The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober cover art

The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober

Discovering a Happy, Healthy, Wealthy Alcohol-Free Life

Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends December 16, 2025 11:59pm GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober

By: Catherine Gray
Narrated by: Catherine Gray
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends December 16, 2025 11:59pm GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Only £0.99 a month for the first 3 months. Pay £0.99 for the first 3 months, and £8.99/month thereafter. Renews automatically. Terms apply. Start my membership

About this listen

Ever sworn off alcohol for January and found yourself drinking by the 7th? Think there's 'no point' in just one drink? Welcome! There are millions of us.

Before embracing sobriety, Catherine Gray was stuck in a hellish cycle of drink, horrible decisions and hangovers, during which she had her fair share of 'drunk tank' jail cells and topless-in-a-hot-tub misadventures.

'I discovered that I was about a million times happier sober than I ever had been while drinking. As were the hundreds of sober pals I picked up along the way. I found myself with dozens more hours in the week, heaps more energy, £20K more money over three and a half years, deepened friendships, revived family relationships, better skin, a tighter body, tanned legs for the first time ever, the ability to sleep for eight uninterrupted hours, a bone-deep sense of well-being, a totally turned-around positive outlook and an infinitely more successful career. What's not to like?!'

This inspirational, aspirational and highly relatable narrative champions the benefits of sobriety with a three-pronged approach combining the author's personal experience, factual reportage and contributions from expert sources and self-help advice for anyone who wants to reduce their alcohol intake or eliminate it completely. The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober is the new bible of sobriety.

©2017 Catherine Gray (P)2017 Octopus Publishing Group
Addiction & Recovery Alcoholism Hygiene & Healthy Living Mental Health Awareness Substance abuse Inspiring Thought-Provoking Heartfelt Feel Better Feel-Good

Listeners also enjoyed...

Alcohol Explained cover art
The Sober Diaries cover art
Sober on a Drunk Planet cover art
The Easy Way to Control Alcohol cover art
Glorious Rock Bottom cover art
Alcohol Lied to Me: The Intelligent Escape from Alcohol Addiction cover art
The Upward Spiral cover art
The Sober Girl Society Handbook cover art
We Are the Luckiest cover art
Alcohol Explained 2: Tools for a Stronger Sobriety cover art
The Easy Way for Women to Stop Drinking cover art
Dry cover art
Sober Curious cover art
The High 5 Habit cover art
Drinking cover art
Escape Route: From Darkness to Light: An Intentional New Life cover art
All stars
Most relevant
Great listen if you are interested in quiting alcohol. A very personal story and lots of interesting facts that really made me think.

fantastic

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

im also an addict im new into recovery and this has given me so much hope ... faith and courage.

im also an addicted , great read x

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I am blown away by this book, and i believe I was meant to read it after years of struggling with alcohol addiction. Catherine has made me realize its not me that's the problem, it's alcohol, a highly addictive substance. Her honesty and charm shine through in this book as well as her being completely relatable. In fact, even if you are thinking of just cutting down I would encourage everybody to read this book. For me this is life changing, sobriety is not something "weak" people do, it's something the strongest people do. Day 1 sober, after years of living in hell with anxiety, guilt and shame. I know now that sobriety is mine for the taking, and i am excited! A fantastic book, can not praise it enough. Life changing.

Wow

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Thanks to Catherine Gray for writing this honest and insightful account of her story and relationship with alcohol. So many people think drinking is just the norm and so to find a life without alcohol is hard . This is the best and most comforting book I’ve read on my journey to sobriety. Catherine has helped me to think differently and several parts of the book really highlight how advertising and social media play a big part in the drinking culture. Little subtle messages on the positives of drinking are every where . I would recommend this book for its feel good factor for anyone wanting to change their drinking habits or achieve complete sobriety.

Brilliant

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I loved her voice - very listenable. I am a forty something female, 8 months into tackling alcohol addiction. Previously I had chosen other quit lit books over this as the “topless in a hot tub” & party til 6am type tales were so far removed from my own experience of being mostly a home drinker. However I’m so glad I did listen because I found a lot of solace in other aspects of her story, like her addictive voice thought processes, which were identical to mines (& probably many other addicts), & always wanting more after everyone else has finished, or needing to start before they arrive.

She comes across as a nice, non-judgey, non-preachy person in recovery who has admitted how bad it got, her realisations along the way, & she provides some really decent advice & resources, & recommends other quit lit/groups which helped her. All timescales covered from “how to get through the first 30 days” to months & years into sobriety. It’s so beautifully honest & open but not too heavy. I did sometimes chuckle though it’s a really difficult topic for me to face up to. And there were lots of “oh yes, I thought that, yes the voice in my head said that to me too” lightbulb moments.

I would recommend this supportive creation to anyone - from those who think they could maybe do with drinking a bit less, to people who have realised their life with alcohol has become unmanageable, to the sober curious, and also to anyone who is worried about someone else drinking too much.

Thankyou Catherine - I know I’m closer to the day it sticks for listening to you

Fantastic story, delivery & information - supportive feel

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews