5 Best Ways To Stay Sober on New Year’s Eve

Instead of starting the new year with a drunken night you won’t remember, check out the 5 best ways to stay sober on New Year’s Eve.

The ball finishes its descent in Times Square, couples exchange happy kisses, and friends toast with bubbly to celebrate the arrival of a new year. Pretty soon, this scene will play out all across the United States. For some, it will be a harmless celebration. For others, these parties are another opportunity for alcoholism to rear its ugly head and tighten its grip on your health and self-control.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Instead of starting the new year with a drunken night you won’t remember, check out the 5 best ways to stay sober on New Year’s Eve.

If you can’t abstain from alcohol when it’s all around you, it’s best to avoid the temptation altogether. Be honest with yourself while sober about what you can and can’t resist in the moment. Instead of putting yourself in a position where you have to exercise self-control, find ways to celebrate without the booze. Watch the ball drop at home with your kids. Dress up and celebrate with other friends who don’t drink. Host a booze-free party at home, complete with board games, appetizers, and watching the ball drop on your TV.

Opt for a calmer, more contemplative New Year’s Eve by using it for reflection and goal setting. Turn on some music and journal about all you learned in 2016 and all you hope for in 2017. Ask yourself the difficult questions about how alcohol has affected your life and relationships this year-then answer them honestly. Consider how you want the next year to be different. Write your goals down and put them somewhere you can revisit them often.

Instead of staying up all night on December 31st, celebrate the morning of January 1st. Make plans to enjoy brunch at your favorite restaurant, attend a new exercise class, or meet up with friends. Plan to do something you can look forward to, then skip the parties and go to bed early in preparation for a happy and sober New Year’s Day.

If you know you’ll be around alcohol on New Year’s Eve, be proactive by finding an accountability partner. This should be a friend who will also abstain from drinking and can help buffer any pressure you feel to indulge. Determine a reward the two of you can enjoy after staying sober for the holiday. This could be as small as seeing a new movie in theaters or as big as planning a getaway to go skiing.

There’s no better way to ring in a new year and a new you than by entering rehab at Hawaiian Island Recovery. You’ll get healthy, form new friendships, and even enjoy a wild dolphin encounter! At HIR, you’ll benefit from a wide variety of proven therapies, a team of licensed professionals, and a surprising array of fun activities. In fact, this is the very best method for staying sober on New Year’s Eve because it allows you to do all of the above methods at once. You’ll steer clear of temptation, reflect, set goals, find accountability partners, and make plans for a happy and healthy new year.

New Year’s Eve is the perfect time to finally make the change you’ve been putting off for so long. Contact us today to join us as we ring in a new (and sober) year in beautiful Hawaii.