Halloween for kids means trick-or-treating and delicious candy. Halloween for adults usually means big parties – and alcohol that is particularly dangerous for people with alcohol addiction. If you’re worried that you could be tempted to drink or take a narcotic at a Halloween party, then it pays to prepare yourself ahead of time with some quick tips and hints about maintaining sobriety on the spookiest night of the year.
Five sobriety tips for anyone celebrating Halloween this year are:
- Go with friends: Your chances of maintaining sobriety when among tempting factors will be stronger if you are with your friends who know about your addiction and recovery program. If you have to head to a Halloween party, then go there with your trusted friends, and ask them to stay around you during the party. If they spot that you are uncomfortable, or if someone is trying to get you to drink, then they should intervene immediately.
- Carry a cup: Partygoers who are drinking tend to want to get other partygoers to drink as well. To try to keep them off your back about drinking, you should carry a party cup with you, but keep it filled with water or soda. When an avid drinker sees you with a cup in your hand, they will assume you are already topped off and will be more likely to bother someone else without a cup.
- Wear a big mask: Halloween parties are one of the only times in the year that wearing a big, ridiculous mask to the party is acceptable and encouraged. You can integrate a mask into your scary costume to make it more difficult for you to eat and drink. The extra step of having to pull up or off your mask could be what stops you from making the mistake of having a drink.
- Plan your exit: Before you ever arrive at the party, you should already have an exit plan in mind. Review it with your friends, too. Helpful exit plans tend to include a “leave-by time.” For example, you can plan to leave at 10 PM no matter how the party is going, or you can leave the moment someone pressures you to drink. Either way, if you preemptively make yourself comfortable with leaving before the party calms down, then it will be that much easier for you to depart when the time comes.
- Stay home: What’s the best way to avoid alcohol and drug temptations at Halloween parties? Staying home instead of going out. Put yourself in charge of handing out candy to trick-or-treaters, so you can stay sober while your friends can still go to parties without anyone worrying about if you’re feeling too tempted by the setting.
From our team at The Carter Treatment Center in Georgia, we wish you a happy, healthy, safe, and sober Halloween! If you need help with alcohol addiction, then contact us right away.