Getting drunk when you’re just starting to drink alcohol can be dangerous. Beginners often don’t know their limits and can easily overindulge without meaning to. However, there are some tips and tricks beginners can use to pace themselves and stay in control so they don’t end up getting drunk accidentally.
Why is it important for beginners to pace themselves?
When you first start drinking, your body isn’t used to processing alcohol. You don’t yet have a good sense of your personal tolerance level or how different drinks will affect you. It’s very easy for beginners to misjudge how much they can handle and unintentionally go overboard.
Getting drunk to the point of impairment or blacking out can put beginners in unsafe situations. Drunkenness leads to poor decision making, reduced coordination, dulled senses, and vulnerability to accidents or alcohol poisoning. Beginners who overdo it may also suffer more intensely from hangovers or illness.
It’s important for beginners to take it slowly so they can learn how alcohol affects them specifically. Drinking in moderation allows beginners to enjoy socializing without all the unwanted risks of extreme intoxication.
How can beginners pace their drinking?
Here are some tips for beginners to drink responsibly and avoid getting drunk:
- Eat before and while drinking. Having food in your stomach helps your body absorb alcohol more slowly.
- Alternate alcoholic drinks with water or non-alcoholic drinks. This helps you control your consumption and stay hydrated.
- Choose lower alcohol drinks like beer or wine instead of hard liquor.
- Limit yourself to 1 or 2 drinks per hour, and do not have more than 3-4 drinks total in the night.
- Take small sips instead of gulping down drinks.
- Avoid drinking games or rounds of shots which encourage fast, excessive drinking.
- Stay busy dancing, mingling, or playing games to space out your drinks.
- Keep track of how many drinks you’ve had so you don’t lose count.
- Stop drinking a couple hours before going home or sleeping to allow sobering up time.
How can beginners know their personal alcohol tolerance?
Everyone processes alcohol differently based on factors like genetics, body size, and experience drinking. Beginners won’t immediately know their personal tolerance level or how drinks impact them.
Beginners should start very slowly with 1 drink in an evening and carefully pay attention to its effects before increasing. Incrementally drinking more over multiple occasions allows beginners to learn their limits.
Signs a beginner is approaching intoxication include:
- Feeling relaxed, buzzed, lightheaded or drowsy
- Dropping inhibitions and acting more boisterous
- Louder talking or slurred speech
- Decreased coordination, balance issues
- Delayed reaction time, blurred vision
- Impaired judgment, emotional reactions
Beginners who notice these signs should immediately stop drinking more alcohol. They are approaching their tolerance level.
What are alcohol units and how do they help pacing?
Understanding standard alcohol units can help beginners monitor their intake and pace themselves:
- One alcohol unit equals 10ml or 8g of pure alcohol.
- Most drinks have multiple units. A pint of beer has 2-3 units. A medium glass of wine has 2 units. A shot of spirits has 1 unit.
- The NHS recommends men drink no more than 4 units a day or 14 units a week. For women it is 3 units a day or 14 units a week.
Counting your units makes it easier to spread out consumption. Beginners should have no more than 2 units in the first hour, then 1 per hour after that.
What drinking habits help avoid getting drunk?
Beginners can develop habits and routines that make pacing easier:
- Eat a meal before going out or bring snacks.
- Set a drink limit ahead of time and track units as you go.
- Order your own drinks rather than rounds for tables.
- Bring a bottle of water to alternate with drinks.
- Choose a low-strength alcohol option when possible.
- Skip further drinks if you feel yourself getting buzzed or impaired.
- Make your drinks last longer by nursing them.
- Avoid drinks with unknown alcohol content or mixing your own cocktails.
What can beginners do if they feel too intoxicated?
If a beginner accidentally drinks too much, it’s still possible to minimize the risks and avoid getting dangerously drunk:
- Stop drinking immediately. Don’t have any more alcohol, no matter how much is left.
- Switch to water. Drink a glass of water between each alcoholic drink earlier on. Now focus just on rehydrating.
- Eat something. Get some food in your stomach to soak up alcohol.
- Wait it out. Sit down, rest, and give your body time to process the alcohol.
- Ask for help. If severely impaired, seek medical care or call a friend to take you home safely.
- Don’t drive. No matter what, don’t attempt to drive yourself and put others in danger.
How can beginners stay safe if they do get drunk?
Despite best efforts to pace themselves, beginners may accidentally go overboard and get more drunk than intended. Here are some ways for beginners to stay as safe as possible in that situation:
- Stick with trustworthy friends who can look out for you.
- Avoid wandering off alone or with strangers.
- Don’t get behind the wheel of a car. Have your keys taken away from you.
- Drink water and try to eat something starchy to soak up alcohol.
- If you feel ill, get to a bathroom or go outside for fresh air.
- Make sure you get home safely, either with a sober friend or cab.
- Once home, get in bed on your side and sleep it off.
- Take care of yourself in the morning with fluids, painkillers, and greasy food.
How can beginners learn from overdrinking experiences?
Don’t be too hard on yourself if you slip up and go overboard as a beginner – it happens! The important thing is to reflect on it and learn for next time.
After an episode of overdrinking, beginners should:
- Think through at what point you went from buzzed to drunk. Could you have stopped sooner?
- Consider what contributed to drinking too much. The environment? People encouraging you? Takeaways can help you avoid similar scenarios.
- Note how the amount, pace and type of drinks affected you. This gives insight into your tolerance.
- Remind yourself of the unpleasant aftereffects like hangovers or embarassment.
- Recommit to responsible drinking habits like spacing out drinks, counting units, and staying hydrated.
Making mistakes is part of the learning process when developing any new skill. Follow these steps and over time, beginners will get better at drinking moderately without overindulging.
How can beginners practice abstinence or moderation?
Here are some tips for beginners who want to abstain from alcohol completely or keep drinking to a minimum:
- Politely decline drinks by asking for water, juice, kombucha, or mocktails instead. Don’t feel pressured to drink.
- If questioned, have a prepared response explaining you’re limiting your drinking or abstaining.
- Eat beforehand and bring an alternate non-alcoholic beverage to social events.
- Choose alcohol-free venues, activities, and get-togethers.
- Suggest meeting friends for coffee, meals, hikes, shows during the day instead of bars at night.
- Find social outlets that don’t revolve around alcohol like rec sports leagues, volunteering, classes.
- Keep alcohol out of your living space so it’s not a temptation.
While abstinence or very light drinking may not be common in your social circle as a beginner, know it’s absolutely okay. Don’t be afraid to set boundaries and do what feels comfortable for you.
Conclusion
It’s common and understandable for alcohol beginners to accidentally drink too much and get more intoxicated then they aimed for. However, being aware of your personal tolerance, pacing yourself, and using proven tips to control intake allows beginners to drink responsibly. Learning your limits and how to nurse drinks takes practice. Don’t be discouraged by early slip-ups. Over time, beginners can become more comfortable drinking socially without the pressure to overindulge and get drunk.