A Simple Guide to Surviving the Holidays Sober by Amanda OBryan The Startup

For many, family interaction plays a big part in this holiday pressure. It is most important to find the right balance for your individual needs during the holiday season. The biggest gift that you can give to yourself and your loved ones is that of sobriety. If you feel especially self-conscious without any “liquid courage,” take a moment to soothe and calm your nervous system by taking some deep breaths.

How to Be Kind When You’re Upset With Your Partner

Don’t ignore signs of discomfort, and disengage from situations that are unhealthy or triggering. Vent to a friend, take a walk, and protect your hard-earned progress—no matter what your nosy relative might think about it. Invite someone from your support network for the holiday. Even if they can’t be there for the whole day, maybe they can stop by before or after, or perhaps for appetizers or dessert.

Stay safe

There are questions and comments and, of course, spiked egg nog and holiday toasts. Bring your own beverage, e.g., cider or sparkling https://ecosoberhouse.com/ cider. Listen and politely smile – not a dumb smile, a genuinely pleasant smile; sometimes smiling on the outside does wonders for your psyche.

Stay busy

If you’re headed to a party where you know you’ll feel highly tempted, ask someone to come with you to be your sober support. This way, you’ll have someone to hold you accountable – this is one of those times when peer pressure can be a good thing. It also means you will have someone to talk to if you feel overwhelmed and need a bit of emotional support. About a week ago, I needed to attend the holiday party for the company my partner owns.

So deep, in fact, that when he does ask for juice, his parents give him lectures on how it’s unhealthy and full of sugar. If he asks for a cocktail, no one says a word. She’s allowed us to share her story, but we’ve changed her name to protect her anonymity. She attends Al-Anon while her husband is in and out of Alcoholics Anonymous. That’s what a recovery friend called Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. Sarah Allen Benton, M.S., LMHC., LPC, is a licensed mental health counselor and author of Understanding the High-Functioning Alcoholic.

Plan for activities outside of the festivities:

• If they don’t want to answer the phone, they’ll send it to voicemail.
• So in sobriety, always having a drink in hand can provide a sense of comfort — particularly early on in recovery.
• Start receiving support via phone, video, or live-chat.
• Don’t ignore signs of discomfort, and disengage from situations that are unhealthy or triggering.
• Try to keep your bedtime and mealtimes at the same time each day, and don’t forget to keep working out.
• As we often say in our podcast, “It’s okay not to be okay.” This holiday season, let’s prioritize our mental health and sobriety.

So why put yourself in the position of having to “power through” an obstacle course of relapse triggers? Staying sober and safeguarding your recovery must always come first. There’s strength in numbers, and it’s much easier to stay sober if you have someone else doing it with you.

What is Family Therapy?

Living with addiction takes the strength of a superhero, regardless of if you are the addict or the loved one. Throw a couple of kids into the mix, plus a pet or two, and you have a recipe for a super meltdown. sober holidays Luckily, community agencies can help in situations like this. It’s not your fault you are facing the challenge of addiction. If pride is a factor, imagine a time in the future when you will be the one helping another family in need.

Surviving The Holidays Sober

Having that “anchor” person present will make you feel more comfortable and stable. A. Blink – when we are stressed or feeling threatened in some way, we can get tunnel vision. Our eyes may get big (be cause our survival system wants to make sure we can see any threat that may come ourway) and we may forget to blink. Or, more generally, we may get frozen in our stress.