Dry January is a New Year’s resolution of sorts where you go the entire month of January alcohol-free. Addiction experts have already weighed in, and this week the News asked people at Richmond Centre whether they’ve heard of dry January and whether they’re participating.
Charmaine Childs
Visual effects
Richmond News: We’re talking about dry January this week. Have you heard of it?
Oh, where people don't drink
RN: Are you participating?
No, but I know friends who are and I'm actually considering doing, like, a dry year.
RN: Why?
I feel like alcohol doesn't really add value to my life a lot of the time. Sometimes it makes more problems than it actually helps.
Melanie Ware
Paralegal
RN: Have you heard of dry January?
Is that like dry, like, not drinking?
RN: Yes. Are you participating this year?
I don't drink already, so…
RN: What do you think of people making it as their New Year’s resolution?
I think it's good. I think it's a positive change.
Because sometimes you don't realize what your habits … Drinking is one form of buffering, of putting something between you and your emotions or things that are happening in your life. Doing a dry January is definitely a step towards positive change
Bargarico
Having lunch
RN: Have you heard of something called dry january?
No
RN: It’s when people make a resolution not to drink for the whole month. What do you think of that?
That's good.
When I was in the Phillippines, I'd drink alcohol. But now I'm here, I don't have as many friends so I totally stopped.
Bob Hewitt
Automotive
RN: Have you heard of dry January?
I'm contemplating starting it off tonight, actually. I was just thinking about that.
RN: Why do it?
Just overall health. It changes my routine. Just kind of challenges me to do stuff that I might not otherwise do.
RN: What do you think might be hard about it?
Just that, the routine. I don't want to hibernate. I still want to have a life. What encourages me about, though, it is finding different things to do and different experiences.
Emily Reid
Student
RN: What do you think of dry January?
I think it's a good idea but also not, in a sense. Because it's not really encouraging, like, if you actually have a drinking problem for you to really maintain it throughout the year.
I know people that have done that sort of thing and then when they go back to drinking it's, like, ten times harder.
RN: Will you be participating?
I drink sometimes, but I'm not a huge (drinker). So I feel like dry January wouldn't really be much of a difference for me because I don't drink that often.
