Journey to the Sunnyside

Hey, everybody. Welcome back to Journey to the Sunnyside. And today is the day before Thanksgiving. You know, we have the food, the family, and the comfort that comes with the holidays. And also that subtle feeling that the drinking goals, well, they get a little bit, you know, flexible.

So it's not that we stop caring, it's that our environment shifts. Holidays live in an emotional space where alcohol isn't just a beverage, it's part of the tradition for many of us. It's part of the belonging. It's part of that familiar comfort. And it's a little signal that says, ah, yes, it's the holidays and I'm home.

So today, I don't want to talk all about discipline and perfection. I want to get more into awareness and reducing that friction. And today, I'm going to cover seven ways to stay aligned this Thanksgiving without rigid rules or feeling like we're frankly missing out. Tip number one is plan your number, but prepare for the moment. So of course, Sunnyside's helps you to plan and track your numbers and that matters, But the numbers alone aren't where things necessarily go off track.

And I'll explain what I'm talking about. Most people, they don't slip up because they forgot, oh, you know, my number's two drinks max, and I'm gonna have a third, and that's it. That's not really the way it all happens. We generally slip because of a moment. You know, maybe it's a first toast, maybe it's a friend grabbing your arm and pulling you to the bar, maybe it's that cozy after dinner mood where everyone's relaxed and you think, hey, you know, I had these two drinks and I like this feeling and I want more of it.

So yes, you decide your number, but also ask, when am I most likely to want more than I planned? So if you prepare for that moment, then you're gonna be much more likely to get past it if you're already at your drink number. So for example, let's say your drink number is two or maybe it's three. If you get to that moment that you've already predicted, maybe you have one less of what your max number is, so that you can enjoy that moment, or use one of these strategies to get past it so that you don't exceed what you already committed to. And that brings us to tip number two, which you can use for that calm your system before you decide.

I like something called the physiological sigh. And if you want an in-depth explanation on how to do this, I have a full podcast dedicated to this alone. So if you find yourself in a situation where maybe you have a craving coming up or you're questioning breaking your commitment, And before maybe an automatic yes to an answer, try this instead. Take two quick inhales through your nose. So basically, and then one long exhale through your mouth.

You don't have to do it that loud, by the way, or you can excuse yourself to go to the bathroom and do it. You know, nobody sees it, but your body and your mind actually does. It tells your nervous system, slow down. There's nothing urgent here to make a decision on. And you go from reacting to actually choosing.

You're not really shutting down the craving altogether, but you are creating space between the urge and your response. Now, that's one tip. Tip number three, also in the urge and craving category, and that is called urge surfing. So urges can last ten to fifteen minutes, but the intense part, it can be a lot shorter. So holiday urges can be a little bit stronger, of course, because they can be attached to emotion, stress, celebration, maybe loneliness, maybe joy.

But the strongest part where it actually tries to push you into action is usually much shorter. And that's where urge surfing really can help. And this is one also that you can do pretty much anywhere. You might not wanna do it in a crowded room, but you certainly could go into the restroom. You can go outside.

You can do it pretty much anywhere. And with this tactic, you're not really trying to beat this urge or make it fully go away. You're just letting it peak without reacting. It stops driving your actions. And again, if you want an in-depth explanation on this and you're interested in using urge surfing as a tactic on Thanksgiving, I have a full episode on that if you go and search our episodes.

But you're literally just stopping. You're recognizing the urge. You're imagining it that it's this growing wave and you don't need to do anything. You just recognize the urge. You let it grow and eventually it's gonna stop growing and it's gonna start to shrink.

And you can just basically say to yourself, okay, craving, do your thing. I'm not gonna act on it. I'm just watching. And when you stop wrestling with it, it starts to lose its urgency. And you're gonna be able to make decisions not based on a craving or an urge, but more with a conscious decision.

Tip number four is start with something in your hand before the first pour. So we all kind of know that you can alternate drinks with non alcoholic and alcoholic, but alternating later in the evening can get tougher because once that momentum starts, you tend to match the rhythm around you. We all get caught up in the moment, you know, the next day, man, what happened? Start the night with something non alcoholic already in your hand. And I think this is a good tactic.

Just have something in your hand all the time that tends to make it a lot easier. If you start with something nonalcoholic, it kind of prevents that automatic flip into drinking mode. Many of us think that we need to start with the drink just to kinda settle in. But a lot of times, once you get something in your hand, even it's nonalcoholic, and the better part is you really haven't hit the gas on anything, and you might end up just enjoying yourself and not even thinking about that first drink. And if you handle that first moment well, a lot of the rest of the night will get easier.

Tip number five is know where more starts to become less. There's always that point in the night, and you've probably felt it, where another drink, it really just doesn't make anything better. It doesn't deepen the conversations, it doesn't relax you more. And once you start noticing where that point is for you, the decision gets simpler. You can ask yourself, if I have one more right now, is it actually gonna improve anything?

And that question's gonna help you to keep aligned better and make better choices in the moment. Tip number six is flexibility is good as long as it's intentional. Being flexible is not a sign that you're off track, but drifting is. Intentional flexibility sounds something like this. I'm gonna cut loose a little and relax tonight, but I wanna feel clear tomorrow.

Unintentional sounds like, oh my gosh, I didn't even mean to drink so much. What happened? You don't need to have these strict rules. You just need the awareness that maybe you can loosen up, but you didn't lose your entire goals and direction in the process. Tip number seven is stopping one drink earlier protects the whole experience.

You can still have your drinks and enjoy it, but you just have to stop before it starts taking away from tomorrow. If you think about it, most people don't regret the night. They regret that extra one that why did we get the shots at the end of the night. Stopping one drink earlier almost never changes the night, but it can completely change the next morning. You can get better sleep, better mood, better energy, and that's the full day.

And maybe most importantly, you wake up feeling proud. You know, I skipped that last drink. I've said that to myself and said, I feel good about that. I usually never said, oh, I'm glad I had that last drink. And when you do that, you stay connected to what you actually wanted to do.

Final thought. If you forgot everything else this holiday, just try this. Notice the moment, take a breath before reacting, protect tomorrow without ruining today. Alright. I hope you have a happy Thanksgiving filled with lots of joy around with people you love and, of course, some great food.

Until next time, cheers to your mindful drinking journey.