It's a tricky one. I too have had periods of not drinking (3-4 months) and then started again.
It depends on the behaviour of your friends. I don't have any friends who are big drinkers and so in my periods of not drinking I still had fun with them and being with them didn't expose me to any problem. In fact my social life was more enjoyable as there were no hangovers, no guilt about what I might have said and no lost phones/visa cards etc.
What happened was that I then got cocky and thought that I could handle just two drinks and then stop. I'd have the two drinks with friends and after we'd said goodbye I'd go to a bar on my own and continue drinking. I'm at the stage where I've been fully aware of my problem for years and I've accepted that it's a massive problem, but I still haven't fully taken the action to sort it out. That final part has been a work in progress for the last couple of years. Each time gets better, but I haven't resolved the problem....yet!
If the foundation of some of your friendships is drinking then I think that definitely has to be reviewed and changed.
Happy start to the week everybody!