How to throw people off the scent when not drinking

[Onlyconnect]

I am a regular poster and have name changed.

I have just discovered I am pregnant at the age of 45. I am in shock I think and no doubt will be posing more over the next few months.

My current dilemma is what to say to people about not drinking. I am usually pretty boozy and obviously with Christmas upon us it is going to be very obvious that I'm abstaining which usually straight away makes everyone think of pregnancy. I really reallY don't want to tell anyone yet, not even close family as it's very early days.

Has anyone ever come up with a really convincing reason? I am thinking possibly of inventing a recurring bladder infection.....

Antibiotics? Could be for the bladder infection. I mean if you say that you have a bladder Infection they'll prob think tmi and back off!!

Congratulations by the way!

I'm not sure that it would work with close family but with friends I went out loads of times and never told people I wasn't drinking. If we had wine at a meal out I would pour a very small glass of wine and have a few tiny sips and keep refilling others glasses obviously leaving out my own. Don't get into rounds, buy your own and order lemonade/ coke/ tonic and if anyone asks which they probably won't say it's vodka.

When people discuss drunken antics don't say much. Don't draw attention to it and people probably won't notice.

Kidney infection is a good one. I walk around with a glass but don't drink from it - no one ever notices.

Congrats by the way!!

When out with your dp you can use him as a decoy and keep swapping drinks so he drinks and you only take teeny sips. Don't wear lipstick though

if you say antibiotics they will know or guess wildly and you may look guilty

do what lonnie says

just accept a drink and hold it. wait out the first drink or so glass in hand and by then no one pays attention

Don't mention it. Always have a glass in hand that could be vodka and coke, or gin and tonic. Or pour yourself a wine, walk round with it, then 'lose' it. Worked for me on a boozy, 4 day hen do at 9 weeks.

I don't think there are any excuses that won't draw suspicion.

Congratulations!

I used to walk round parties holding a half drun beer bottle, and never actually drinking from it.

Also, 'pink tonic' - tonic water with angostura bitters.

Or try "anti-biotics for a tooth abcess," because i think it IS actually that sort of ABs that you can't drink with? (most you can).

Oh - and CONGRATULATIONS

Have a glass of tonic water with ice and a slice. Could be anything.

Lottiedonegan - I think you may have cracked it there! I keep talking about drink all the time to throw people off the scent and if I just shut up I think people wouldn't even notice.

However, got the office xmas party on Friday which is a real test. Will stay out of rounds, but I've got another trick which is to secrete a bottle of alcohol-free wine in my bag - I'll let the bar staff know (bar staff are amazing when you tell them you're pregnant!) but I'm going to secretly top my glass up from that! There are another couple of girls going who know I'm pregnant so they can help me too. I might even pop a bottle behind the bar and get the bartender to 'serve' me! The lengths you have to go to...

I got through a weekend hen do doing this. When I told people I was pregnant we discussed the hen do and everyone was really surprised they never even suspected, and normally I do like a drink!

And last time I was pregnant I was so paranoid and thought everyone knew, but noone even suspected. Even my good friend saw me drinking alcohol free beer and it never even crossed her mind!

I was in my 1st trimester with DS when it was my Christmas party at work 5 years ago- full of gossipy ladies on full alert to spot anyone who might not be drinking which indicates they are "up the duff".
I made sure I went to the bar for myself and got a small glass to decant my half pint of diet coke in so it looked like bacardi/vodka and coke. I also bought fresh pineapple juice or orange juice as they usually come in small bottles and you can pour them into a small glass which you can also say have vodka in. Worked a treat- no-one sussed me out .Don't worry though you'll probably only need to do it for an hour or so and by that time everyone will probably be too shit faced to notice.

Volunteer to be a designated driver, perhaps? Congratulations!

DP has just come up with an idea similar to some of yours: hes going to put some non- alcoholic wine in a normal wine bottle. I'll have to be a bit careful that no one else tries it. I like the idea of pouring a drink and just walking round with it too.

Thank you.

if your dh is around, use him as a decoy :). you can wander around with a drink and let him top his up with yours, or he can keep drinking from yours/ both at the table (ps he may get rather tipsy this way!)

Im 18+1 weeks pregnant, and we found out the day before my partners birthday! Obviously meaning lots of Alcohol for his birthday... I just said I suffered with tonsillitis and have a throat infection! Nobody clocked on!

I drank tonic-only 'g&t' for 14 weeks and no one guessed- one guy even had a sip of my drink and said how nice g&t is!

The thing is that after a few drinks no one else will even notice what you're drinking, so long as you don't do rounds.

I was just reading everyones ideas, with Christmas this is going to be tough but just suggested to DH that I have a small glass of wine at Christmas do's, I 'sip' at it then when he has practically finished his we are going to swap glasses so he then has mine to drink and I can nurse the almost empty glass, and jugs of water on the table.

By the way congratulations everyone!

Ps I was on a hen do recently and one girl said she was on antibiotics and we all had her sussed straight away. If she hadn't mentioned it I don't think we'd have even thought about it.

Say you're hungover from the night before? ? Congratulations.