Drinking over the holidays

I'm  piggybacking on the thread on planning your Thanksgiving dinner with a different topic- How is everybody planning on handling the drinking at social events during the holidays? To be honest, I'd rather eat my calories but sometimes feel pressure to have a glass of wine at social events - don't have more than one with my sleeve. 

Some ideas - the Skinny Girl white cranberry Cosmo - mix with Diet cranberry juice - I may have those at a party I'm having at my house & just drink the cranberry juice. 

With my coffee - the Torini sugar free syrups are awesome - the almond one tastes like amaretto in the coffe- delicious! 

I also love the Crystal light cherry pomegranate - might have that at my party & have alcohol for people to mix it with. Just have pretty glasses to put it in & nobody will notice I'm not drinking!

It's really my personal opinion that it's better for my weight loss to completely abstain from drinking any alcohol until I've reached goal. That being said- my whole goal is to be prepared to handle this issue over the holidays. 

Any other ideas??

Not drinking at all.  I'd rather get calories (and protein) from food than waste the calories on an alcoholic beverage.

That, plus I was instructed not to have any alcohol until at least 9 months post-op.  Just give me an unsweet iced tea with Splenda or hibiscus tea and I'm a happy girl.

It sounds like you've got some great alternatives in place for yourself already.  I'm not much of a drinker in the first place, so my plan is to not indulge at all.  I'm just 6 months out and haven't tried any alcohol yet and don't want to experiment with it in a social situation.   I would recommend that for you too -- try it at home first with no one else around so you can gauge your reaction. 

I can't drink because of my psych meds-- one drink and I'm asleep! So whenever I'm at an event where there's alcohol, I just smile and say, "Thanks, but I don't drink" and ask for a cup of coffee instead so I still have something in my hands. I've never had anybody ask questions or be bothered by it, since there are plenty of reasons somebody may not drink (religion, pregnancy, whatever).

It would probably be smart to have something non-alcoholic out at the party anyway, in case there are others who don't drink, or people reach their "limit." Maybe some sort of fancy sugar-free punch? One of my favorites is orange juice + pineapple juice + cherry Kool-ade (you could use SF and/or Trop 50). Then you add a little bit of diet 7-up (or skip the fizz for you), and garnish with a teeny spoonful of sugar-free vanilla ice cream. SUPER fancy, really easy, and low cal!

You are very smart to resist ALL alcohol in your weight loss phase because just like how some people are afraid to start eating certain foods later while risking the flood gates to open, this also applies to alcohol.  It can seriously get some people into trouble in this journey. 

I love all your drink suggestions for Thanksgiving.  This is a time to remember what is most important ... family, friends, & giving thanks ... & that can & will include your decision to being sleeved to get healthy. 

Have a great Thanksgiving!!!

I was told don't even try to drink alcohol for 2 to 3 YEARS after your sleeve.

Not because of calories... but because alcohol is going to hit you harder and faster than ever before because of the size of your stomach. You will be a very cheap drunk, and you could easily consume too much without even realizing it. It's dangerous.

And no champagne becaue of the bubbles.