6 Tips For How To Stay Sober In Social Circumstances

Christmas. New Year’s. Birthdays. Office parties. 

There are a ton of celebrations and holiday events that take place throughout the year, and many of these events involve social drinking. For someone who is recovering from an addiction to alcohol, it can be a challenge to not participate in any drinking during these types of events.

Maintaining your sobriety is crucial to living a life free of addiction. Even one drink can open the floodgates and lead to relapse. 

In short, if you find yourself facing circumstances that will involve a lot of drinking, it might be best just to stay away. However, we know there are some events you cannot or do not want to miss. In these circumstances, you’ll want to remember the tips below and what your clinicians and therapists have taught you.

6 Tips for How to Stay Sober During Events and Celebrations

1. Bring an accountability partner — Bring a friend who is also sober or is willing to avoid drinking during the event with you.
2. Contact an accountability partner — If no one is able to come with you, at least have someone who is willing to let you check in with them on a regular basis for accountability. This could be someone you arrange to call before, during and after the event to check in on your well-being.
3. Practice saying no — People at a party might not know that you are in recovery and may offer you a beverage. Rather than being caught off guard and taking a beverage out of social obligation, script how you would like to decline. Be polite but firm, and if they continue to push you, either change the subject or walk away.
4. Bring your own beverages — If you know there is going to be a lot of alcohol at an event, such as a New Year’s party or a Super Bowl party, consider bringing your own drinks. There is a wide variety of creative and delicious nonalcoholic cocktails and other beverages you can enjoy instead of something with alcohol.
5. Limit your time around tempting circumstances — If you find yourself growing stressful or anxious around the alcohol as the event goes on, then you may want to leave or find another space in the event where people are not drinking.
6. Know when to leave — Make an exit strategy in advance, so you know when to leave and how you want to leave if you’re starting to feel tempted, stressed or anxious. 

Start Your Recovery Journey at Tulip Hill Recovery

At Tulip Hill Recovery, we focus on discovering what factors in your life may be contributing to your addiction in order to treat it at its main source. 

Are you ready to talk to someone about treatment for addiction and building a better future for yourself? Please contact us today to get in touch with our team and start your recovery journey.