Sobriety is like the gift that keeps on giving. Suddenly you have more awareness, more energy, and the capacity to learn new things! Here are 24 sober practices to try…why not give one a whirl?
- Stand-up Comedy: Laugh at your past misadventures, not during them. (Fun fact: Sober Curator Founder Alysse and I took an improv class last year, and we are DEFINITELY funnier now! Just ask us! LOL)
- Start a Collection: Fun fact! I collect Golden Girls memorabilia. T-Shirts, magnets, you name it. My kids will hate me when I die, but it brings me back to smipler times to look at Blanche, Dorothy, Rose and Sophia. And I don’t even like cheesecake.
- Grounding Excercises: Learn to garden, or play in the dirt because adulting is hard and you need a break. Or get a Japanese rake garden- I’m not even kidding, there is something very meditative about it.
- Astronomy: Stare at stars instead of into the bottom of a glass.
- Try a Knife Skills Class: Online or in person, why not try to make your food prep or daily dinner making session faster or more enjoyable? Plus, it will keep your kind sharp. Pun intended. 😉
- Wim Hof Breathwork: Look him up on YouTube, and incorporate a small practice of breathwork- just even try it for a week! I don’t do this with regularity, but when I do, the basic concentration of breath definitely clears the mind… just be careful not to get too lightheaded. (I’m serious!)
- Writing: Pen a novel. (I’ve done it, so can you!) Who knows, you might be the next John Grisham!
- Paint Jackson Pollack Style: Seriously. This is cathartic in so many ways. Splatter paint all over an old sheet or a piece of butcher paper. Or if you’re repainting a room in your house, do it on the walls. It feels oddly freeing.
- Geocaching: Gone are the old school days of an old person on the beach with a metal detector. Geocaching is like treasure hunting, but the only pirate here is you. People get super into this, it’s truly a thing!
- Drumming: I tried a drumming class at Canyon Ranch a few years ago. It sounds counterintuitive, I know, but it’s very calming. Plan B: Annoy your neighbors with something other than loud parties. In either case… the rhythm is gonna get you. (Did you catch that?!)
- Polaroid Photography: Get old school and grab a scrapbook album and a polaroid (type) camera. This is a vintage, circa 1980’s practice for sure, but the idea has made a comeback in recent years. Build a scrapbook of non-instagram worthy photos, just for your own personal creative expression.
- Pottery: Get your hands dirty in clay, not hangover regrets. This practice combines the creative with the tactile, and it gets you out of your head. Even just modeling clay can feel therapeutic to manuver…try it and you’ll see. 🙂
- Pick a Cause You Like, and Offer to Help: Do good for others; feel good for free. Just be sure to have and use excellent boundaries, because your time is valuable and you might get sucked into more than you bargained for. So set your time and ability limits, stick to them, and share your strengths with an organization in need- nothing is more rewarding!
- Shower Yoga: Bend yourself into a pretzel, find inner peace or at least inner flexibility…in the shower! (There’s a whole YouTube channel devoted to this, by the way, I’m not making it up!)
- Square Dancing: Look, I grew up in California in the 1980’s. For some reason square dancing was basically sweeping the nation as a PE activity. I have no idea why, but it has disappeared. I say, let’s bring it back.
- Board Games: Play Monopoly sober with a group of sober buddies and still question all your life choices.
- Podcasting: Talk into a mic about your passions, not your drunken escapades. I have a podcast called “Eternally Amy”, and even though it has grown and stretched me because it’s been uncomfortable at times (trust me, NO ONE likes listening to the sound of their own voice!) I’ve had the benefit of meeting sim fascinating, incredible people I never would have connected with if I hadn’t put myself out there!
- Aquarium Stalking: MMMkkay this sounds weird. But on a field trip with one of my kids’ second grade classes, we went to the aquarium and put our hands in that one pool with the starfish and the smooth, creepy eel thing. I can’t explain it, but it’s the tactile stuff that was all new to me. Maybe because as a drinker, especially toward the end, I coduln’t feel anything anymore. I went to the next kid’s aquarium, and the next. It kind of became a thing for me, and now I do the same thing in the summertime with my feet- like a grounding exercise. I put my bare feet on grass, on sand. I try to pay attention to how my feet feel on the surface. But it started with aquarium stalking.
- Play “Would You Rather?”: Challenge yourself alone or with a partner to think about what you would do in a certain situation you will most likely never be faced with. It’s a practice that challenges you to get uncomfortable- just for a second- and answer a hypothetical cringeworthy question. It may sound dumb but it builds character and opens the mind.
- Enneagram Work: Find out more about yourself, and what motivates you. What are your core fears? What are your areas of growth? This enneagram stuff blew my mind, it’s truly fascinating. Take a test for free at https://enneagramuniverse.com.
- Myers-Briggs: How long has it been since you took it? Did you know we change over time? (Or hopefully we do!) Take the Myers-Briggs again and see how it compares to what you were before getting sober! https://psychometrica.org/articles/personality/myers-briggs-personality-test-free/
- Homebrewing Coffee: Roast your own beans. Create your own pour overs. (This it a whole thing I don’t have time or equipment for, but I do admire it…plus, I’m not far from Portand and peeps go crazy for this activity there.) Because brewing beer is so last year. Just kidding.
- Read a New Genre: Visit new worlds, no hangover included. If you’re not really a reader, start with quit lit! Move onto fiction! But if you are an avid reader, did you know how many new genres are out there?!) Most interestingly, one called “reverse harem”! *Raises hand*. I’ll have what she’s having. PS Audiobooks count as reading!
- Shamanism: I’m all about trying new things in my spiritual life. Once upon a time, I would have cringed at the word “shaman”, assuming it was for devil worshippers or witch doctors (nothing against you guys, you do you!) But in opening my mind more, and through a great therapist, I have been introduced to some life-changing rituals. The best part is they are all customizable and don’t involve a ouijia board (Unless you want them to.)
So, there you go – a list of 24 random, slightly quirky practices that are as entertaining as a night out, but with fewer facepalms the morning after! 🎨🚴♀️🔭🧘♂️
SOBER ENTERTAINMENT: Let us entertain you! Here you’ll find a curated selection of podcasts, TV series & movies, events, and music with the underlying theme of addiction. We’re sober, not boring! We’re covering it if it’s trending in pop culture and relates to sobriety. Our taste is eclectic, and our reviews are honest. Check out the sober entertainment you never knew you needed until now.
#QUITLIT Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. #QUITLIT is our curated list of addiction and recovery book reviews. All Sober Curators should be well-read, from addiction and recovery memoirs to fiction and self-help.
ADDICTION FICTION: This is a newer genre of literature that explores the theme of addiction and recovery. These works of fiction often revolve around characters struggling with substance abuse and the emotional, physical, and psychological toll it takes on their lives. They may also delve into the complex dynamics of addiction within relationships and families. Addiction fiction typically focuses on themes of redemption, personal growth, and the journey toward recovery. By exploring these themes, addiction fiction can provide a powerful and relatable message.
THE MINDFUL BINGE features TV series where addiction and recovery are part of the main storyline.
MOVIE NIGHT WITH THE SOBER CURATOR brings you the movies we love that also carry the underlying story of addiction, recovery, and mental illness.
RECOVERY PODCASTLAND is your one-stop shop to check out all recovery-based podcasts we’ve been curating.
PLAY IT AGAIN is jamming with music selections representing some part of our journeys and giving us all the feels.
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