Here's to staying sober at Christmas

FOR MOST, Christmas is a time of carefree excess and indulgence. Yet, for those who have decided not to drink alcohol during the holiday, it can be a testing time. Below, four people determined to stay away from alcohol this Christmas give their take on how to get through a sober holiday.

Shirley Donovan, radio presenter based in Cobh

I am five months pregnant, so alcohol is off the menu this Christmas. This is my third child and somehow I have always managed to be pregnant over Christmas.

The first one I ended up being the designated driver, but wasn’t aware of the extent people would take advantage of it. I was the person at 11pm getting really annoyed when others were drunk and getting stupid.

Then, the second time I was pregnant and sober at Christmas, I decided we would do more of the entertaining at home. It also resolved the babysitting issue. This time I decided it would be all about the food. All I have left really is the food!

There are times when it is tricky. For example, I was at a Christmas party and, even though there were two other pregnant girls there, I was thinking I would love a few glasses of wine.

I was also saying to myself, if I wasn’t pregnant I’d be really tucking in. But I guess I had the added advantage of getting into my car and driving home and not standing in the cold for two hours waiting for a taxi.

I don’t mind it too much, but Christmas Day when people are having mulled wine, when the smell is in the house, it almost smells better than it tastes. So it is hard at times and then at other times you just don’t mind and are eating more to compensate for it.

Not drinking alcohol gives you a different point of view on enjoying Christmas. It highlights how much drink is part of Christmas. The first Christmas without drink is probably the hardest and you need to be firm, otherwise people will see you as just a spin home.

Stephen Buckley, non-drinker and member of Alcoholic Anonymous

I look forward to Christmas to be honest. Of course, being away from drink is difficult, but I try to stay away from drinking situations, such as parties and pubs. I focus on family, which I enjoy.

Staying off the drink gets easier. I don’t want to be around places where there is drink involved. The first Christmas was tricky as you’d be afraid all the work you put in staying off the drink could be messed up. There is such a big association between drink and Christmas that you’d be afraid of messing things up for family and those close to you.

I go to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings and I stay in regular contact with people who don’t drink. I find that a great strength and support. I spend a lot of time around my family who also give me great support. I have little contact with friends I would have drunk with before. Christmas is no longer about me – it is about the bigger circle. If I were out over the Christmas, I’d have lemonade or a coffee.

Christmas Day is very hard because people drink at 1pm in the afternoon and they guzzle back as much as they can. It’s not what Christmas is about at all. I try to relax at home and if it gets a bit much I go for a drive or walk, or pick up the phone and ring someone.

I’ll probably go to an AA meeting on Christmas Day early in the morning. My advice to anyone thinking about giving up the drink would be to give it a try and realise there is help out there for people if they want it.

Alice Jago, musician living in Dublin

I suppose every Christmas working in music is a bit hectic and possibly I have wanted for a long time to give it up completely. I thought Christmas would be a good time to start. This year I will have my family over and so keeping busy will help. It could go either way though. I’m on cooking duty.

I find Christmas can sometimes be stressful, and I think adding drink to that makes it worse. I would have said other years I won’t drink much, but wouldn’t have been off it completely. I might not have drunk on Christmas Day in the afternoon, but would have drunk then later in the day.

It is shocking when I think about it but I have never tried not to drink at Christmas. I just had enough. Particularly this year I’d like not to be tired by 2pm and falling asleep. I don’t drink a huge amount, but because of what I do for a living it is everywhere.

I have a fair few things I want to do in the New Year and you have a lot more energy when you don’t drink. I haven’t drank on New Year’s Eve for a few years, so that will be easy. I suppose I am a bit older now. Also, my son is six years old, and I want to be able to remember his day. I don’t want him to see me drunk.

I’m in my mid-thirties and you start to want more out of things, and you realise that drinking takes up a whole lot of time. Most Christmases when I was younger I’d crawl down at one or two in the afternoon, have a bit of dinner and then go back to bed. It wasn’t really Christmas at all.”

Tracy Ferguson, tourism officer for Bundoran Town Council

It’s not really a problem for me. With the work I do there are a lot of events to go to, so I made a decision if I am out a lot for work, it isn’t a great idea to drink.

I find it quite easy at Christmas if you treat yourself some other way. It makes Christmas a lot calmer and nicer, and it’s easier. I treat myself to some nice juices or unusual teas or speciality coffee, and that will be the drink treats at Christmas.

If you look at going out in general and not drinking, I’m amazed at the amount of pressure put on people. Even if I say I have the car, they say to me, “Sure one wouldn’t do any harm.”

New Year’s Eve is the hardest for me personally. It’s the time where we would have gone to parties in houses and I think that’s the hardest.

What I would say to people finding it hard to think of an alcohol-free Christmas is to think of waking up the next day and not feeling sick and wondering what did you do. It is a lovely feeling.

DID I REALLY DO THAT: HOW TO AVOID THAT 'MORNING AFTER THE NIGHT BEFORE' FEELING:

* If you have upset people in the past when drinking, avoid alcohol.

* Women are more sensitive to alcohol than men, particularly premenstrual women.

* People on medication should avoid alcohol. Some medicines strengthen the effect of alcohol; others are themselves weakened by it. This includes cold remedies and some herbal remedies.

* Plan in advance how much you will drink.

* Drink slowly. Your body can break down one standard drink per hour.

* Don’t drink if you are depressed or in a bad mood.

* Make sure to eat a proper meal before drinking.

* Take water or soft drinks between alcoholic drinks.

* Take a limited amount of money when you go out drinking. When it’s spent, go home.

* Avoid drinking around people you don’t like.

* Avoid buying and accepting rounds of drinks.

* Try arriving at the party late or leaving early. Or both.

* If you plan to avoid alcohol, have a reason to offer. Say you are driving or taking medication.