Hi, I’m Rebecca. Some of you might remember me from when I was Becca – Admin, but for those of you who don’t I’m an editor in the Macmillan digital team. I’m also a sober hero, because for the whole of October, I didn’t touch a drop of alcohol.*
*Full disclosure: I had one golden ticket for my friend’s wedding, which meant that for a donation of £15 I was allowed to have a cheeky drink mid-month. They’re strictly for emergencies though.
I expected to find it difficult, I’m a big fan of a post-work wine or a Saturday cocktail with the girls, so promising not to drink for a whole month was a bit daunting. However it was made much easier when a few of my friends signed up to form a sober team with me – safety in numbers and all that!
There were some tricky moments, I can’t lie. Friday evenings just didn’t feel the same, heading straight home instead of to the pub with my colleagues for a celebratory pint. Family celebrations went un-toasted and Sunday lunches were accompanied by a Spartan glass of sparkling water instead of a big cheerful glass of red. I also explored the frankly limited and often vile non-alcoholic options at several restaurants and pubs. Not an experience I’m keen to repeat!
But as soon as the sponsorship started to arrive in my virtual coffers I felt boosted and completely motivated to continue on my sober path. I also surprised myself by having a really lovely dinner with a friend and actually remembering all of our conversations the next morning (not something I can normally say of team Pinot), as well as squeezing in a few Saturday morning runs in my newly-clear-headed weekends. As a team we raised almost £600 which I’m really proud of. I know exactly how far that money will go, for example £600 could pay for a Macmillan nurse for 24 hours.
So on balance, the early nights and missed pub-trips were definitely worth it. I’d encourage anyone to take part next year, it’s much easier than you think and you’ll be surprised at your own will-power and determination, as well as making a real difference to people living with cancer.
