time - It gets easier to say no with practice. What I find is that most people really don't care if we drink or not. If they offer you a drink just say no I'll have a water/coke.juice whatever. If they persist no excuses or explanations are needed. IME the only people who persist and ahve a problem with it are people who have their own drinking problems. Though I agree, avoiding such situations early on is a better idea till we feel stronger,