The concept of Sober October started off back in 2010 when Life Education—an Australian youth health organization—raised money using a fundraiser named “Ocsober”. This event later got dubbed “Sober October” by the renowned UK charity Macmillan Cancer Support.
Ever since, there has been a torrent of NA spirit companies coming up around the globe. The UK has served as ground zero for many of these, including Seedlip, a drink that’s available at most bars in LA.
Let’s take a look at Spencer Matthews, founder of CleanCo and a TV personality. CleanCo makes non-alcoholic drinks that fall under categories such as tequila, gin, rum, and vodka alternatives, which also happen to be vegan and contain zero sugar as well as fewer calories. CleanCo’s liquids were concocted with the aim of replicating the signature mouth-feel sensations found in their alcoholic counterparts.
“When I was in my 20s, I held a number of jobs that essentially required me to drink alcohol whilst entertaining. It wasn’t really necessary, just quite normal, as part of my job as a broker and later a reality television star. It was just a very social life and I began to realize in my late 20s that my relationship with alcohol became unsustainable. I suppose the fear of not giving myself the opportunity to live up to my full potential frightened me.
“I’ve always been quite an ambitious person and had high expectations of myself, and I had slowly over time slipped into the bad habit of drinking to excess quite regularly and noticed it was slowing me down. When I met who was later to become my wife, who drinks very little, it became even more apparent. I started spending more time with her than my other colleagues and drinking buddies.
“Before the birth of our first son, I became sober-curious and wanted to experiment with sobriety. A lot of people I admired and looked up to at the time were sober. I wondered what I could make of myself, if I stopped drinking alcohol.
“I gave it a go and it was like taking the hand brake off a fast car, the difference was so palpable. It completely changed my life. Look, I’m not anti-alcohol at all. I’m aware that most people drink and, in fact, CleanCo’s message is one of moderation, not total abstinence. I try not to be preachy about alcohol consumption. But for me, just cutting it out made my life so much better. Everything seemed easier, better, faster, brighter. I became more creative, more responsive, more driven.
“But I didn’t want my social life to suffer, and that’s a big misconception in the world, that you should be drinking alcohol to have fun. I mean being drunk is hardly ever fun. Few people wake up the next morning wishing they had drunk more the night before with the hope of feeling more hungover. Two or three drinks can be fun, but then alcohol can also really ruin a night, but you really don’t need to drink a high level of alcohol to have fun.
“I noticed that my social life took a bit of a hit, when you go out and order sparkling water. I didn’t fit in and sort of stuck out negatively for making a positive position. Not drinking in a bar leads to confusion, just like it was tough in the beginning being a vegan 15 years ago.
“The average person in the UK spends about 252 hours hungover each year. I think people want to be more health conscious if it’s easy to do so. People don’t like changing their habits, but you can have an incredible cocktail without any real compromise on taste or social experience.
“It didn’t take long for people I knew to comment on my physical appearance. Even a couple of weeks in, friends said that I looked different. More awake and alive. It was easier to run and lift weights. I got back time. It became a life less-wasted.”