Stopping drinking on your own can be difficult, but joining a movement with others across the globe? Now, that’s more like it!
With a 95% success rate, our alcohol-free challenges are leaders in supporting people transform their relationship with alcohol and rediscover wellness. But what is it about the way we have developed our challenges that makes them so effective? We are here to break it down.
What’s the point?
Across the globe, and specifically in Western cultures, alcohol is everywhere. It is ingrained into society in ways that make it very difficult to avoid and thus, it’s unsurprising that over half the population in the UK drinks alcohol. While enjoying an alcoholic drink in moderation shouldn’t cause any major issues for most people, there is a large volume of people consuming over the recommended units per week. In England alone, 40% of adults are consuming over 14 units in an average week – and therein lies the potential for problems.
You don’t need to have an ‘alcohol problem’ to realise that alcohol is causing you problems. Disrupted sleep, increased anxiety, worsening hangovers… the list goes on. Which is why OYNB exists! The alcohol-free challenges are proven step-by-step programmes designed to unveil the reality of what alcohol does to the body, and guide you through the process of changing habits, all packaged up in the fun approach of challenging yourself to something new.
And turns out, this method of behaviour change really works. Countless members have been through the alcohol-free challenge, and regardless of whether they have stopped drinking completely, or have chosen to moderate in future, 95% agree they have transformed their relationship with alcohol.
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What makes our approach so effective?
The OYNB alcohol-free challenge was designed to incorporate a number of vital elements which help to motivate, develop and cement changes in both mindset and behaviours. Together, they make for an effective combo!
Behaviour substitution
A review of over 40 intervention approaches revealed that one of the most effective behaviour change techniques was behaviour substitution, i.e. replacing a habit you wish to stop with a behaviour that is either more positive, or neutral. For example it is easier to switch to decaf coffee when reducing your caffeine intake, than it is to just stop drinking coffee completely.
This is the reason our challenges encouraging people to book themselves a future goal, either a physical challenge, or something else they can focus on working towards to replace the time that otherwise would have been spent drinking. By heading out for a walk at the time when the wine witch would usually come calling, you can begin to replace this habit with something more positive. Or alternatively, switching to alcohol-free options – there are so many amazing alcohol-free drinks on the market today, and the range just keeps growing.
Problem solving (planning for triggers)
Another key aspect in behaviour change that was uncovered in the interventions review was problem solving. This refers to the ability to reflect and evaluate the factors and triggers that influenced drinking behaviours, and developing strategies to overcome these in future.
Our challenges pay particular attention to identifying triggers, especially in the early days, in order to allow members to see where they might get tripped up during their break from alcohol, and plan for how best to tackle these triggers should they arise.
Credible source (education)
The final aspect that was highlighted in the study as an effective behaviour change technique is credible source – which in this context, refers to the communication of information that educates and informs someone about the benefits and drawbacks of the behaviours they are trying to change.
This is a cornerstone of our challenges as we can see how important it is to unravel the years of social conditioning that have led to behaviours around alcohol. A large volume of people don’t truly understand the impact that alcohol can have on areas such as sleep, anxiety, weight, finances and more. Being able to take a holistic and informed view of all the ways in which alcohol can influence different areas of life make it easier to decide how to proceed.
And there is more
There are a number of other factors that play a role in the effectiveness of our alcohol-free challenges, for example, research into the engagement with interventions suggests that daily notifications reminding the individual of their commitment substantially increases engagement with the programme. Our challenges are primarily built around the daily challenge emails that act as regular reminders, whilst also offering snippets of mindset changing content. Then, there is the encouragement of self-recording, in other words, journaling or other forms of tracking progress. In addition, according to a study conducted in the USA, you are 42% more likely to stick to a goal if you write it down – I am sure our reminders to write down and refer back to your ‘whys’ is beginning to make more sense now, right?
Community
Let’s not forget one of the biggest influencing factors in our alcohol-free challenges. Our community! Beyond simply being able to share and support one another in the trials and tribulations of navigating an alcohol-free challenge in an alcohol focused society, a study conducted in Canada discovered that feeling a sense of community-belonging was strongly related to the health-behaviour change. Knowing you are a part of something much bigger, and that you are not alone in your pursuit of habit change can be a hugely comforting and motivating factor.
You get out what you put in!
No doubt you will have heard this a million times before, but it is true. The way to make this process the most effective as possible is to fully immerse yourself in all the resources available, and really engage with the challenge content. Some of it may feel silly, or uncomfortable – but as we have shown above, it all has its purpose in creating lasting behaviour change. Read every email, watch every video, complete every mini task and before long, you will have transformed your relationship with alcohol and on your way to living your life better.
Sources:
Garnett CV, Crane D, Brown J, Kaner EFS, Beyer FR, Muirhead CR, Hickman M, Beard E, Redmore J, de Vocht F, Michie S. Behavior Change Techniques Used in Digital Behavior Change Interventions to Reduce Excessive Alcohol Consumption: A Meta-regression. Ann Behav Med. 2018 May 18;52(6):530-543. doi: 10.1093/abm/kax029. PMID: 29788261; PMCID: PMC6361280.
Bell L, Garnett C, Qian T, Perski O, Williamson E, Potts HW. Engagement With a Behavior Change App for Alcohol Reduction: Data Visualization for Longitudinal Observational Study. J Med Internet Res. 2020 Dec 11;22(12):e23369. doi: 10.2196/23369. PMID: 33306026; PMCID: PMC7762688.
Crane D, Garnett C, Brown J, West R, Michie S. Behavior change techniques in popular alcohol reduction apps: content analysis. J Med Internet Res. 2015 May 14;17(5):e118. doi: 10.2196/jmir.4060. PMID: 25977135; PMCID: PMC4468601.
Hystad P, Carpiano RM Sense of community-belonging and health-behaviour change in Canada J Epidemiol Community Health 2012;66:277-283.
An entrepreneur and former senior oil broker, Ruari gave up drinking after excessive consumption almost cost him his marriage, and worse, his life. Going alcohol-free improved his relationships, career and energy levels, leading to him founding OYNB to provide a support network for others.
