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Welcome to the Mindful Drinking Audio Advent day 18 here on the Mindful Drinking and Moderation in Midlife podcast with me, Denise Hamilton Mace. Today we are talking about your morning wins. If you have been drinking mindfully this month, if you have been moderating, if you've been reducing your alcohol intake, you have likely had several mornings where you've woken up and thought to yourself, hmm, do you know what? I feel pretty okay. I went out last night, we had a nice time, everyone had a few drinks, I stuck to my guns, came home, got a good night's sleep, and now I'm ready to rock and roll. You get up, you head into work, you walk into the office or the factory or wherever it is that you work, you open the door, and there is quiet in the office. People are there, some of them, but they're not saying much. They got their heads in their hands, they are sitting quietly, sipping large cups of coffee. There are people running to the loo, and everyone is dying. And you, you feel like cock of the walk, and as well you should. You made a fantastic choice for yourself last night, and it is paying dividends this morning, especially when you compare it to the sorry state of other people around you. But do yourself a favor, do them a favor. Don't be that guy, okay? Don't be that guy who comes in feeling all fresh-faced and then starts rubbing it in everyone else's face about how wonderful you're feeling whilst they are dying on their feet. We've all been there, okay? We've all had rotten hangovers, we've barely managed to scrape our bodies out of our pits and into our into the office. And the last thing that you need is some perky princess or prince bouncing around, telling everybody the wonders of a life less intoxicated. This is a journey that people have to come to when they're ready. Everybody needs to find their own way to the place that you are at now, just like you had to. I know that when I was in what I call my professional drinking days, if somebody had been uh preaching from the rafters and telling me how wrong my choices were and to look at them and aren't they wonderful and aren't they perfect, that they would have just made me want to, well, A, punch them in the face, but B, go and probably have another shot. So don't be that guy. Instead, just help them out. Okay, grab coffees when they need a coffee, grab, you know, bacon butties or whatever it is you're having when they need it. And remember that the best way to share with people how good it feels to live a life less intoxicated is just to lead it quietly, confidently, proudly, um, and not to make anybody else feel bad about their choices. A really big part of this podcast for me is no judgment for people on whatever choice they make around alcohol. And that includes people not judging us for drinking less and us not judging other people for the times that they choose to drink more. Now, to help you out in case you are on the other side of this and you are feeling a little bit worse for wear, the drinks in today's advent are all selections that can help you maximize uh your morning advantage if you're feeling great, or to give you an extra sort of brain boost if you're feeling a little bit worse for wear. So don't forget to go and check that out. I'll see you tomorrow for day 19. And until then, cheers to a Christmas less intoxicated.