This was a really helpful book, that doesn't judge a person's alcohol consumption, but instead is really gentle about how to stop drinking and what to do instead (as the title suggests). I recommend reading the book in order and not skipping ahead - the Engage with your Body section is pretty much essential to the rest of the book being effective. I loved the Nurture your Relationships section the best - Explore New Ways to Have Fun was essential to me in my sobriety process.

SIMPLE WAYS TO UNWIND WITHOUT ALCOHOL by Rebecca E. Williams, a psychologist, wellness expert and award-winning author, contains "50 Tips to Drink Less and Enjoy More." With the holidays fast approaching, this seems like an appropriate title, but it feels more difficult than "simple." In this relatively short (200 pages) book, Williams offers ten chapters: soothe your mind; engage with your body; love your home; rediscover nature; nurture your relationships; reconnect with your work; savor your food and drink; embrace your family; respect your money; and celebrate your spirit. Each chapter has multiple, more specific, subsections (e.g., meditation, breathing, learn fung shui tips, reignite your nutrition, pay off debt and save) and a checklist at the end. Within the subsections, Williams offers numerous strategies (e.g., there are seven ideas for making your bedroom a "soothing sanctuary" which should lead to better sleep), but that, too, feels overwhelming, even though she says pick one to start. These are all obviously actions centered around self-care, but I am not sure how motivated readers will be to pursue the ideas. This text might be best shared by a therapist or worked through with the support of others who are trying to find alternative ways to self-soothe. A variety of relevant professionals (e.g., nutritionist, yoga instructor, psychotherapist, clinical psychologist) praise this book, but Williams notes that "if you believe that you have a serious addiction to alcohol, this may not be the book for you right now."

I for one suffer from anxiety, but this book helped me to put things in perspective to know that worry and stress are a normal part of life and how we cope if the most important take away.

Among other things, the book puts forward the idea that worrying is something we can control. I think that is one of the biggest lessons of the book. We CANNOT control everything although as humans we feel like we can. That is the beginning of self sabatoging.

All in all, this is a really useful resource for anyone looking for help with such challenges. Definitely worth checking out and being able to apply to your own practice with dealing with others.

People drink for different reasons. For many alcohol consumption does not pose any issues while, for others, there is an awareness of discomfort with their intake of drinks. There are those for whom a drink serves to calm, to feel better in social situations and so on without it feeling like an issue but others may feel that they want/need to try something else.

For anyone who is interested in thinking about this topic, this book is definitely worth a look. It delivers on exactly what it promises which is to give tips on how to unwind without using alcohol.

The authors use practices that are well regarded and considered to be evidence based to help. They specifically suggest things to try from meditation, CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) and ACT (acceptance and commitment therapy).

This title is divided into sections including Soothe Your Mind; Engage with Your Body; Love Your Home; Rediscover Nature; Nurture Your Relationships, Reconnect with Your work; Savor Your Food and Drink; Embrace Your Family; Bond with Animals; and Celebrate Your Spirit.

A few examples of the fifty ideas included within these sections are Meditate But Keep it Short; Explore Nature Trails; Schedule Your Down Time; Reignite Your Nutrition; Bond with Animals and many more.

Be sure to read the introduction. It gives a nice sense of the authors’ perspective. Then, as they suggest, go slow and see what makes sense. This book is filled with ideas.

While this book is written for those thinking about alcohol consumption, in my opinion there is much here for the general reader as well. It is a very good resource.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harbinger Publications for this title. All opinions are my own.

Simple Ways to Unwind without Alcohol by Rebecca E. Williams is meant for people who drink to relieve stress. This is NOT a book for someone who struggles with alcoholism and no one should read this book in hopes of "curing" this disease. But for those who may drink a glass or two to unwind each night, I felt the information and tools in this book were fairly basic. The author does share techniques for mindfullness and acceptance, but most of the advice is to find ways to distract yourself through hobbies and other activities. The idea is that if you doing something meaningful, you won't need to drink alcohol to unwind. I don't think this book will be as helpful as readers hope. And, there is a fine line between drinking to relieve stress and problems with drinking, so reader beware.

This book is a quick read with some simple ideas to implement. Some new ones, but mostly things that I've heard previously. I love that it's not preachy.