Labor Day is a time for celebrating the accomplishments you have made either in the office or at home. It can be pressuring to have fun and get loose whenever you are celebrating. It is important to maintain your sobriety during your Labor Day celebration to avoid a relapse.

Labor Day is a time when we should all be thankful to have our jobs and receiving praise for our accomplishments. It is tradition during Labor Day to have a picnic with your family and friends and to step back away from work. Another thing people tend to do during Labor Day is have drinks. If you are a recovering alcoholic, being surrounded by people who drink can make you feel pressured to drink as well. You should not ruin all of the hard work you have done during your recovery over one day.

Before you go to the party, you should prepare yourself by thinking of certain triggers you may face. If it is by a cottage that you will bring back memories of the time you drank with friends, then do not go. Think of the people going will remind you how much fun you had when you were drinking with them and if they will be attending the party. Think about the food as well if there will be certain food at the party that you normally have paired with a drink. Think about what to do if these triggers come up. If you cannot come up with a plan, speak to your therapist to discuss together what to do so you are prepared.

If you are going to a friend’s Labor Day party, you should speak to the host that you are in recovery and you do not want the host or anyone else coming up to you requesting you to drink or participate in any drinking games. If the host makes you feel bad about not drinking, that is a cue for you to leave the party if drinking all anyone plans to do. If the host is a friend or relative of yours, that person should understand and try to look out for you. If you feel like you do not trust yourself in a room for a people drinking, bring a sober buddy with you who is either on the same journey as you or never drinks. That friend can easily lure you away from the drinks and find other ways to distract you.

If anyone offers you a drink at the party, just politely refuse the offer and let them know you do not drink and you want to be in control over this party. That you want to be able to remember the memories of that day and not wake up hungover the next day. You do not have to tell anyone that you are a recovering alcoholic. If people make you feel uncomfortable for refusing to drink or treat you negatively, remember everything that you accomplished during your sobriety and that you are doing a good thing by not drinking. Never be around people who do not support your sobriety or will pressure you to “live a little.” You have a better chance of being alive by not absorbing alcohol into your bloodstream. You should also bring your own drinks during the party like soda, punch, Kool-Aid, lemonade, orange juice, water, or any other drink that does not have alcohol.

Do not feel like if you do not drink that you will not have fun on Labor Day. There are many things you can do like swimming, camping, playing sports, and friendly competition. You can also bring board games or card games with you to get everyone laughing and forming teams as an opportunity for bonding and working together. If you cannot find sober activities among your peers, go on MeetUp.com and find sober activities around your area.

If you need to escape this party because you cannot handle triggers, do not hesitate and make a quick exit. Make sure to bring your own car with you or have money on hand to take public transportation or a car service. Do not force yourself to be ready to change by going to parties if you feel like you still need to force your sobriety. You know what you can and cannot handle. You can also find a 12 Step meeting near you and spend time with other people who are in recovery as everything you were feeling at that party are familiar feelings for them too.

Instead of hoping that your peers will throw sober parties to celebrate Labor Day, you should make a party of your own. Invite your friends, relatives, and neighbors to celebrate Labor Day like having a picnic or a camping trip or coming inside and watching a movie together. Let everyone know that you do not want anyone to bring any alcoholic drinks. If your peers really love you, they will understand and support your recovery. Recovery is a long and hard process where you may have memories of other times you have celebrated Labor Day and how much fun you had when you were drinking. It is time for you to admit out loud that those days are over and you need to find other ways to enjoy yourself. Ask for help whenever you need it and enjoy yourself with the people you love.

Located in Tacoma, Washington, Bayview Center’s mission is to offer clinically-driven programs and services to treat a number of substance abuse disorders along with anxiety and depression using cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, trauma therapy, yoga therapy, and more for a successful recovery. For more information, please call us 888 570 7154 at as we are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.