How to stay sober over Christmas

Here are six tips to help you stay sober over Christmas and New Year, no matter what invitations, social events or festivities are thrown at you:

1. Get happy saying no

If any social events, meals and parties are going to be too challenging for you, simply say no to them. It doesn’t help to put yourself under pressure. If you go into situations that are too challenging or too triggering, you could end up feeling overwhelmed and caving in.

It’s okay to put yourself and your needs first and to avoid those situations. I hereby give you full permission to say no to the invitations and events that might have been causing you anxiety. You can come up with excuses, you can develop a temporary illness or you can tell the truth — it depends on your context and what you’re comfortable with.

It’s also a good idea to practise saying no out loud. If you’re someone who isn’t used to being assertive, is worried about letting other people down or feels under pressure to live up to some kind of party animal expectations, then rehearsing out loud what you’re going to say alongside a confident “no” will really help.

Looking after yourself and hiding away from events that are just too challenging for you is important. So, get happy saying no and choose only to socialise where you’re confident you’ll have the control you need to stay sober.

2. Plan ahead

When you do agree to a social gathering, spend some time planning:

• What you’re going to drink instead of alcohol
• What you’re going to tell people who might be curious about why you’re not drinking (again, rehearsing out loud in advance helps build your confidence with this)
• How much time you’re going to spend there
• What you’re going to do or say if anyone gives you a hard time or pressures you to drink.

The more time you spend planning and rehearsing, the more confident you’ll feel about staying sober and the easier it will be.

You can even crank up your chances of staying successfully sober by imagining yourself doing it. In your mind’s eye, play a little movie of yourself navigating the event successfully…