Top 10 : Tips For a Sober New Year’s Eve

You’re sober. You should be proud of yourself. But today is New Year’s Eve. You want to go out and have a good time but you’ve never had a sober New Year’s before. This can be stressful but there is no need to stay home and watch Carson Daly or Pitbull count backwards from ten while a sparkly ball slowly slides down a pole in New York City. The Big Book says, “we are not a glum lot.”

My Top 10 Tips – Sober New Year’s Eve:

1. Find a sober event – If you’re in a decent sized city, I guarantee that there is some sort of recovery oriented NYE party.2. Be of service – I spent my first sober New Years babysitting some newcomers at a sober house. Not my ideal New Years, but I didn’t get loaded. Neither will you.3. Go to a meeting – Hit a meeting earlier in the day before you go out. Meetings are always good.4. Have a plan – If you choose not to go to a recovery event, the absolute worst thing you can do on NYE is wander aimlessly out into the night looking for “something to do.” If you’re like me, odds are that the only thing you’ll find is trouble.5. Tell your sponsor – No matter how solid and healthy you think your plans are, run them by your sponsor before you commit. Just trust me on this one.6. Get some friends – Roll with a sober friend. If you are the only sober person in a group, that’s just an invitation for feelings of being “left out” that could quickly lead to some masterful justification and rationalization.7. Buy some fireworks – Popping fireworks is fun. People who are having fun don’t need to get loaded. Just make sure you are safe about it and obey local laws.8. Reflect your blessings – Take a minute to think about where you were last NYE. Probably wasn’t that great was it? Thank your higher power.9. Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple Cider – It come’s in a fancy glass bottle. It has bubbles. Drink it from one of those plastic New Years champagne glasses. You’ll look and feel like a sober NYE boss.10. Work a program – none of these tips are guaranteed to keep you sober. Except for this one. IF you are working a solid program the Big Book says you are “safe and protected” as long as you’re in “fit spiritual condition.” That’s a promise.