Skipping Alcohol-Related Gifts and Parties for the Holidays

We’ve all seen them in stores and online. Cute little bottles of different flavors of alcohol. Larger bottles that are interesting shapes or colors, or bottles packaged with attractive glassware. Certain flavors of drinks sold only during the holidays.

It’s easy to give the gift of alcohol for Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, or New Year’s. But should we?

After all, most of us know someone who’s in treatment or recovery from an alcohol addiction, someone who’s in active addiction, or someone who abuses the substance. We could have an addiction ourselves or are in recovery from one.

All this means that alcohol is or can be a problematic substance for many people. Wouldn’t it be better to avoid giving alcohol entirely, just in case?

Drinking, alcohol, and parties

In the past, drinking and alcohol have also been cornerstones of many holiday parties. How many people ring the new year in by drinking sparkling wine or another adult beverage?

Of course, some celebrations in late 2020 and early 2021 might look very different. The COVID-19 pandemic has limited or stopped celebrations to limit the spread of the highly infectious disease. Leaders of some places have made gatherings of certain sizes illegal or have strongly discouraged get-togethers.

We might be gathering using online apps or phone calls for our holiday celebrations or other virtual meet-ups. But sometimes, there’s still an emphasis on alcohol. If you search terms such as virtual happy hour, you’ll find numerous suggestions on how to host a virtual party where alcohol is a major component.

Articles sometimes encourage people to make drinks separately at their own homes so they can drink together while they watch each other from their monitors. The articles might tell people that they deserve a drink (or two) after the year we’ve had.

While 2020 has indeed been tough, alcohol can make it even tougher. We do deserve assistance, and some need it more than others.

To help ourselves, maybe we can meet without the alcohol. We can give or send nonalcoholic gifts. Socialization alone can help boost our spirits without spirits.

Sources

delish.com – 16 Limited-Edition Holiday Bottles for All the Booze Hounds on Your List

sunshinebehavioralhealth.com – The Effects of Alcohol Addiction

google.com – Virtual Happy Hour