After a Holiday Weekend of Fun.
Drinking and driving becomes a huge problem during many holiday weekends. With many people visiting family and friends over this period of time, drinking is a common factor for weekend gatherings and almost always, people tend to forget they are in no condition to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after drinking throughout the weekend.
Going away for the holiday weekend brings friends and family together for good food, drinks, laughs and good times. At some point after the relaxing weekend, it will be time to head home. But how do you get home? You drove to your destination so why not drive home? Chances are you had a fair amount of alcohol as you celebrated the weekend. And just perhaps you had more than enough that you could still be impaired as the weekend comes to a close before you plan to head home.
The feeling of being tired, physically drained or spending too much time in the sun may give you the sense that those are the reasons why you may be lacking energy and awareness, although the real reason you’re feeling that way may still be the fact you are still impaired by alcohol you consumed over the weekend. The thought that ‘sleeping it off’ may be helpful to help you sober up may be running through your mind. Thinking it’s just a hangover may also be going through your mind. The reality is those are will not help you travel home safely or sober. Sleep has nothing to do with sobering up. It’s really all about time. Time is the only thing that can sober you up. So what about the hangover? Could it be one? Yes it could, but how do you know for sure, without any guesswork?
Making an educated decision about your blood-alcohol level is far better and safer than making a guess or thinking the feelings you’re having are from other reasons. Using a single-use breathalyzer from Not Your Child Corp can give you accurate readings to know for certain if the feelings you’re having are from the sun, a busy weekend, a hangover or if you’re still impaired by alcohol.
So then what? You’ve used the breathalyzer and know you’re too impaired to drive home after the weekend away. The short answer is you will need to wait until you head home. Time is the only thing that can help push the alcohol out of the body. Coffee, sleep, cold showers can help you feel more alert, but the truth of the matter is, your weekend of fun and alcohol means you really have to wait before you drive home. Knowing for sure you’re still experiencing impairment before driving based on the results of the breathalyzer is an important step for any weekender.
To make it worth your while, make the Monday of the holiday weekend the sober Monday. Give yourself a chance to remove the alcohol from your bloodstream before you head home. Blow into the breathalyzer from Not Your Child Corp a few hours before you hope to leave so you have a good idea if you’re sober to drive.
Scott Marshall has spent over 30 years promoting road safety in many jurisdictions. He has been a road safety journalist since 2005. Scott was also an on-air judge on the Discovery Network’s Canada’s Worst Driver during their first 3 seasons on the air. Not YourChildCorp. is proud to have Scott @Safedriver as a frequent contributor, his insights are irreplaceable.
