Laughs without Lager

Surviving Christmas and New Year AF!

• Ali and Meg

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Holiday parties, family tables, and New Year countdowns can feel like a maze when you’re choosing not to drink. We open up about what actually helps: the tiny moves that protect your peace, the scripts that end awkward pressure, and the plans that turn a long season into something you might finally enjoy. From the first work do to Boxing Day, we unpack real moments—food truck delays, sugar swaps, old triggers—and show how a simple plan can keep you grounded, social, and home safe.

We start with work parties, where moderation myths collide with empty stomachs and top-ups. Our go-to strategy: drink in hand from the start, eat early when possible, and lean on activities that shift attention from pouring to playing. Curiosity becomes a superpower; when you notice that “first glass” glow in others without chasing it yourself, you claim back the night. Moving to Christmas Day, we offer a festive non-alcoholic punch, BYO boundaries, and the power of hosting to stay busy, connected, and clear. Games, swimming, backyard cricket—giving the day a rhythm makes it easier to say no without feeling left out.

We also dig into the deeper stuff: family friction, the pull of old rituals, and the quiet pride of waking up clear. There’s hard-won honesty here—the years we drank through the good parts, the meals we skipped, the mess we woke to—and the relief of doing it differently now. Looking ahead, we talk New Year’s Eve without the pressure to perform, setting intentions instead of brittle resolutions, and the structure of Dry January with coaching, community, and momentum that lasts past January 1. If you’re alcohol-free curious or protecting a hard-won streak, you’ll find tools you can use tonight.

Ready to design a calmer, happier holiday season? Hit play, grab an AF drink, and plan your best December yet. If this resonates, subscribe, share with a friend who needs it, and leave a quick review—your words help more people find a clear path through the holidays.

Meg's Dry January - FORWARD TOGETHER

https://www.elizaparkinson.com/forwardtogether

Contact Us:

https://www.meganwebb.com.au/podcast-1


Ali

insta: https://www.instagram.com/idontdrinkfullstop/


Meg

website: https://www.meganwebb.com.au/

insta: https://www.instagram.com/meganwebbcoaching/

bookclub: https://www.alcoholfreedom.com.au/unwinedbookclub

Connect AF: https://www.elizaparkinson.com/groupcoaching

SPEAKER_01:

Meg Z! Hey Ellie!

SPEAKER_00:

Happy Christmas! Ah, you beat me to it.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, I beat you to it.

SPEAKER_00:

Ah, Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Have you been a good girl?

SPEAKER_01:

Oh yeah, pretty, pretty boring, really. Is that good? Yes. Yes. Should be on I should be on his good list. Yeah. Um, what about you?

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, I'm very naughty. Oh love. Very naughty, but nice at the same time. Naughty that, you know, I'm not drinking or fucking drugging. Hey. So, you know, just naughty in other areas of my life, which we won't go into.

SPEAKER_01:

We won't go into, but you know what? Nothing wrong with being a bit naughty. I know. Yeah, we can be sober and a little bit naughty as well. That's right. Well, today we are not going to go into the naughty. We are gonna talk about Christmas because it's coming up and it's a big one for you know most of us. So yeah, interesting conversation to be had.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I've had a few. Uh well, yesterday was uh the start of one Christmas party at work. Um how did that go? Well, it's fine. I mean, but it was quite interesting, like people just sort of arming and awing whether they should have the first drink. And that is a classic sign of someone who finds it hard to moderate because for me that first drink would just be impossible.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Like then you'd have to like try and slow down and you'd lose your appetite because we didn't eat first. We the the food truck fucking broke down on the way. We're all so hungry, and we're like, what the actual like we're eating nuts, like we literally all just hoovered down fucking nuts. The food truck broke down, yeah. And I nearly had a can of coke because um to feel the hunger. Yeah. Um but yeah, there was a couple of people at the start were like, oh no, I won't have a drink. And then when we realize we ain't eating anytime soon, they hit the fuck button when I will have a champers.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

But they really a few people I'd kind of noticed because that's the sort of I like people watching, and yeah, but anyway, so that was the first thing. But it was, yeah, it's quite timely. I thought we'd have a chat about, you know, we'd chat about what it's some tools and tips on navigating those not just work dos, but Christmas and family and what the hell you do, and you know how we navigated it.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, well, I have to say, if the food truck had broken down and I was drinking, I would not have given a crap. I would have just said, great, good excuse to keep drinking, and um the alcohol would have flowed. The the food truck would have been an afterthought when I was really drunk and needed a kebab or something, you know?

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And well, I would have had all of my whole thing would have been trying to get home. Like it would have been right up until you know, I probably would have kind of got a lift, but because we live in the country, we can't just ring a friggin' Uber. Yeah, so you really have to put a lot of planning in, which is why people were ticking around in their heads going, fuck, if I I can have two drinks. They were kind of like saying it out loud, obviously, because you know, it's yeah, shall I have two? Shall I have one? If I eat, then that'll be okay. You know, all that fucking head space. I just so blessed that. Yeah, so I basically um inhaled the food and um we had a bake off. So it was really hard actually, because I find it hard now to stop at my food. Like I I, yeah, instead of freaking smashing the bloody bar, now fucking move over, pal. I'm on the desserts, it's terrible. And then you walk out like you're having your fucking nine months pregnant with a fruit baby, and then I have to go home and have a lie down.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, I said to you before this that I've put on weight because I'm the same.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh my god, like damn it. I know I've switched vodka to fucking vanilla slice, it's killing me. Killing me with kindness.

SPEAKER_01:

Chardonnay chocolate, you know.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I hear you. I hear you. So we've got, we're gonna talk about some tips, but I've got a um, so I've got a dinner tonight, Christmas party next week, and then I've got two family things. And for me now, I it's totally a non-thought. It like obviously I'm that far on it. It's it just is my family are good because we don't really drink at Christmas, so that's helpful. Um, and my workplace, I just there are just far more people that don't drink, or they don't drink much. Wow, it's just different to how it used to be, unless I I didn't notice, but I do think there's more people that are conscientious. And we do an activity at our Christmas party, so this is trivia. I it's bowling sometimes, you know. Whatever it is, I love having an activity. Yeah, that does help. So if you get an opportunity to suggest things for a work party, that's that's helped me a lot.

SPEAKER_00:

But if you are if if this is your first sober work Christmas party, the first thing I would do is grab a drink. Just always have something in your hand.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

And I mean, look, it can be a good thing, like, no, I'm driving. I mean, that's an obvious, you know, you're not going to get placoed and try and shag the boss. But um, yeah, that's but obviously Christmas Day, I guess, would be another different thing because that's usually, you know, it's acceptable to have a mimosa or whatever they're called. Yes. Uh, at 10 a.m. Um, it was basically, yeah, it's just a in my family anyway, we were massive drinkers. And um, yeah, Christmas Day was mate, a license to start drinking at whatever o'clock in the morning.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_00:

And you know, forget to do half the shit by dessert time. I it it just wasn't a thing, it was terrible.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I know.

SPEAKER_00:

It was all about the booze.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep, yeah. And yeah, like you said with the Christmas party, have your excuse. Like I it could be driving, I've got to drive, I'm on antibiotics, I've got a Christmas party tomorrow, whatever it is, go with your excuse. I really loved pulling an excuse out of my hat, whatever it was. Um, it could be I'm gonna try a sober Christmas for the first time in my life, whatever you want it to be, but it's it's quite helpful to have an excuse. Um, and so yeah, for um Christmas Day, because that is slightly different.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Do you know what I really like? And I don't have to do it because, like I said, oh well, I can do it, because this idea was is something my whole family would enjoy, is do a punch, but a non-alcoholic. Yeah. So it feels special. You can put fruit in it and different, you know, ginger ale, whatever what you want in it. It's really yummy, it's like a mock tail, but it's a punch, and everyone can serve themselves. I found that quite nice to have on Christmas Day. It felt a bit festive.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, nice.

SPEAKER_01:

So that's an idea if you're having people over and you can have a non-alcoholic that, and then alcohol options for other people. But I said BYO as well. If I'm not drinking, I'm not I'm not supplying, and then that's always been fine.

SPEAKER_00:

I mean, obviously, so for you it's a little bit different. Your family weren't I mean, not that my family are massive drinkers, I meant like my family is in my marriage family type.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

We were obviously I was married to it. I can piss it, but um but so my I remember my first sober Christmas because I I was a June person, so that was I had six months under my belt with my first Christmas and it was 44 degrees. Oh, that's awesome. Even in the bad old days, that would have been a struggle for me to even drink then because it was so effing hot. Oh but I was really quiet, so I was hosting, which was another, you know, maybe try that because that kept me busy. That kept me in the kitchen, cleaning up, cooking, um, and you just didn't have that idle sit down, you know, talk to the grandmother or whatever. Uh you need alcohol to do that. Um this place, because we I was looking after a friend's place and I had a pool, so that was a good, you know, okay, that was nice. Then evening time, you know, when it was lovely. I just had a fake um a fake beer at the time because I didn't know much about the AF world. Yeah. But yeah, so that was my first Christmas, and I felt really good because my family were drinkers and um, you know, it wasn't an expectation, like, oh everyone, I'm not drinking, so can you all not drink? Which, you know, I'm sure if I asked them not to, they may have, or they might have just said, Well, babe, that's your journey, not mine.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

But that's the other thing. You can't, you know, this is if you want to give if your decision is to you don't want to drink, then when it comes to those like Christmas Day, don't get salty because everyone else is drinking and they're not supporting you because at the end of the day, you're your own person and you can't let other yeah, you don't get into that mindset of I'm missing out or fuck this sucks because I'm not getting placod. Then you just so I've I've actually bought myself a frisbee, there's like games again. Keep yourself busy, clean up for the host, uh, put the chairs away, and then mate, get in your car and hit the road.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm done. Go home, have a nanat, and then fucking we're done.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. And and if you're choosing not to drink at Christmas, there's a reason. What's your why? Why are you doing it? You know, focus on that. Turn up with your your plan and your plan. You know, you you want to do it, you're choosing to do it. I think that's important in the whole missing out feeling is I choose this. No one's holding a gun to my head. Um, and look at it as an experiment. What's this day gonna be like? And get curious. People watch, um, have a have a look at how people act after a few drinks. You know, it can be a really interesting experiment, and experimenting helped me not feel it felt more like I was just having a go at it. Yeah, you're not committing to this forever, you're giving it a go. So, you know, going with in with that kind of attitude and like Ali said, having lots of ideas. Like we play games at Christmas. I've ordered a new one, a board game. It's actually really fun. Yeah. With a few more people, you know, than normal. It's like really fun. And I've ordered one that because we've got teenagers that they can play with us and you know, try some different things. Um, frisbee, backyard cricket, all the all the Aussie things we can do, swimming. We you we use the neighbour's pool, but they won't necessarily be away. But there's heaps of stuff to do, and it can be really fun.

SPEAKER_00:

Now, my Christmases, I actually look forward to them instead of that the dread of you know, it's just yeah, that just that expectation. I mean, it's a hard time. I mean, even though it's all supposed to be festive and stuff, you know, families are difficult. Um you know, and and usually, you know, Christmas Day, like yeah, it can be fraught with other people's uh you know, shittiness. And you've just gotta kind of like but yeah, be prepared for yourself. Don't don't make it don't rely on somebody else to feed you, you know, where's the um pop drink or whatever? Just sort yourself out and you know, yeah, enjoy the day. But as you say, it's um just get curious.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, and and is the is the crap that happens alcohol fueled, because I I would bet that a lot of it is. Yes. And taking yourself out of that equation, you can actually stop being part of that. And that can be quite freeing and refreshing. There are a lot of benefits, but it is a chance to look at, yeah, what what you know, if you've got that family that just does alcohol actually really hurt.

SPEAKER_00:

A hundred percent.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

It's and you know, it's yeah, we all know alcohol, and then it's good. Like so this year, Magsy, I did a little and will be the little in my own home. I bought a Christmas present to you. I know, what a fabulous Christmas present. So now I now won't be living with my brother and on their property, so I've actually got a drive home, which is about 40 minutes away. So, you know, prior to me, that would have been a swag on the floor. Like it's just so much I can just go home, sleep in my own bed, yeah, wake up in my own bed without a hangover, without bloody half the food on the table, and it's all just wrecked, yeah, like waste. And then I'm actually working. Um, so I don't work Christmas Day, but I'm working Boxing Day and that weekend. That's my regular thing. So that'll be like, oh, okay, cool. Wake up on Boxing Day, and I'm gonna at my job we drive along the beach and do patrols. So that'll be like, okay, cool. And I can earn money without that again. That I would have booked that all off and just said, nah, it's Christmas. I just want to fucking drink. And you know, Boxing Day, cricket uh is just a license to you know, drink piss, get back on it. And um this year it's gonna be my new home working and getting uh double bubble.

SPEAKER_01:

Yay! And my I'm working as I'm doing one coaching call on Christmas morning because the kids won't be awake. I'm like, let's make some money. And then boxing day three coaching calls. Wow. And I feel so good when I get off a coaching call. So what better way, you know, to spend Boxing Day? Um, and yeah, I just you make it when you were talking about that. I just remember my Christmases where I'd get so drunk. Like I'd continue after people left. Yeah, and then I'd wake up and God, I'm I basically missed the day because I drank it away. I didn't connect after about two hours. It was a shit show. And then it's just feeling really sick, trying to scrape, clean up, trying to scrape together all the presents the kids got. Like it was it, oh I I actually cringe to think of it, and I wonder how I actually I did it.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

It's not easy to drinking is not easy. Well, we're not when it well, you know, like and recovering from it.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, yeah, but like it just yesterday, like there was one girl I kind of just caught my eye like I was I just watched her have her glass of what champers and that and that I just felt that feeling of euphoria going through her brain. Like that to me would have been okay, I wouldn't have I would have hardly ate because I would have just caught I literally would have done that just to get my car home, yeah, and then I would have got home. There's no one here, and I still would have continued to drink. Oh yeah, same. You know, and like that would have been my whole rest of the day, like oh Christmas party, I left early, or I might have pushed it to the limit and had three drinks just to fucking run the gauntlet because I can go the bat way home, I can live in the country, it's pretty cruzy. But I literally would have raced home and then had a cone, and then you know, then I'd be all like, Oh, what next? I'll just keep drinking on my own. Like, fucking what?

SPEAKER_01:

I know, what yeah, and I missed Christmas Day and the Christmas parties and that. I missed the food because I didn't eat it, and it's like now I enjoy the black. I love food apart from my loving food too much. I've always been a foodie, so it just was ridiculous how much like I love food, love food, and then Christmas Day it happened, and I'd be like, no, no, I don't want to eat that because I just want to drink. I missed out on so many yummy things. So I just Oh, the ham. Oh I know, but with all the nibblies and all sorts of things, but yeah, exactly. Ham and turkey and roast potatoes and oh yum, but it just meant nothing to me.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, well, this year I'm gonna cook um, I'm gonna do a lasagna, which is a bit strange. But I've got you know, my daughter doesn't eat seafood, and we're gonna have lots of seafood. Um, and then I'm gonna do, I've been testing out my air fryer and putting a pork belly in there, mate. Oh my god. Yum, I have that's quite amazing. So easy. You just dry it out and then whack it in for 40 minutes, and voila, you look like you're the best chef ever. And you've got crispy pork, juicy pork belly. Yum! Oh, I know so you know, in between working, moving house, and Christmas, all alcohol free, I can do that.

SPEAKER_01:

That's right, and then you're gonna get to New Year's Eve and feel good because we've got New Year's Eve coming up. Yes, and that's another one that we have made it through quite a few times. What are you doing this New Year's Eve? What's your plan? I don't actually do much at all, and I am very okay with that. I keep an eye on my son particularly. Um before that it was my daughter, so usually I just stay home and watch, maybe watch the nine o'clock fireworks and then go to bed. I'm fine with that, but I I might go around to a friend's for a bit, but it it doesn't actually mean a lot to me. Um even when I drank, I was always disappointed. I was always trying to get drunker and it just never lived up to what I thought it should. Uh so now I just want to go into the new year feeling good. Maybe uh maybe on New Year's Eve I'll do a you know uh new not New Year's resolutions as such, but uh intention list um things like that.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, you've got sorry, you've got you know, your course starting sober dry July.

SPEAKER_01:

I mean dry Janary, dry jan. So you'll be preparing. I will be preparing, and I and part of that is an intention setting thing the week before. So I will be doing that, and yeah, that's gonna be really cool. And I've put the um link in the show notes. Excellent. Yes, that's just a dry jan for anyone that's interested, doesn't cost a lot, but you get two coaches twice a week, which is awesome, and uh an app to come and meet the community, and so it's gonna be really good to start 2026 off. And you don't have to be not drinking, you don't have to be anything, just um be anything, just alcohol free, curious. You can be alcohol free, you don't have to be. So, yeah, that I'm excited about that and going into the new year. So, my New Year's Eve will be maybe catching up with some friends on the phone, yeah. But I'm I'm okay with all that. What what about you? What's your New Year's Eve look like?

SPEAKER_00:

Kimmy Ray Smith, who we had on the pod.

SPEAKER_01:

You're not going to her weekend thing.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, yeah, bro. Oh jealous. So we are doing the um, yeah, Kimmy and I. Um, yeah, I'm basically gonna be her little. Helper and uh it's a retreat, isn't it? Three nights. Yeah, sorry, yeah. It's it's uh three nights, I think. I'm only going for the two because I've got to work on the second, but yeah, I'm definitely yeah, that's we're gonna do vision boarding, um, breath work, spa, sauna, just hang out with some lovely alcohol-free ladies and set some beautiful intentions and um um yeah, be be with am I I'm allowed to bring my two to ours. So Tiny Tina and Alby Mangles are coming. Oh they're gonna have fun.

SPEAKER_01:

And then that's awesome.

SPEAKER_00:

That's what I'm doing. So it's good to also again have a plan. The the year before I I caught up with my girlfriend in Margaret River. Uh her daughter was playing uh gig. But prior to that, I'm the same. Like, I mean, I'm in major on any fucking night by nine asleep, I should say. So um, but it's good to you know not feel like a sad sack, you know.

SPEAKER_01:

Maybe next year I'm coming over for that. That is absolutely something I would love to be doing. Community similar people with similar goals doing vision boards. So, so definitely it's I I think that'll be brilliant.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, well, I'll let you know what we um what we did. And I sort of don't know what I'm sort of yeah, I'm at a bit of a crossroads or to work out what um you know what 2026 brings after I finish moving, packing, and got Christmas over and done with. Um yeah, no, it's very, very, very exciting. New beginnings, new year, definitely, and new opportunities for a new town. Like I'm fucking going to a new town, Begzi.

SPEAKER_01:

So exciting. It really is. You're gonna have a lot on your vision board. But I just wanted to wish everyone listening a happy Merry Christmas, happy new year. And as we said, our you know, there are things in the show notes, you can find links. Um, but thank you to our listeners for hanging with us, and we look forward to many more uh episodes next year.

SPEAKER_00:

100%. Yeah. Happy 2025 and welcome in 2026. So the next one will be, yeah, probably I don't know. In a couple of weeks' time, we'll see what the um what the topic will be. Yes, to rate, review, and subscribe.