Emily Syphas is a Transformational Life & Addictive Behaviour coach and speaker who helps to empower others to live happy and hangover-free. In 2018, Emily founded Sober & Social after years of being in a negative cycle with her drinking and the impact this had on her mental health and wellbeing. It was from this, that she decided to embark on a journey of hangover-free living and sharing her passion to help empower and inspire others to lead their most healthiest, happiest and hangover-free life. Here's her story.
I started my sobriety journey back in 2018, out of urgency. I was stuck in a destructive cycle of drugs, drinking and unhealthy romantic relationships. My mental health was at an all time low and I knew I needed help. At the time I was working in the nightlife scene in London and literally got paid to party. I knew I needed to make some serious lifestyle changes but wanted to continue doing my job, living my life to the fullest and not have to compromise on my social life. I decided to embark on living an alcohol-free life but not holding myself back because I no longer was drinking.
Was I going to be sober forever? Could I go from a problematic relationship with alcohol to an unproblematic relationship with alcohol? And what does it take to moderate? Do I need to be so labelled for the rest of my life? I started to explore and expand my horizons on different learnings around changing my relationship with alcohol away from full-time sobriety (something that isn't often spoken about in the sober space). I am also a coach and help others with their relationship with alcohol, but moderation or occasional drinking isn't something I have ever been able to do. I wanted to gain a deeper understanding of alcohol coming from a now unproblematic space and answer my questions.
I couldn't find the language to use around my exploration. Did I want to go back to regularly having alcohol in my life? No, but I did want to explore what alcohol means to me so I created the concept of hangover-free living which as a baseline meant I lived a life with no hangovers.
I want to highlight this is going to mean something different for each person as we are all so individual. For some it will mean no alcohol at all and for others it might mean one or two drinks on a night out, but it's open for you to decide what this means to you (through my exploration period this meant maximum 2 drinks, with food, over a few hours, with people I trusted and no more than twice a month). Crucially throughout this time I still very much saw myself as someone that doesn't drink rather than someone that drinks alcohol occasionally.
When I talk about hangover-free living, I don't just mean alcohol. I mean hangover free from regrets, hangover free from anxiety and hangover free from bad habits. It's about taking your power back and creating a healthier and happier way of living that feels more accessible than having to fit into a label (if this doesn't work for you).
And how to tell if it might be a problem.
I want to create an easier landing space for others wanting to look at their relationship with alcohol, without feeling judged, without feeling like they go back to ‘day one’ or be put off from making positive changes with their consumption because they don't want to use the term sober.
Where have I landed? I am hangover-free and alcohol-free. I soon discovered on my own personal journey that even an occasional drink was not appealing anymore – not because it was problematic, but for the simple reason I just didn't want to.
My hope is that hangover-free living will help provide an umbrella term that feels more accessible and allows people to explore where they want to land and define their journey their way, with whatever terminology works for them.
What hangover-free is
Hangover-free living is an inclusive term that means radically changing your relationship with alcohol, whether this means cutting down, changing your habits, or cutting it out. It's a way of living your most fulfilled, vibrant and empowered life that helps you to create a life you don't need to escape from.
Why being hangover-free is a new way of living
Hangover-free living offers a less labelled approach in helping people make positive changes with their relationship with alcohol without having to fit into a box. For some people, this might mean wanting to go completely alcohol-free, for others it's being more mindful of their consumption or offering a way of exploring their relationship with alcohol with less pressure of having to define their journey.
3 steps to living hangover-free
- Create your bigger vision – living hangover free is about creating a life where alcohol is no longer the main ingredient. Start by asking yourself the following questions. What do you want your life to feel like? What do you want to achieve that you haven't already? What are the reasons you want to live hangover free? What are the advantages of having alcohol in your life? What are the disadvantages of having alcohol in your life? What are the advantages of living hangover free? What are the disadvantages of living hangover free?
- Start experimenting with alcohol-free alternatives – there are so many amazing options that are still totally delicious and give the fun without the fuzz. I would suggest trying Clean Co., Lyre’s, Pentire, Caleno, Lucky Saint, Real Kombucha and French Bloom to get you started.
- Re-define what fun means to you – living hangover free might mean that nightclubs and bars might not have the same appeal as they once did (or maybe they might but that's for you to figure out). I would recommend exploring what feels fun to you now alcohol is no longer the main ingredient. Maybe that's getting up earlier and going to gym, connecting with friends over brunch, planning a hike, finding an alcohol-free party to attend or finding the best alcohol-free cocktail in town.
