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Growing up, watching American sitcoms, and believing in the idea that ‘life gets funny after drinking’, I was eager to taste alcohol as soon as I turned 21 (the legal age of drinking in Uttar Pradesh has been 21 since 1984). My first sip was vodka mixed with Coke (officially called Coca-Cola). I was sitting with friends in a circle, and everyone got their turns.
Soon, all my friends in college had tasted it, some liked it, and some did not. But birthday parties and casual gatherings have alcohol, and when you are living in a girls’ hostel, you have to vigilantly smuggle the clinking bottles and drink with doors locked, so the warden, seniors, and people who don’t like you cannot find out. I have to agree that some of my best memories are from that time.
Cut to when I turned 30, I realised my drinking habit had evolved over the years. I am more cautious and drink responsibly rather than gulping down one shot after another. In fact, my preferences have also changed. While I don’t mean to be a bummer millennial, I do have a few tips that I think can help GenZs in their 20s have a better experience with alcohol than I did.
Safe Drinking Tip 1 From A 30YO To GenZs: On The Rocks Does Not Rock Your World
American sitcoms and films often show alpha males and females gulping down neat whiskies. While it looks cool on the screen, it has a burning effect running from your oesophagus to your stomach. A neat sip to understand the notes of the spirit and learn about it is different from gulping down one shot after another. Drinking any alcohol neat in large amounts can affect your health, not to mention that it will definitely make it almost impossible for you to wake up the next morning, not to mention you will soon start repelling the raw taste of alcohol.
Safe Drinking Tip 2 From A 30YO To GenZs: High Capacity Is Nothing To Be Proud Of
There are people who cannot handle even the smallest amount of alcohol at all, and there are those who always boast of their high capacity. I know people who don’t get high after drinking 5 pegs of whisky, good for them, but you don't have to beat them at this game (there is no such competition). Drinking should be about having fun with your friends and getting high enough so you can forget a little about your problems or let go of your inhibitions and enjoy dancing in public. When you go out testing your capacity or competing with others, you are likely to wake up with your head in your hands and eyes struggling to even let a ray of daylight in.
Safe Drinking Tip 3 From A 30YO To GenZs: Blackouts Are Real
Do you remember the episode in F.R.I.E.N.D.S. in which Ross and Rachel got married? They woke up with no recollection of what they did the previous night. It’s called a blackout, and you will have one if you drown yourself in alcohol. I have had it once, and it’s not good (I still cannot remember 30-60 minutes of my life, and it was scary). Forgetting about what happened last night or trying to piece together shreds of memories is not like putting a puzzle together, at the end of which you get candy from an adult.
Safe Drinking Tip 4 From A 30YO To GenZs: Don’t Mix Alcohol
Mixing alcohol is a recipe for disaster unless you are a professional bartender crafting cocktails. When you are young, you think your body accepts everything you feed it, but it does not. Only mixologists understand how to mix spirits while keeping the amount of alcohol within limits. However, when you are drinking for fun and keep gulping down one after another, you are surely going to end up with a hangover or experience a blackout. The next day, you will follow in the footsteps of Marshall and other characters from How I Met Your Mother and make a sweeping declaration of never drinking again.
Safe Drinking Tip 5 From A 30YO To GenZs: Don’t Drink To Get High
I understand that the goal of drinking is to drown your sorrows or loosen yourself a bit, but consuming alcohol for the sake of getting high might leave you hurling and lying on a bathroom floor. Each spirit has a different effect on your mental faculties (nervous system). Just because 2 pegs of whisky or 4 shots of tequila did not leave you with an instant buzz, it is not a free pass for you to drink an entire bottle. Some drinks give an instant high, while others take time. Go easy on alcoholic beverages, decide a limit, and stop after that. I did not, and ended up in a clinic with a severe case of dehydration, sporadic hurling, and low blood pressure (I am not proud of it, I did not enjoy it, and definitely, paid a price for ‘having fun’).
Safe Drinking Tip 6 From A 30YO To GenZs: Drink With Trusting Peers
I am aware that drinking is fun and having it with strangers makes it easy to do small talk and gel with new people, but just keep a check on the number of glasses. With time, you will realise that it is more fun to drink with trusting friends, in the comfort of your home or in a locked room in a hostel. Your peers might make fun of you in the morning and remind you of all the crazy stuff you did the previous night, but they will also hold your hair when you hurl or feed you juice and ORS to prevent dehydration. Do you remember Marshall’s embarrassing videos uploaded by one of his college acquaintances after he played beercules with him? You definitely don’t want that.
Safe Drinking Tip 7 From A 30YO To GenZs: Wine Leaves You With A Buzz Too
Often people underestimate beverages with a low amount of alcohol, like wine, sochu, and beer. Don’t believe it a bit. The problem is that people end up drinking more of these, thus, adding to the overall alcohol amount in the body. Hence, slowly explore what drink works for you, and how much is enough for you, but there should be no cap on how much you are going to have.
Safe Drinking Tip 8 From A 30YO To GenZs: Don’t Sleep Immediately
If you are planning to sleep right after drinking, go for a walk, watch something, and stay awake for a few hours, allowing your body to process the alcohol consumed. By any chance, if you are drunk and cannot help yourself, just remember to sleep on your side or your head turned to the side. It was good advice that Sheldon gave Penny in The Big Bang Theory, and it can prevent you from choking in case you puke (in my case, I have ended up cleaning my friends’ vomit).
Pro Safe Drinking Tip From A 30YO To GenZs: Cocktails Are The Best
I tried cocktails when I was 22, and it was a Pina Colada made with rum. It was smooth, had no burning sensation and left me with a happy high (I hate the highs when I have cried). Post that, I have tried multiple cocktails - Sunrise Tequila, Long Island Iced Tea (big fan), Cosmopolitan, Margarita, Espresso Martini (not a fan, tastes bitter), Gin & Tonic (okayish), and more.
I keep mixers at home to prepare refreshing cocktails in just a few minutes. These are mild-tasting beverages that pair well with snacks and don’t leave you with a strong breath that lets everyone know you had a fermented bottle of berries or grains. Cocktails are also fun to experiment with, and you can come up with your signature recipe that your friends boast of.
I know it’s a cliche, but it is for a reason. Safe drinking does kill the fun, but minimises the chances of alcohol affecting your body. You can loosen yourself without waking up the next day with a throbbing headache, nausea, and a will to crawl inside a blanket while running the air conditioner on full blast.
