Happy October! I hope you’re ready for a fantastic spooky season, because I am well into it by now. Before I get into my full post today, I have exciting news to share: my friend and magnificent author is publishing her middle-grade novel Sisters in Delft. It is a whimsical story about sisterhood and magical worlds that exist just beyond our reach, as sisters are pulled into the Vermeer painting The View of Delft. It is going to be released November 29 and is available to pre-order now. Check it out, it’s a story that I love, as do my kids.

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Now to the somber (sober) stuff. If you’ve been paying attention to what’s going on in the world of alcohol, new advisories in Canada have drastically reduced the “safe” amount of alcohol consumption. In fact, there is no safe amount of alcohol that you can consume. The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA), a national advisory organization, has found that any level of alcohol consumption had a net negative impact on health for almost every disease reviewed, including heart disease, several types of cancer and liver cirrhosis.

I know this is not the news you were looking to hear. Life is already pretty unbearable, and now this? But maybe it’s a sign that you should try something new. Something that’s awesome for you, and feels amazing (I promise). Maybe this month you should:

Sober October is a charity challenge that’s been going on for nearly 10 years. The initial initiative was to fundraise for cancer treatments, but Sober October has become its own thing now. The rules are simple: don’t drink for the month of October. Save some of those hard-earned bucks (that are getting harder and harder to stretch these days), and take a pass on the hangover. It’s an easy way to give you a taste of what life can be like without alcohol. I suggest if you go in with a positive, curious mindset, you will likely be happily surprised.

I gave up alcohol years ago, quite suddenly and nearly on a whim, and have never looked back. I’ve saved money, lost weight, and have the skin of a much younger person. Extra bonus points for all the health benefits. It was a wonderful choice for me, so I like sharing my journey with others. This could be a great way to start.

If you are forgoing alcohol for a month, a year or forever, then you should be given all the life-affirming support that you deserve, you awesome human. Consider me your personal cheerleader! Let me know about the ups and downs, and reach out if you need to.

In Breaking Up with Booze, I go through some of the obvious and not-so-obvious benefits of quitting alcohol for a year (or a month! Or forever! It’s all good stuff) My How-to Guide to Sobriety goes into some social challenges you might face when you say no to alcohol, as well as some action points you can follow to get through them.

Let me know if you’re doing the Sober October challenge – I want to be here to cheer you on!