U.S.A-4th of July anxieties..

[chev]

So I have been feeling the anxiety with 4th of July start pouring in already. I want to be able to celebrate with other people but feel like I never get the chance to. I don't have many friends to begin with, and then it seems that mostly everyone wants to drink. Sometimes I tell myself that I can still go and not drink, but that's never fun. If it was only my close friends it wouldn't be as big of a deal, but they usually bring other people I don't know..that just always means I get made fun of for not drinking. The other issue is that if I'm hanging around others who are drinking, they become louder, which makes me quieter. I just feel so alone when it comes to these kinds of holidays. I usually end up spending them by myself because I either don't want to be a killjoy or I'm feeling too scared to hang around a bunch of people who are drinking. I just have never had any desire to drink. It seems like sometimes it's near impossible to find other people my age who are the same. The other thing about these holidays is that when I find out I have no one to hang out with, then I get more anxiety when others ask me what my plans are. Blah.

 

[surewhynot]

If your close friends let people make fun of you for not drinking then you need to find new friends (as hard as that can be). Whenever I'm at a social gathering with alcohol present there's always people who decide not to drink for various reasons and they spend as much of a good time as everyone else. Don't ever feel pressured to drink if you don't want to.

 

[chev]

If your close friends let people make fun of you for not drinking then you need to find new friends (as hard as that can be). Whenever I'm at a social gathering with alcohol present there's always people who decide not to drink for various reasons and they spend as much of a good time as everyone else. Don't ever feel pressured to drink if you don't want to.

I should've probably been a little more clear. Not all my close friends bring people who make fun of me, but I still usually feel out of place regardless. And I never do give into pressure to drink..it's just not me, but it does make me feel a little alone to be the way I am sometimes.

 

[darrens]

Personally i think it takes a super confident person to be around a group of people drinking and partying while not drinking themselves,if it was me i'd avoid being around groups of people drinking unless i was drinking myself,that's not to say you can't have a good time with others drinking while sober,but i would avoid these situations like the plague,sober and drunk people is a bad mix at the best of times.

 

[chev]

Personally i think it takes a super confident person to be around a group of people drinking and partying while not drinking themselves,if it was me i'd avoid being around groups of people drinking unless i was drinking myself,that's not to say you can't have a good time with others drinking while sober,but i would avoid these situations like the plague,sober and drunk people is a bad mix at the best of times.

I tend to stay away from these too. Just wish I had a group of people to hang out/celebrate with who wouldn't drink.

 

[jaim38]

I also have July 4 anxiety too. I'll have to get out of my comfort zone and see my terrible cousins again!

 

[Falloutboy]

Can you just pretend to drink? That's what I would do just to avoid the awkwardness. You know, a virgin rum and coke or something.

I'm feeling a lot of anxiety about the 4th of July also. My family is having a party and everyone keeps making sure I'm coming since they know how flakey I've been lately. I am such a homebody lately and I'm enjoying it. Especially since I have a five month old baby, it's just easier to stay at home since everyone loves babies

 

[fate12321]

Well I don't really do much in 4th of July's anyway, besides enjoying a day off from school. I can relate on how you feel with an environment full of extroverts. You don't have to drink if you don't want to. If they ask you,"why aren't drinking?", just say something like, "I'm the designated driver" or something like that.