Sober and Sober Curiosity 101

Quick recap on 8+ years covering the sober (curious) movement

I’m Tawny, author of Dry Humping: A Guide to Dating, Relating, and Hooking Up Without the Booze, co-host of the Recovery Rocks podcast, and co-founder of the vinegar-based botanical beverage, (parentheses)

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Queen Lilo in Mean Girls

I’ve reported on the sober and sober curious space for more than 8 years—since my very first blog post on Dec 23, 2015, about giving up booze for one year as a social experiment. (Spoiler alert… it’s been longer than a year!)

My research on the sober (curious) space—especially the role alcohol and liquid courage plays in our interpersonal relationships—includes hundreds of interviews from neurologists to porn performers to high school students, 200+ podcast episodes with my bestie Lisa Smith, analyzing countless studies, freelance writing, publishing a book, attending peer support groups, public speaking, and, ya know, working my own recovery program every damn day.

Below is a list of some of my proudest work as a journalist in the sober (curious) space to help you during Dry January and beyond.

1. Fav Articles I Wrote

   1. This one about alcohol and skin care for Mic

   2. This one for Self Magazine about liquid courage and sex

   3. This essay about writing for Writer’s Digest

   4. This Playboy essay about pegging a Trump supporter to open his mind (and his butthole)

   5. This collection of helpful quotes from sober porn stars

   6. This (now archived) weekly advice column about sober dating and relationships

2. Fav Interviews (as the interviewer)

   1. This profile I wrote about Seth Gamble for Men’s Health

   2. This podcast episode where we interviewed Zach Braff

   3. This podcast episode where we interviewed my dad (a sober metal musician in recovery)

3. Fav Interviews (as the interviewee)

   1. This convo with the iconic Dan Savage

   2. This convo where Ruby Warrington dubs me The Sober Sexpert

   3. This X-Rated interview with the TikTok queen Dr. Tara

4. Cannabis & Sobriety

   1. This video about the California Sober scene

   2. This video where I answer, “Can I smoke weed during Dry January?!?”

   3. This podcast episode about my experience with cannabis in recovery

5. Money & Sobriety

   1. This podcast episode with Jill from Frugal Friends

   2. This article about saving the money you used to spend on booze

   3. This article about the financial and opportunity costs of drinking alcohol

6. Random Cool Stuff

   1. This Webby-winning narrative podcast I helped develop with my dear friend Katie Mack

   2. I’m still mind-blown about contributing an essay to the Sex and the Single Woman anniversary anthology

   3. This documentary we made on our iPhones about growing up in Waco, Texas and getting sober on the East Coast

   4. Should I bring back this reading series?

   5. Oh yeah, I wrote this book!

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A Little Help From My Friends

The Simpsons, duh!

The online sober scene thrives because it embraces nuances and inclusivity. We can’t stay sober or finish a dry month unless we also address the other shit in our lives. Below is a list of people who focus on hyper-specific niches in the sober and sober curious space:

Nutrition: Dr. Brooke Scheller

BIPOC: Sober Black Girls Club

Parenthood: Sober Mom Squad, this newsletter, this book, and this book

Chinese Medicine:

Dana Leigh Lyons

and her ultimate list of sober newsletters

Queerness: Dubbs Weinblatt, Gay & Sober, The Sober Gay Podcast

Sex and Dating: My book, this book, this podcast, this TED Talk, and this podcast/course

Corporate life: This book written by my bestie co-host, Lisa Smith

NA Drinks and Events: Laura Silverman, Chris Marshall, Absence of Proof, Third Place Bar, and Sober in Central Park

Nuanced Peer Support:

Laura McKowen

’s The Luckiest Club, SheRecovers, and Sober Black Girls Club

Additional Sober (Curious) Newsletters:

Jolene Park

,

Derek Brown

,

Sarah Levy

,

Paulina Pinsky

,

Celeste Yvonne

, and

Sari Botton

Must Read: Hilary Sheinbaum’s book, The Dry Challenge: How to Lose the Booze for Dry January, Sober October, and Any Other Alcohol-Free Month

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There are many (MANY!!!) more people that I simply don’t have time to add to this list. Please keep the convo going with your favorite sober and sober curious resources in the comments.

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Zaddy Schmidt from New Girl

Remember to take sobriety, sober curiosity, or a Dry Month one day at a time. Give yourself grace. And most importantly—have fun!

Happy Humping,

Tawny

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P.S. Want to level up your Dry Month experience? Journal or meditate on why you’re taking a month off from booze. Keep your why in your back pocket so you can stay focused during those oh-so-tempting moments.