SoberlyCo Newsletter #8: Autumn Armor (Why Seasonal Hobbies Are Your Secret Weapon)

There's something about the first proper autumn weekend that hits different when you're sober.

The leaves are turning, there's a chill in the air, and suddenly all those cozy pub sessions from previous years start calling your name. "Perfect weather for a pint by the fire," your brain helpfully suggests.

But this weekend, instead of fighting those thoughts, I got curious about them.

What is it about autumn that makes alcohol seem so appealing? And more importantly, what can we do instead that actually satisfies what we're really craving?

The answer came to me while sitting in a sauna built into an old quarry, about to jump into freezing lake water.

The Autumn Challenge

Let's be honest about what happens when the seasons change and you're trying to stay sober:

Summer was easier. Long days, BBQs, outdoor activities, natural energy from sunshine. Even sober, there were endless ways to fill time and feel good.

But autumn? Shorter days, cooler weather, that instinctive pull toward "cozy" activities that historically involved alcohol. The pub becomes more appealing when it's cold and dark outside.

Here's what I've learned: you need seasonal strategies, not just general sobriety tools.

What works in July might not work in October. You need autumn-specific ways to satisfy the craving for warmth, comfort, and that "taking the edge off" feeling that shorter days can bring.

Enter: the power of seasonal hobbies.

My Autumn Arsenal

This time of year, I lean heavily into two hobbies that have become my secret weapons against autumn drinking urges:

Fishing

There's something deeply meditative about standing by water with a rod in your hand. The patience required, the connection to nature, the unpredictability of whether you'll catch anything—it satisfies the same part of my brain that used to crave "adventure" from drinking.

Autumn fishing is particularly brilliant because:

• The peace and quiet help process the week's stress

• It gets you outside even when the weather's not perfect

• There's genuine excitement when you actually catch something

• Time passes without you noticing (like alcohol used to do, but productively)

Mushroom Identification

(Important disclaimer: Wild mushroom foraging can be extremely dangerous. Never eat anything you find without expert identification. Stick to observation and learning only unless you're with qualified mycologists.)

Autumn is peak mushroom season, and learning to identify different fungi has become genuinely fascinating. Walking through woods, spotting different varieties, trying to identify them using field guides—it's like a treasure hunt that gets you moving and learning.

What I love about mushroom spotting:

• Forces you to slow down and really observe your surroundings

• Every walk becomes an adventure

• You learn something new constantly

• Perfect excuse to get out even on drizzly days

Both hobbies share something crucial: they require presence and patience—exactly what alcohol used to steal from me.

This Weekend's Discovery

Saturday started with gardening—clearing autumn leaves, preparing beds for winter, general tidying up. There's something deeply satisfying about physical work that prepares you for seasonal change. It's productive procrastination at its finest.

But Sunday was the real revelation.

I'd booked a session at this incredible place—a sauna experience built into an old quarry. Picture this: wood-fired saunas overlooking a crystal-clear quarry lake, run by these proper sauna masters who know exactly how to create the perfect heat experience.

The ritual was simple but profound:

1. 20 minutes in the sauna - hot, sweating, feeling every stress of the week leave through your pores

2. Straight into the quarry lake - shocking cold that makes you feel completely alive

3. Rest by the water - wrapped in a towel, feeling like you've been reset

4. Repeat the cycle - building heat tolerance and cold resilience

By the end of three cycles, I felt like I'd had the most natural high imaginable.

The Autumn Epiphany

Sitting by that quarry lake, feeling completely euphoric from the hot-cold contrast, I realized something important about seasonal sobriety:

Autumn isn't just about surviving the darker months—it's about discovering what actually makes you feel good.

All those years of "cozy pub sessions," I thought I was enjoying the warmth and comfort. But what I was really craving was:

• Warmth after cold (the sauna delivered this perfectly)

• Physical sensation that cuts through mental fog (cold plunge absolutely nailed this)

• Ritual and routine (the sauna cycles provided structure)

• Time that feels separate from ordinary life (quarry setting was otherworldly)

The sauna experience gave me everything I thought alcohol provided, but amplified and without the crash.

Why Hobbies Matter More in Autumn

Here's what I've learned about the relationship between hobbies and seasonal sobriety:

Summer activities happen naturally—BBQs, festivals, outdoor sports. You get invited to things that don't revolve around drinking.

Autumn requires more intentionality. You need to actively create experiences that satisfy your craving for warmth, comfort, and escape from routine.

Hobbies become your armor against the "there's nothing else to do but drink" feeling.

When you have fishing trips to plan, mushrooms to identify, saunas to book, gardens to prepare for winter—suddenly you have genuine excitement about weekends that has nothing to do with alcohol.

You become someone who does interesting things, not someone who just drinks to make boring things bearable.

Building Your Autumn Strategy

Whether you're facing your first sober autumn or just need to refresh your approach, consider this:

What activities make you lose track of time in a good way?

For me, it's fishing (patience and nature) and sauna sessions (physical intensity and ritual). For you, it might be:

• Photography walks to capture autumn colors

• Cooking seasonal foods with proper attention and care

• Learning something new that gets you out of the house

• Physical challenges that create natural highs

• Creative projects that absorb your attention completely

The key is finding activities that:

1. Get you outside (even when weather's not perfect)

2. Require focus (so your mind can't wander to drinking)

3. Feel seasonal (take advantage of what autumn offers)

4. Create genuine satisfaction (not just kill time)

This Week's Autumn Experiment

Pick one new seasonal activity to try this week:

Could be:

• Visit a local park and try to identify different trees by their autumn leaves

• Book a spa session, sauna, or hot bath ritual at home

• Try autumn photography in your area

• Visit a farmers market and cook something seasonal

• Plan a weekend fishing trip or nature walk

• Research local autumn activities you've never tried

The goal isn't to find your lifelong passion immediately—it's to prove to yourself that autumn can be exciting when you're actively participating instead of just numbing through it.

The Season of Presence

Driving home from the quarry Sunday evening, still feeling that post-sauna glow, I realized autumn might actually be the best season for sobriety.

It forces you to be more intentional about how you spend your time. You can't just coast on long summer days and outdoor social events. You have to actively create experiences that feed your soul.

And when you do that—when you find hobbies and activities that genuinely excite you—autumn becomes a season of discovery rather than endurance.

I'm actually looking forward to the shorter days now. More time for evening fishing. More excuses for sauna sessions. More opportunities to slow down and be present for experiences that alcohol would have made fuzzy.

Hit reply and tell me:

• What seasonal activities are you most excited about this autumn?

• Do you have hobbies that help manage cravings?

• What's one autumn experience you want to try while completely present?

Here's to embracing the seasonal shift,

Paddy

P.S. If you're struggling with seasonal changes in your sobriety journey, remember that my "first year hurdle" process includes specific strategies for navigating and finding replacement activities that actually satisfy what you're craving.