Giving up alcohol, Women's Christmas, 18 in 2018

We discuss how the usual self help manuals on diet and exercise are now being joined by books about going sober. Clare Pooley the author of The Sober Diaries and Catherine Gray who has written The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober tell us why they gave up alcohol.

We'll hear from two women turning 18 in 2018 about their hopes for the future as they deal with the transition from adolescence to adulthood while coping with a chronic illness or condition. Cerys Beaumont suffers from symptoms linked to ME and Georgia Head has Cerebral Palsy.

The writer Lisa McGee tells us about her new comedy Derry Girls set against the backdrop of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

We hear about a complex type of mastectomy called the DIEP flap with surgeon Ruth Waters, Ashu Ganndhi a consultant breast surgeon and Donna Wilson Mills who had the procedure during a double mastectomy last year.

We hear from you about your views on how ideas of masculinity are changing. Derek, Chris, Philip and Bruce give us their opinions.

January 6th is the day of the Irish tradition of Women's Christmas - Mary Morrissey a novelist from Cork and Gillian Kenny who researches women's history at Trinity College in Dublin tell us how Women's Christmas started and why they want us all to celebrate it.

We hear from three women who have made a side project, which they have run alongside a day job, make money. Laura Mudie is a midwife and founder of Funky Medical and Rosa and Bo (two businesses which deal with medical and baby accessories), Otegha Uwagba is the Founder of Women Who, which connects women working in the creative industries and Emma Gannon used to work in social media and is the author of the Multi Hyphen Method: Work Less Create More. They offer some help and advice.

Presented by Jenni Murray
Produced by Rabeka Nurmahomed
Edited by Jane Thurlow.