The holidays have always been portrayed as a time to have fun, relax, spend time with friends and family, and celebrate having everyone in each other’s lives. Some families center their activities around drinking, while others may have a small glass for family dinner. When it comes to drinking this holiday season, it really depends on your current drinking behavior, your drinking history, and your goals. By assessing these 3 factors about yourself, you can easily determine exactly how much (and if) you should drink at all. The truth is, celebration doesn’t always have to appear as it does in the movies. There are many other ways to have a wonderful time this holiday without drinking.
Current drinking behavior: How much, how often, and how frequently do you drink? Consider if you experience any of the following:
- When you drink, you often find yourself drinking more or for longer than you meant to
- You spend a lot of time getting, planning around, and using alcohol
- You miss many responsibilities due to your drinking
- You continue to drink even when it causes problems in other areas of your life or places you in danger
If you experience any of these, you may have a substance use disorder (SUD). With this, it’s important that you seek help from a reputable treatment center right away.
Drinking history: Are you typically able to have “just one” drink? What happens when you start drinking? Are you in recovery and/or have relapsed within the past year?
Goals: If your goals this holiday season are to place family memories as top priority, to be there for your children, to recover and remain abstinent, or something similar to these, it’s probably best that you do not drink at all or, if you do, drink very little. Oftentimes, alcohol can make it difficult to enjoy the present moment and remember everything later on – you want to make sure you don’t miss a beat.
Remember, you can always party sober. Sobriety is not the death of fun but the beginning of a new life. The possibilities are endless, and that includes a fun, sober Halloween.
From the mountains to the coastline, the possibilities of living a life without limits are endless. At Tree House Recovery in Orange County, California, we’re helping men recover their lives from addiction through innovative treatment designed to transform their lives inside and out. For information, call to speak with one of our graduates: (855) 202-2138