Mostly Sober Starla

$415 donated

Given by 10 generous donors in around 12 months

One 21 year old gal abstaining from alcohol for an entire year (hopefully) to raise awareness and hopefully some $$ for charity!

Canterbury

+4 images

One year, 12 months, 52 weeks, 8,765 hours, 52,5948 minutes and 31,536,000 seconds - sober! On May 16th 2016 I decided to commit one year of my life to being alcohol free all in the name of craziness.

I'm Starla. I'm 21 and I live in Christchurch, Canterbury. I work in retail full-time and live in a 6 person yopro/student flat which means a whole heap of booze! I've had my fair share of messy nights on scrumpy, vodka, speights and shots and I've decided to put a hold on it.

I made the split decision on May 15th to be booze-free for an entire year, or to at least TRY!

*******NOTE: I have had a drink after 8 months which I explained jan 1st however I continued after NY :) *******

I'm hoping that throughout these 365 days, I can answer some of the questions I've had regarding alcohol.

What does binge drinking a couple of times a week actually do to my body?

Why is this binge drinking so socially acceptable?

Can I actually have fun at events/parties sober?!

How does alcohol affect myself mentally?

I have personally lost 3 extremely close family members to addiction/alcohol related issues and I am sure that those who are reading will know or think of someone who has been directly affected by them.

Keep in mind my goal is not to blast alcohol in general (I love myself some speights), or to judge those who do drink, it is more to gauge the direct effects it has on myself for a certain time period.

Follow this give a little and also my blog (listed) to keep up to date with my happenings!

The charities I will be donating to will be

Lifeline

(http://www.lifeline.org.nz/corp_Home_378_2001.aspx)

Samaritans

(http://www.samaritans.org.nz/)

The Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand

(http://www.mentalhealth.org.nz/)

Alcoholics Anonymous

(http://www.aa.org.nz/)

Because I can't pledge these donations directly through this page - I will split them myself once received. This will be done via direct debit donation and receipts will be posted on here to prove legibility!

Happy Drinking! (water for me)

Starla Sadd's involvement (page creator)

During this time I will be hopefully raising awareness of Alcoholism and the detrimental effects it can have on a person, their families and society in general. I'm also hoping to reduce the stigma associated with alcoholism by encouraging people to have the conversation!

About one in ten Kiwi's are now deemed as "alcoholics" and around one in five over the age of 15 are estimated to have "hazardous" drinking patterns. Not only that, but around 600-800 people every year in New Zealand die from alcohol related issues.

As well as primarily affecting physical health, alcohol can also have adverse effects on mental health. It is estimated that around one in eight people with depression or other mental illness will also have a drug/alcohol problem associated with it.

Please donate if you think my cause is worth it - and support those charities who are working to reduce the numbers of victims caught in this epidemic!

All proceeds will be donated directly to 4 charities which are

Lifeline

Samaritans

The Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand

Alcoholics Anonymous