MB8

I will be attending my first country concert sober tomoro night as Brad Paisley is in town. My wife got tickets and got them in the pit which is one big party. I have never been to any concert even remotely sober so a bit nervous. If you have never been to a country concert, it is one big drunk fest. Looking forward to the concert, just not the massive urges that I know I will be fighting off all night. I had 5 months, a week of relapse and now going 4 months strong. My wife is a non drinker so will help a little, yet I'm sure all my drunk buddies that I run into won't make it any easier. First REAL big test.. Real nervous.

PurpleKnight

You can do this!!

You are a non drinker going to a concert, a pretty normal Saturday evening for many!!

trachemys

You're going to wonder how your old concert buddies got to be such drunks! That used to be you! Don't let it get to you.

Ionray

Wow, you are a braver soul than me, at only four months. I'm coming up on 11 months and you couldn't PAY me to go into a snake pit like that.

Good luck!

Spared

You've got this. The music will sound genuinely better. You'll have a good time, as you're REALLY having a good time (rather than smashed off your face). You'll wake up the next day, clean and fresh, remembering everything, with no regrets, ready to enjoy another new day.

ESD907

Went to Kenny Chesney/Tim McGraw last year completely sober. Many more sober people than drunk ones. You will be fine.

BRD

Enjoy the concert and the music.

One think I noticed in sobriety is not as many people are as drunk as I thought when I drank. There will be plenty of people just enjoying the music.

Have a great time as your first sober concert.

doggonecarl

It can be done, but four months sober would be too soon for me. I equated concerts with getting ripped. So I didn't attend my first sober concert for two and a half years. By then I was fully confident I would stay sober. As long as I wasn't sure, I didn't try.

Good luck to you.

heartcore

I was listening to a country station yesterday and noticed (for the first time) that every single song on my way home - at least six in a row - glorified alcohol.

Each song was either about getting drunk on a plane, or how "I'm best at drinking beer," or about taking shots to recover from a lost relationship.

Two things went through my mind - first, that I need to switch stations, as by the time I got home, getting drunk seemed "normalized" and I wondered why I wasn't going to pop a "cold one" to end my day... second, how heartbreaking it was that a whole subculture is being "encouraged" to deal with every impactful moment in their lives with alcohol.

My man is a country music listening guy, and also a heavy drinker.

If I found myself headed to a country concert, my approach would be to "observe" the negative effects of alcohol, sort of like an anthropologist. Take note of the staggering ones, the bleary ones, the lost ones. Know that some of those drunken couples will fight viciously on the way home. Know that some will wake tomorrow unable to actually remember the experience of the concert. Know that someone you are observing will wake tomorrow with the horrifying realization that they had unsafe sex with someone they don't fully trust.

You are well. You are attentive. You are able to go anywhere and do anything sober - and do it with empowered consciousness.

SoberCAH

I love going to country music shows and concerts.

I certainly enjoy them more than any of the drunks who go to them.

Notimetoloose

It is great to see you posting, I think in someway it is a huge part of a successful sober evening out....talking about it....also breaking the usual past habit of attending a concert and getting drunk and making new habits...a sober new habit...I think you will be surprised how much of a great time you will have and a big plus waking up feeling fabulous.

mercurial me

All this "bro-country" and country songs that glorify alcohol is pathetic. At least Brad Paisley's songs about booze kinda' show both sides. I'm no music critic, just sick of country like "Red Solo Cup" & listening to Kenny Chesney sing about tequila on a beach for the billionth time. My advice, when in doubt get creative. Say you're on a prescription med for something you're not allowed to drink while on it. You'll prob enjoy & remember the concert even more

bigsombrero

Good luck. I guess there's no talking you out of it. In my experience, getting sober isn't about "testing" yourself, it's about keeping yourself in a safe environment that promotes a complete lifestyle change. You don't have to go to a Dolphins game, your best friend's bar, or a Brad Paisley concert to prove that you've got things under control. You'll know it in your heart when you're ready. If you're nervous about it...well, the right answer is right in front of you.

I'm sure you'll be fine. Just try not to get lost in the crowd and wishing you were on the other side of things. Good luck again.

tomsteve

its in every genre of music