The usual pattern of my day is a cup of tea while I tackle the daily Wordle puzzle, followed by some toast or cereal. Thus energised, I clean out the wood burner, disposing of the ashes of the previous day. I imagine this act also has a symbolic aspect to it. I sort out the wood needed for the day, cutting some of the bigger logs down to size with my axe as necessary. I build the base of today’s fire ready for igniting a bit later. After these rituals, the day can unfold in multiple ways. There is always a lot to do, but the question is – do I want to do that today?
I wrote yesterday about feeling tired and my hope that abstinence will start to improve the quality of my sleep. It has been well established that alcohol has a negative impact on sleep quality. While, as a central nervous depressant, alcohol can help you to fall asleep – whether or not you want to, depending where you are! – it disrupts the way your body normally cycles through the different stages of sleep. It can lead to a reduction in REM (rapid eye movement) sleep which is associated with dreaming and the important processing of memories and information. The impact depends on the amount you drink and how close this is to when you try to sleep. Your body is busily metabolising the alcohol throughout the sleep cycle, and you may often find yourself waking in the early hours and not being able to get to sleep again, or sleeping fitfully as the latter part of your sleep tends to be lighter than the earlier stages of deep sleep. I certainly experience this if I have drunk a little more than usual, often accompanied by thoughts such as “I should not have had so much to drink”. Strangely, these thoughts persist if I experience a hangover – more about this wonderful phenomenon in another post!
I’m starting to think that January is going to be a long month! Many participants in Dry January experience a relapse during the first weekend of the month. I am lucky as a retiree because weekends do not have the same significance as when I was working, but there can be social opportunities/pressures at times. Here at the edge of the village, these are not frequent. Or maybe I am just not popular?
And speaking of popularity, here are some more items from Derek’s Famous Alcohol Quiz…
Alcohol Trivia Quiz
Yesterday’s answers:
- In the UK, 40% abv vodka is 70 proof.
- The wire cage securing a Champagne cork is called a muselet,
- It was Ogden Nash who said “Candy is dandy but liquor is quicker”.
Today’s questions:
- What is added to base spirit to produce…
- Cointreau?
- Drambuie?
- Ouzo?
- What is Reinheitsgebot?
- Which group had a hit with “Lily the Pink”?
Thank you for reading my blog. Please give me a little “like” because I need that little dopamine hit now I’m not drinking (more about pleasure pathways in another post – or you can see my slides on emotion: https://understandyourselfbetter.com/everything-emotional/
Keep safe and well. Stick at it. Good things come to those who wait! [Guinness Zero is very tasty btw]
Understand Yourself Better 