over the festive period.

Cocktail Recipe With Frobishers: (one for those who fancy a bit of alcohol this Christmas!)
Loco Coco
Short Martini Glass
25ml Frobishers coconut & kaffir lime cordial
25ml gin
Fresh coriander
Sparkling water
Ice

#2. Sibberi Water

If you're anything like me, once you've been stuck in the house for the day and consumed more than your body weight in pigs and blankets and cheese boards, you'll be itching to get back into the gym for a workout. Sibberi water will have you feeling like yourself again in no time, it's more refreshing and will give you a bit more oomph than a standard bottle of tap water.

Siberri tree water is as pure as it gets. The Birch, Maple and Bamboo water are all naturally hydrating and low in sugars, with 4 x less sugar than coconut water, so it's a perfect alternative if you can't get enough of coconut water. The wonderfully refreshing trio of tree waters are the perfect size for chucking into a gym bag, and they're the perfect post workout pep me up that won't go amiss this Christmas, even if you don't feel like stepping foot in the gym!

#3. Shloer

Shloer is one of the 'go to' Christmas drinks that has been gracing the buffet tables since the 90's! I love their grape celebration white bubbly fruit drink, it's better looking than any bottle and it's sure to rival a bottle of champers at breakfast on Christmas morning. It looks as good in the glass, and could definitely be mistaken for some alcoholic bubbly, minus the headache induced morning the following day...

Shloer is available in practically all major supermarkets, so it's never been so easy to pick up a yummy non alcoholic drink on your weekly food shop. I'm also a massive fan of Red Grape Shloer which is a rich and fruity drink, it really reminds me of Christmas when I have a sip of it!

#4. Bottle Green Drinks

The perfect little soft drink for any occasion, I stumbled across Bottle Green Drinks during research for alternative non alcoholic soft drinks, and their beautiful bottles and range of fun flavours had me at hello.

If you like creating your own unique mocktails, Bottle Green drinks can turn nothing into something, whilst they taste equally as good on their own with a bit of ice! Their cordials and sparkling drinks not only taste good, but their bottles look so beautiful when they're being stored away. I've posted one of my favourite mocktail recipes using their drinks below, but do take a look at their full section of Mocktail Recipes for plenty more drinkspiration!

Mocktail Recipe With Bottle Green Drinks:
Raspberry & Grapefruit Virgin Mojito
Cubed ice & juice
Raspberries
Mint leaves
25ml Bottle Green Raspberry & Grapefruit Cordial
Top with soda water & garnish with mint

#5.J2O

If you didn't look forward to having grown up J2O's when you were younger, then I'm sorry but you didn't do your childhood right. I still love their drinks today, and their festive glitter berry drink is the perfect drink for the Christmas period, besides the fact that it has a glittery bottle too!

Like Shloer, J2O is virtually available in most major supermarkets and bars. However, their glitter berry is a limited edition flavour, so I'd suggest snapping up a bottle of the good stuff before the new year wings its way around!

#6. INVO

Despite not being the biggest coconut water fan I'm all for giving a new brand a try and trying to reap the whole host of benefits that coconut water can bring you, apparently it's meant to be healthier than water, albeit not being a very cost effective health kick! 

INVO coconut water instantly caught my eye with their simple, yet fun labelling - it looks great on an office desk or slung in a gym bag waiting to be your post workout treat. Coconut water is a very acquired taste, but if you like the stuff you will luuurrve INVO! INVO can be purchased from Holland & Barret and Harrods, and I'd recommend anyone to give it a try, it's low in sugar and 99% fat free! It certainly makes a change from all the sparkling and fruit based drinks over the festive period.

#7. Rocks Drinks

There's no denying that Rocks Drinks packaging is beautiful! I love their bold pops of colour against the juices. Their cordials and premade drinks are packed full of fruity flavours, whilst these drinks are made from 3 simple ingredients; fruit, sugar and their own still or sparkling Devonshire spring water. 

Their core range of 6 ready to drink bottles are a little bit sassier and special than your everyday bottles, with the likes of ginger and wasabi and raspberry and lime bottles which sound a bit like heaven. I think everyone will be hankering after a soft drink like this when they discover these awesome flavours! Take a look at their Where To Buy section to see where your nearest stockist is!

#8. Cornish Orchards

Cornish Orchards non alcoholic offering of drinks are flavoursome enough to rival any alcoholic cocktail! Cornish Orchards are another local company and it's fab to see them doing so well, but there's really no reason why when their drinks really do taste amazing! You've almost all probably stumbled across Cornish Orchards at some point, their drinks are sold in a variety of pubs and bars as well as online. All of their drinks including their famous ciders are free from artificial sweeteners, flavourings and colourings. 

Their soft drink collection includes delicious flavours like lemonade, rhubarb and vanilla sparkle (the prettiest, pink bottle ever!) and orange and lemon sparkle. These slightly sparkling drinks look amazing, and you certainly won't feel left out during the party season with one of these in your hand. The likes of the apple juices are perfect for everyday drinks too, it doesn't have to be a special occasion to enjoy sipping on one of these. 

(I probably shouldn't plug this on this post, but Cornish Orchards also do amazing ciders (or so I hear) their mulled cider is like Christmas in a cup! Perfect if you like to pace yourself a bit with alcohol).

#9. Cracker Drinks

In 2016 we've finally started to realise how much hidden sugar is included in our drinks, and unfortunately fruit juices have been one of the main culprits. But you don't need to panic, because you can still enjoy some of your favourite fruit juices with Cracker Drinks. Cracker Drinks are an independent company who specialise in no added sugar drinks, with less than 90 calories per serving. 

I try to be adventurous with my drinks and like creating mocktails as I like to have something that's a little bit nice, and which looks just as good as regular cocktails. I opted for their yummy Still & Cloudy Lemonade which I would 100% recommend if you like flat lemonade without it being fizzy, it also reminds me soooo much of the Shake Shack lemonade which I could legit drinks gallons of! I also tried some of their yummy pineapple, coconut and lime carton of drink which even counts as your 1 of a 5 day which is just perfect for the festive period, because fruit goes out of the window when the buffet food arrives! 

I've posted one of their delicious mocktail ideas below if you fancy giving one a try. Their drinks are also available in most major supermarkets, as well as being on offer at a range of different bars in the UK, which is always good to know if you're heading out over the Christmas period and want something nice to drink! I only wish I knew about these fruity and refreshing drinks during the summer!

Mocktail Recipe With Cracker Drinks:
The Little Madhatter
100ml Chilled Earl Grey Tea
150ml Cracker Still & Cloudy lemonade
Serve over ice
Garnish with a lemon wedge

#10. Feel Good Drinks

As if 9 different non alcoholic options weren't enough, I'm finishing it off with Feel Good Drinks who are helping to provide more #feelgoodmoments this Christmas without the hangover. Their drinks are available in 6 different flavours that are 100% natural, and are made from a simple blend of fruit and water.

Their drinks are currently available in Asda and Sainsburys, and I promise these drinks won't break the bank either. Most of their drinks start at £2, so it's the perfect opportunity to try something a little bit different this Christmas.

So there we have it, you'll be spoilt for choice this Christmas season with so many delicious soft drink brands to try, with most being readily available in supermarkets and bars to help you have an enjoyable, and fuss free Christmas break! Take a look at my surviving the Christmas party season when you're teetotal post to help you make an easy transition to non alcoholic drinks this Christmas!

What's your favourite non alcoholic Christmas drink? Do you have any other favourites that didn't make my cut?

*Products marked with an asterix (*) have been sent to me for review. However, all opinions in this post are 100% my own

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Surviving The Christmas Party Season When You're Teetotal

So, if you didn't already know, I'm teetotal. Yep. I suggest heading over to read my 'why it's okay to be a teetotal 23 year old' post before reading on to get the low down. I've been off the drink for over 3 years now which is both amazing, and scary. But the fact is, whatever your reason for not drinking, it never gets easier when you head into the party season. With upcoming work Christmas meals and family gatherings, I can imagine it's a similar feeling if you suffer from social anxiety, as you just can't escape it. I know it shouldn't, but these occasions are mainly celebrated by drinking alcohol which can lead you to feeling like 'the odd one out'.

A year on from writing my post, and I still feel like nothing has changed in society about the so called 'drinking culture', drinking until the cows come home and collpasing in the gutter is NOT Hygge, nor is it cool. The best thing I have found is removing yourself from the situation, but unfortunately it's not possible when the impending doom of the work Christmas party is approaching. Seeing as this will be my 4th teetotal Christmas (do I get a jacket for when I reach 5 years?) I thought I'd share some of my survival tips with you to help keep you sane over the Christmas period!

#1. Don't Overthink

Overthinking and worrying is the first thief of happiness. I usually have 5 questions on repeat in my head before going to any type of social event; 'will they ask why I'm not drinking?' 'Will they think I'm boring?', 'what if I'm not confident enough to sit with drunk people?' 'will they ask why I can't drink?' etc. I am so guilty of doing this and more times than not, only a couple of questions will actually come to fruition during the evening.

Overthinking beforehand will put you off going, and you should never let being teetotal stop you from doing something. Which leads me to....

#2. Do GO
Just say yes! It's like suffering from social anxiety, however hard it is, it makes it worse for yourself if you don't go and turn down an invite. I always ask myself, what is the worst thing that's going to happen? Probably nothing, so go, enjoy yourself, you deserve that glass of orange juice with your friends!

#3. Be Confident
Just by going to an event and not drinking in itself is a huge achievement. How many people could actually go to a Christmas work party sober? No, really? The reality is that people drink because it makes them feel more confident, and to relax. REALITY CHECK: They need it to feel less socially awkward, and to give themselves a boost of confidence.

Confidence comes from within, and the reason people say 'how can you do it?' or 'is it boring?', is actually because they would never be able to do it in a million years. If you have confidence, you can survive any social occasion without alcohol, and you can go home feeling confident that you're going to be hangover free the next day, woop!

#4. Answer Questions, BUT Don't Justify
We all know that one person that never takes no for an answer, and will ask you the same questions about your drinking habits at EACH social gathering, give it a break? No matter how many times you tell a person they just can't seem to accept it that not everyone drinks.

These people are boring, my best advice is to avoid them if you can, and remember to never justify. You don't have to tell anyone why you don't drink if you don't want to, its 2016 AND YOU CAN DO WHAT YOU WANT! 

#5. Pick A Yummy Drink
Water is probably one of the only things that I actually drink during the week, so when I go out for a meal or a night out it makes it more of a treat to have something a bit less 'boring'. Mocktails are a good choice, and more places are starting to cater to the teetotal market so they'll always have a space on the drinks menu for some options, albeit small. 

Actually, people may not even know you're not drinking sometimes - I've played drinking games with water and been bought top ups of vodka lemonade when I was just drinking lemonade. People don't even know the difference when they've had one too many!

#6. Be Yourself
It's not your fault that you can't drink for whatever reason, and you should never let it feel like that. I've completely changed my life for the better since I stopped drinking 3 years ago, and I couldn't be happpier. I'm alive, happy and healthy, and I really couldn't ask for anything more.

Everyone will see you at your best all the time, as nothing is ever clouding your judgement or enhancing your personality. When you're acting yourself, you don't need to be anything else. And if people don't like that? They're not worth having in your life!

Whatever event you have coming up, I hope you all have an amazing time during the Christmas season, remember that your teetoal status doesn't define you! I don't personally know of many people that are 100% teetotal and I really wish I would have been able to confide in someone 3 years ago. So if you're in a similar position or need some advice, please do tweet me or get in touch via email on nicolelisasage@msn.com!

Are you teetotal? Do you have any other tips for surving the Christmas party season?

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