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Alcohol support

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Original poster

To get tipsy whilst kids are in bed asleep

29 replies

Una22 · 28/12/2025 17:31

Just looking for some advise, usually i will only have one, two glasses of wine max when kids are in bed. However, on the very rare occasion, me and my husband might have a bottle, if not two bottles of wine to share. I can tolerate a lot, however after a bottle I will feel tipsy. This is spread over 4-5, hours. I just read constantly how a lot of parents on here never get tipsy when the kids are in bed. We dont have anyone to have the kids so sometimes its nice just to get to the happy stage. I stop the moment I feel tipsy as I know I could react in an emergency. Is it wrong us both getting tipsy? I would never go beyong that stage. Just sometimes after a stressful week we on the very rare occasion to get a bit tipsy?

OP posts:

ThreeSixtyTwo · 30/12/2025 21:18

If you live in an area with a reasonable taxi coverage, you are effectively reducing your reaction options to the same as any normal non-driving parent in the same city.

If only one parent drives, noone says they should never have a night out to be constantly available as drivers.

It's a minuscule risk, probably much smaller than driving the children on a motorway for a few hours.

Fundays12 · 30/12/2025 21:56

I see no harm in having a couple of glasses of wine whilst your kids are in bed at the weekends but wouldn't do it every evening as it's a slippery slope. Also it depends on the age of your kids. If you have Babies and toddlers you need to be fit to care for them but my kids are a lot older than that. Is this something you do occasionally or as a one off?

FinallyHere · 30/12/2025 22:02

I’m aware that my tolerance for alcohol seems to have diminished as I have got older. I can enjoy one glass of wine, after a bottle I would (as I know to my cost) be first comatose and then throwing up.

so no, I wouldn’t. Your mileage may vary.

Alpacajigsaw · 30/12/2025 22:08

mindutopia · 28/12/2025 17:38

I’m a recovering alcoholic and I don’t drink, but I don’t begrudge anyone a drink if it’s sensible. I know on MN apparently no one drinks around their children ever 🙄 but honestly, I’ve never known anyone to stay sober so that they can look after their children. Family BBQs, weddings, the village fete, bonfire night, even our dc’s schools both sell alcohol at performances. The carol service this year had a cash bar and all the parents were buying drinks!

Should you both be so wasted that you can’t get yourself to bed and you don’t know where you are? No, of course not. But the reality is that normal people have a few drinks both before putting their children to bed and after. Not me, because I don’t drink 🤣 but literally everyone I know.

This, I’m 4.5 years’ sober now so no
longer relevant but we did both used to drink in the evenings when kids were in bed. Not falling over pissed level but clearly not able to drive. No emergency ever arose. If it had we would have rung a taxi I guess.

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