How to stay sober when on holiday

Holidays are a great way to put your head down and relax, but when you are trying to change your lifestyle sometimes they can work both ways.

I am currently away with my family in the south west of Western Australia an area famous for it's beautiful country scenery and its wineries. There are 8 adults and 5 children, 6 of the adults I am with drink, 4 of them drink heavily in a similar fashion to what I did before I decided to stop drinking, so not needing to say, there has been and will continue to be plenty of alcohol around for the next week. 

Now sometimes situations like this can be avoided or put off for a while, but this for me is a family tradition that means allot to me so I do not want to miss out because of a life choice I have made. 

So to be able to go on a holiday like this knowing I want to remain sober and still enjoy the time with my family there are things that need to be done.

The first thing you have to do is make sure everyone you are going on holiday with understands that you are not drinking, they do not need to know everything you could for eg. just tell them you are having a week to give you body a break, or you are doing a cleansing month, whatever you feel comfortable in telling, i do however suggest if it is you family to come out and tell them the truth, let them know the reason's for wanting to stop drinking and let them know that you have stopped drinking and plan to stay stopped and would really appreciate that they did not offer you any alcohol, I also make clear that I do not expect anyone to change their drinking habits to make me feel better or help me as this is not necessary.

The next is to get your mind right, you need to know yourself and keep telling yourself that you will not be drinking, no matter how tempting that one drink at that lovely winery may seem your mind is already made up before that situation even becomes a reality, this is something very important in the early stages of recovery, you have to know how to convince yourself of something and commit to it. each challenge and each commitment is real and they all add up to the greater good. 

Finally have fun, enjoy the time with your family & or friends, enjoy your life in sobriety and remember why it is you chose this life, you wanted to spend your time making wonderful memories without alcohol distorting, dramatising and dominating every aspect of your life, especially your holidays! 

Success built from failure,
The Alcoholic Entrepreneur

www.thealcoholicentrepreneur.com