The Dry January campaign encourages people to give up drinking during the first month of the year as a way to recover from the excess of the holiday season and to start the New Year in a healthy way. (Journal file photo)

MARQUETTE — With another holiday season in the books, it is time for all of us to look forward to a new year full of exciting opportunities and new beginnings.

But first, many of us have to recover from the holiday season.

While the past few weeks have been full of family, friends and gifts, for many of us they have been full of the excesses which go along with the holiday season–too much food, too much money spent and too much alcohol consumption.

From Thanksgiving through New Year’s, many of us drink as much in that month span as we do the entire rest of the year. The night before Thanksgiving with your high school friends. Christmas parties with your family. New Year’s with pretty much everyone. It can get to be a lot.

That is why people all over the United States and Europe take part in the Dry January campaign.

Dry January is what it sounds like–an entire month without alcohol. It is a way for many to recover from a hectic and hungover holiday season by taking a month off.

The concept dates all the way back to Finland in 1942 but has more recently become a part of popular culture. A 2021 Morning Consult poll found that 13% of Americans were planning to participate.

A month may seem like nothing at all or an eternity, depending on how much you enjoy a drink but just those 31 days can make a big difference in your physical and mental health for 2022.

Eliminating binge drinking can have many benefits for your health, which will probably not come as a surprise. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, heavy drinking, whether over a long period of time or on a weekend long bender, can cause serious problems for almost every one of your organs, including higher risk of heart disease, stroke and cancer. Drinking can also have negative effects on your immune system, which can have devastating consequences during a pandemic.

Even if you don’t have a drinking problem, it can be good to take a month off.

Many of us enjoy going for drinks with friends on the weekend or having a beer after a stressful workday and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that but there are other alternatives for those who are interested in participating in Dry January, including options which allow you to support local businesses.

Some Dry January alternatives:

≤ Going out for coffee or tea. This is a tried and true drinking alternative and the Marquette area offers plenty of options for socializing with friends. Contrast Coffee and Velodrome Coffee in Marquette both have interesting drink choices and offer a nice place to sit and enjoy a beverage with some friends.

≤ Try out a Kombucha bar. A fermented tea drink, Kombucha can definitely scratch the itch for a cold beer. Superior Culture in Marquette ferments their Kombucha locally and even has a taproom, where you and some friends can get together in a bar atmosphere and have some drinks, minus the hangover.

≤ Head to a local brewery. This one may seem counterproductive but many of the local breweries like Blackrocks Brewery and Ore Dock Brewing Co. both have non-alcoholic beverages like root beer and cream soda on tap, crafted with the same care and quality as their beer.

This can be a great way to look after your health during January while still supporting your favorite local pub and getting to socialize.

The idea of a Dry January may not appeal to everyone and that’s OK. For those who do choose to participate, a month worth of better sleep, no hangovers and money saved can be a great way to start the new year off on the right foot.

If you feel that you or someone you care about may have an alcohol problem, there are plenty of national and local resources to help.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration 24/7, confidential helpline can be reached at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Marquette area residents can get in touch with Great Lakes Recovery Center at 906-228-9696 or visit greatlakesrecovery.org for more information.

Randy Crouch can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 242. His email address is rcrouch@miningjournal.net.