How do you maintain recovery during the holidays?

December 15, 2024

The holidays can be a wonderful time for family and friends to get together, share food, laughter, exchange gifts, and enjoy each other’s company! However, in a lot of holiday settings alcohol is also included in the holiday festivities. This can be a trigger for those who are working on maintaining their recovery. So, we are going to go over some helpful tips to maintain recovery throughout the holidays.

How to set yourself up for success?

Establishing a plan before walking into a setting where you know there will be alcohol present, can help you be successful in avoiding drinking. There are multiple AA meetings that take place over the holidays, knowing when those are scheduled and seeking the support can be an excellent starting point. This can allow you to hear first hand stories from those who may be further along in their recovery of how they navigate the holiday seasons. Another idea is to set up or establish a relationship with a sponsor to have someone to check in with and connect with if you are struggling throughout the holidays.

Hold yourself accountable. If you feel safe doing so, let your family know that you are in recovery and that you will not be drinking this holiday. This can be helpful for many reasons as this will help those around you hold you accountable to your own goals, and remind you of your goal to maintain your sobriety over the holiday season. This can also be helpful so that the host knows to offer you a non- alcoholic drink when they are serving people. It can also be helpful to have a response prepared to share with people who might ask questions so that you are not thrown off and triggered by something someone says. 

If you are working on maintaining your sobriety, build off what you know has worked well in the past and lean on these strategies. Know what your triggers are and work on limiting or avoiding exposure to those triggers. Asking yourself the questions of what has caused me to start drinking in the past and how can I avoid that? You know yourself and your needs best, and if you are at the beginning stages of your recovery it may be a good idea to sit out a holiday gathering if you feel that it will jeopardize your sobriety.

What to do if I do not want to tell anyone that I have stopped drinking?

Everyone gets to decide how they navigate their own recovery and some people are not ready to share their struggles with alcohol with family and do not want others to know that they have decided to stop drinking. There are ways to navigate this too: connecting with a sponsor, an AA group or seeking support from the recovery community before the holidays can offer a great deal of support in ensuring that you do not feel isolated and alone. If you are worried about what the options at a holiday gathering might be, get your favourite drink to bring with you. Make your own drinks, and pour it into a cup, this can help to avoid any conversations that you might not be ready to have. It is also really important to note, that if you are sharing that you are not drinking at a holiday event, that does not mean that you are required to explain to everyone the details of your recovery. It is so important to remember what is best for you and where you are at in your sobriety journey is the most important thing to prioritize and listen to for yourself.

What if I would like to have a drink over the holidays, but want to make sure that it doesn’t continue after the holidays?

Sometimes people decide that they would like to take a harm-reduction approach to drinking instead of abstinence. This can look different for each person, and please note that a lot of these ideas are very general and can be adapted to fit each person’s needs. These are more general tips to stick to personal goals, or slow down your own drinking throughout the holidays. Before showing up to an event, establish how many drinks you are going to have, this can ensure that you have a plan walking into the event and gives you a benchmark to know when you have had enough and it is time to stop. Having a glass of water between each drink can help to slow down your consumption as you are increasing liquid and ensuring that you are forcing yourself to take breaks. Instead of purchasing premixed drinks, get stuff to make your own drinks, so that you can make the decision to make the drinks weaker. If you are attending multiple events back to back it might be a good idea to take a day of not drinking between events to allow for yourself and your body to reset. Please keep in mind that these are general tips to reduce alcohol intake and they might not be the best option for you.

What happens if I do have a drink over the holidays?

Recovery is not a linear process and there might be an incident where you might slip with your sobriety or harm reduction goals over the holidays. It is important to look at that as one event and not a turning point erasing the work that you have already put in. This can be an opportunity for growing and learning. First it is so important to remember not to be hard on yourself, recovery is not an easy linear process, but there is always room to start fresh if you feel that you slipped on your goals. Take this as an opportunity to reflect and learn, what took place and led to me slipping on my goals? If you are able to identify that then it will provide a starting point to move and learn from. Starting to immediately move back into the routines and habits that helped you to maintain your sobriety goals initially can help to reestablish the process that you had made. Always remember that you are not alone in the journey and that you can reach out for support to your local AA group, a sponsor, or connect with a counsellor. You can book in directly with a counsellor through Virtual Connect below.

Where can I turn to for support?  

Alcohol recovery can seem like a very isolating process, Establishing a strong network of support can help to ensure that you are able to meet your sobriety goals. Reaching out to a friend or family member you trust can be a source of support. Reaching out and getting connected with a local AA group can help you find validation and support through shared experiences, and help you to connect with a sponsor.  Additionally getting set up with a counsellor who you trust and can help you to work on your goals for recovery. What avenue for support you decide to pursue is completely up to you, the important part is that you are obtaining support through the process. 

Recovery looks different for each person, their comfort levels, and what feels realistic for them. I wanted to share multiple options for people to reference depending on where they are at in their journey. There are also multiple counsellors through Virtual Connect who would be happy to support you in establishing your individual plans for navigating sobriety throughout the holidays.  

Click here to get connected with support now!