You might find that you are set to host a sober guest for a party or meal.
Your friend may have just been at a residential rehab and is now in recovery.
With your friend in recovery, you don’t want to make them feel uncomfortable and you also don’t want to make it feel awkward.
Here are some useful tips to create the perfect atmosphere and have fun without alcohol at social gatherings for your sober guest.
It can be stressful to host a sober friend or family member for the first time as you don’t know what to expect and you want them to enjoy themselves.
Is it fine to drink around them? Do I still serve alcohol to other guests? What could trigger them?
Your concerns are valid and come from a caring place. However, make sure that their sobriety isn’t the focus of the night and only share that they’re in recovery if they bring it up themselves.
The best thing you can do to make your sober guest feel comfortable is simply treat them like all your other guests.
This will make your sober friend or family member feel like normal and not singled out.
This goes without saying, while you should treat the sober person like every other guest, make sure you remember not to offer them any alcoholic beverages. Only give them non-alcoholic options.
Don’t be the person who is baffled that they’re not drinking or asks them questions about why. Just respect it and move on.
Recovering alcoholics will probably tell you that they are perfectly happy only drinking water at your party. But it’s good to have a few options to make them feel like the other guests.
A non-alcoholic drink such as sparkling apple juice can look like champagne. This means your sober guest can fit in and won’t be asked why they aren’t drinking.
Avoid giving non-alcoholic beer, though, as this can create cravings.
Other alcohol-free drinks could be bubbly water, sparkling water, water with lime, plain water, grape juice, hot cocoa,
If you have a close relationship with your sober guest, just call them to ask them what they want to drink at the party and how you can make them feel more comfortable.
You can also see if they would prefer to bring their own drinks with them.
If you are concerned that there’ll be too much focus on alcohol at the party, why not make your party themed?
This way there’ll be plenty of focus on other parts of the party. You can ask your guests to dress accordingly which is bound to open up lots of conversation starters.
Or you might want to make your party an activity such as a hiking trip or bowling. This is a great way to prevent alcohol from being the main focus, instead making it an alcohol-free evening.
You could play board games, adult party games, outdoor games, or host a game night, have acoustic music performances, or have a pool party.
In fact, it is reported that you engage more significantly in activities if you are sober, so there are plenty of benefits to hosting sober activities. [1]
Another way of having a fantastic party is to shift the focus onto the food by preparing some delicious food for everyone.
If you don’t want to cook, buy finger food or why not ask each guest to bring their favourite food or meal?
Perhaps most importantly, make sure you avoid inviting friends who aren’t going to be supportive. This might be people who may pressure your sober guest to drink.
If it’s mentioned that some friends are missing, just explain you’ve limited the group as you wanted a smaller number of people around.
For more support on how to be a supportive friend in your social gatherings, call Rehab 4 Addiction at 0800 140 4690.
We can also help if you are concerned about a loved one who has relapsed or if you have any other worries.
[1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31448945/
Boris is our editor-in-chief at Rehab 4 Addiction. Boris is an addiction expert with more than 20 years in the field. His expertise covers a broad of topics relating to addiction, rehab and recovery. Boris is an addiction therapist and assists in the alcohol detox and rehab process. Boris has been featured on a variety of websites, including the BBC, Verywell Mind and Healthline. You can connect with Boris online at LinkedIn or X.com.
