Love this! I definitely want to try a no spend period as my post break up shopping got a bit out of control 🥴 I also start my day with morning pages which I just can't imagine not anymore. Thank you for sharing!
That's understandable! It's helpful too to think through purchases over the last six months and get more conscious about which of those brought you genuine joy, and which weren't worth it. Morning pages 4 life!
I was accidentally sober for part of last year and realized that alcohol really takes a toll on my mental well-being -- and for so long I thought that was just my baseline mood! I’ve noticed a huge difference in my day-to-day well-being now that I am sober, and having the mindset of “this activity brings me a little bit of joy now but a lot of hurt later” has been really powerful in adjusting what things I cut out of my life that aren’t worth feeling miserable for (social media, eating meat, etc). It’s helped me break my habit of seeing these choices as restriction that then becomes an enticing taboo (like many fad diets). Realizing that I enjoy living a happy life made sobriety an easy choice for me to follow!
I think that's so true, Logan—alcohol is a serious drug that we treat as no big deal, even though just a couple of glasses can affect our overall mood and wellbeing for a week or longer. I love the mindset of freeing yourself from limitations rather than restricting. Proud of you!
The most surprisingly helpful thing that’s helped curb my impulsive purchases has been the Pocket app. Every time I come across something I think I want/need, I save it and tag it with “stuff to buy.” If it’s something I actually want, I’ll make the effort to go and find the link I saved. If not, I clearly didn’t want it that badly in the first place. In the 8 months or so since doing this, I’ve only gone back to look at 2 things and only went ahead and purchased one - which was a gift.
That's awesome it's been so helpful! Pocket is a good idea to keep track of links — I have a Google doc called WANT where I throw things in and look at them from time to time. This is also helpful when sending a holiday wish list to family who want gift ideas!
I am annoyed about the alcohol thing too. For me it’s after two drinks. If I have a third I feel crummy the next day. I also hate drinking during the week. In some ways it’s easier to just not drink at all than try to be more conscious about my drinking! Which surprises me. Still working on this one too.
Love this and appreciate the transparency! I’m someone who is fantastic at spending money even though I feel like I don’t buy anything. It’s food. It’s always eating out and food. Which, for the most part, I feel good about -- but am trying to make sure that I’m making conscious food choices. I’m all for trying new places and eating well, but sometimes I’m just lazy and could do better than ramen a 4th time in a week. 😂
Thanks so much! A huge chunk of my money goes toward food too. Eating out is one of life's greatest pleasures! I just try to make sure those meals are fulfilling and "worth it," whatever that means to each of us. Sometimes it's the cost of connecting with friends and I'm here for that.
I love this kind of very detailed breakdown and relate to all of it - thriving with boundaries, relationship with alcohol, etc. One boundary that has worked for me is to limit drinking to 2-3 days a week - I generally stay dry Monday - Thursday, unless there's a special occasion. "I try not to drink during the week" feels like a good rule of thumb - semi-restrictive, but not all-encompassing. Now I'm working on a 3-drink limit when I do indulge (if I have a fourth drink, I almost always regret it.)
Thank you Chrissy! And thanks for sharing how you handle boundaries with alcohol. It's such a singular experience of where the line is best drawn for each of us. Have you read Sober Curious? It's a great resource!
So inspiring! I just spent a small fortune visitng friends and attending a wedding in SF last weekend, so this is just the reset I needed! I'm curious how you'll approach this with holidays coming up? How do you budget for gift shopping?
Thank you Grace! I honestly haven’t thought too intentionally about it quite yet, but you’re inspiring me to get a head start. I love gift-giving but definitely want to follow a budget this year. I think I’ll outline who I want to gift along with a budget for each of them, then go from there (spreadsheet time!). I also keep a list of gifts for people in a Google doc so I can add to it throughout the year and have it handy for birthdays and holidays.
I do the same thing! I use Evernote to keep track of things I come across that might make good birthday/Christmas gifts. About 3 years ago, I started doing bulk gifts which I've found makes budgeting and shopping a lot easier. One year I got everyone on my list abd el kader candles from cire trudon, last year it was LL Bean totes with customized monograms like "prozac", "MCD fries", etc. They were a huge hit! I think I might do leakproof water bottles this year because you can never be too hydrated!
Love this! I definitely want to try a no spend period as my post break up shopping got a bit out of control 🥴 I also start my day with morning pages which I just can't imagine not anymore. Thank you for sharing!
That's understandable! It's helpful too to think through purchases over the last six months and get more conscious about which of those brought you genuine joy, and which weren't worth it. Morning pages 4 life!
Yeh to be fair most clothes I bought have brought me joy and confidence during a hard time!
That's huge!
I was accidentally sober for part of last year and realized that alcohol really takes a toll on my mental well-being -- and for so long I thought that was just my baseline mood! I’ve noticed a huge difference in my day-to-day well-being now that I am sober, and having the mindset of “this activity brings me a little bit of joy now but a lot of hurt later” has been really powerful in adjusting what things I cut out of my life that aren’t worth feeling miserable for (social media, eating meat, etc). It’s helped me break my habit of seeing these choices as restriction that then becomes an enticing taboo (like many fad diets). Realizing that I enjoy living a happy life made sobriety an easy choice for me to follow!
I think that's so true, Logan—alcohol is a serious drug that we treat as no big deal, even though just a couple of glasses can affect our overall mood and wellbeing for a week or longer. I love the mindset of freeing yourself from limitations rather than restricting. Proud of you!
The most surprisingly helpful thing that’s helped curb my impulsive purchases has been the Pocket app. Every time I come across something I think I want/need, I save it and tag it with “stuff to buy.” If it’s something I actually want, I’ll make the effort to go and find the link I saved. If not, I clearly didn’t want it that badly in the first place. In the 8 months or so since doing this, I’ve only gone back to look at 2 things and only went ahead and purchased one - which was a gift.
That's awesome it's been so helpful! Pocket is a good idea to keep track of links — I have a Google doc called WANT where I throw things in and look at them from time to time. This is also helpful when sending a holiday wish list to family who want gift ideas!
I am annoyed about the alcohol thing too. For me it’s after two drinks. If I have a third I feel crummy the next day. I also hate drinking during the week. In some ways it’s easier to just not drink at all than try to be more conscious about my drinking! Which surprises me. Still working on this one too.
Absolutely, I completely relate! And sometimes just the energy/effort spent thinking about moderating isn't worth it in itself.
Love this and appreciate the transparency! I’m someone who is fantastic at spending money even though I feel like I don’t buy anything. It’s food. It’s always eating out and food. Which, for the most part, I feel good about -- but am trying to make sure that I’m making conscious food choices. I’m all for trying new places and eating well, but sometimes I’m just lazy and could do better than ramen a 4th time in a week. 😂
Thanks so much! A huge chunk of my money goes toward food too. Eating out is one of life's greatest pleasures! I just try to make sure those meals are fulfilling and "worth it," whatever that means to each of us. Sometimes it's the cost of connecting with friends and I'm here for that.
I love this kind of very detailed breakdown and relate to all of it - thriving with boundaries, relationship with alcohol, etc. One boundary that has worked for me is to limit drinking to 2-3 days a week - I generally stay dry Monday - Thursday, unless there's a special occasion. "I try not to drink during the week" feels like a good rule of thumb - semi-restrictive, but not all-encompassing. Now I'm working on a 3-drink limit when I do indulge (if I have a fourth drink, I almost always regret it.)
Thank you Chrissy! And thanks for sharing how you handle boundaries with alcohol. It's such a singular experience of where the line is best drawn for each of us. Have you read Sober Curious? It's a great resource!
I have not read it, but I just put it on hold at the library! Thanks for the rec.
Let me know what you think!
So inspiring! I just spent a small fortune visitng friends and attending a wedding in SF last weekend, so this is just the reset I needed! I'm curious how you'll approach this with holidays coming up? How do you budget for gift shopping?
Thank you Grace! I honestly haven’t thought too intentionally about it quite yet, but you’re inspiring me to get a head start. I love gift-giving but definitely want to follow a budget this year. I think I’ll outline who I want to gift along with a budget for each of them, then go from there (spreadsheet time!). I also keep a list of gifts for people in a Google doc so I can add to it throughout the year and have it handy for birthdays and holidays.
Do you have a holiday shopping plan
I do the same thing! I use Evernote to keep track of things I come across that might make good birthday/Christmas gifts. About 3 years ago, I started doing bulk gifts which I've found makes budgeting and shopping a lot easier. One year I got everyone on my list abd el kader candles from cire trudon, last year it was LL Bean totes with customized monograms like "prozac", "MCD fries", etc. They were a huge hit! I think I might do leakproof water bottles this year because you can never be too hydrated!
Those are fantastic ideas!! I've never gifted in bulk but that certainly would make life so much easier. Thanks for sharing!