Why Are People Hating on Dry January So Much?
Who are we to hate on someone else’s goals?
A new year has begun and despite the lack of normalcy that’s been present in the past year, I’ve decided to continue on with my annual habit of participating in dry January.
This year is my sixth (or maybe seventh) consecutive year participating in dry January and for the most part, I haven’t been met with much resistance or disapproval from my peers. For the most part, I’m welcomed with support and and some level of admiration for this type of self-control.
However, based on some recent observations throughout my personal social media feeds, I’ve noticed a lot of backlash, negativity, and judgement for dry January and those who participate in it, which I find very odd.
You’d think that there would be more positivity and encouragement around people who are trying to kick a bad habit, but for some reason, that appears to not be case this year. And I’m very curious as to why.
I’ve written about my experiences with dry January several times in the past and it’s always come from a place of knowledge-sharing — to let people know exactly why I do it and the benefits that I’ve personally witnessed from abstaining from alcohol.
And though I’ve encouraged people to try it for themselves, I’ve never frowned upon anyone for being opposed to it. Because in all honesty, quitting drinking cold turkey (or any habit for that matter ), especially when you’re so used to it, is really quite hard…at first. But, you do get used to it.
You get used to it as long as you keep reminding yourself why you’re doing it in the first place. And in order to participate in dry January and participate successfully, you have to have a reason.
Everyone has their own reasons and their own motivation for doing the things they do —and many of those reasons most people may not even be aware of. So, we shouldn’t ever give someone else a hard time for making a personal choice that they think could end up highly benefit them in the long run.
After all, who are we to hate on someone else’s goals? Who are we to say what someone should be better off doing? Who are we to deter someone from doing something that they legitimately want to do?
We don’t know what motivates another person and we don’t know what’s best for someone else. That’s not our job. So stop hating on people for doing dry January and stop hating on people for anything else that they might be doing to try to better themselves. It’s not our place to judge.
