How to Take Care of a Drunk Person
Every year in the US alone, a number of drunk students die or get in a car crash as a result of alcohol. Because people assume that passing out, vomiting, and being really drunk will be slept off, resulting in a simple hangover next morning.Unfortunately, thinking this could endanger an inebriated person's life.
When someone at a party near you gets so drunk that they can't take care of themselves, they're at risk of harming themselves, and if they've drunk too much altogether, they may even have alcohol poisoning and need immediate attention. Being able to spot alcohol poisoning in a drunk person could mean that you save his or her life; knowing what to do to take care of a drunk person is therefore an essential skill for all party-lovers.
Recognize someone who has had one too many. Signs that a person has drunk too much include slurred speech, inability to remain standing or sitting up straight, a marked desire to lie down or roll over, questionable walking technique, stumbling, unusual, loud, or embarrassing behavior, violent reactions, bloodshot eyes, feeling extreme temperature differences, etc.
The amount of care your drunk friend or acquaintance will need will depend on how much he or she has had to drink. Each individual's situation will need to be evaluated according to context and circumstances, but the main point is to be prepared to care for them until they're out of danger.
3 Step in to discourage further drinking. Try distracting the intoxicated person from having any more alcohol. Get them away from the alcohol take them to the front yard for a breath of fresh air, suggest that it's time to call it a night and phone a taxi, or simply sit with them away from the drinking area and talk. Find somewhere quiet and not too bright.
If they want drinks, take responsibility for delivering drinks that won't harm them. Try water, or try very watered down versions of their drink. Often you can get away with giving someone who is very drunk soft drinks; simply hand them a coke and claim that it contains vodka. Chances are they won't even notice, especially if you're distracting them in other ways such as talking or watching TV together.
If someone tends to over drink, but has not yet drunk too much, suggest less-strong drinks such as beer, and drinks which may be less appealing to drink in quantity having less "drinkability" such as full-flavored bitter foreign beer, instead of mixed drinks and liquor. This can make the level of intoxication easier for the drinker and friends to monitor, and less likely to continue to increase after one has stopped drinking, but is not a substitute for eventually stopping drinking.
Avoid saying anything that could provoke or anger the intoxicated person. Remain calm and reassuring at all times.
Read How to keep your friend from driving drunk for information on stopping a determined drunk from driving.
Lack of coordination will make walking very difficult, so don't suggest this as a way of "sobering up".
If the intoxicated person needs to visit the bathroom, accompany them and wait in the bathroom. It's all too easy for an uncoordinated drunk person to slip and bang a head and get knocked out on the hard surfaces in bathrooms.
4Do your best to help the intoxicated person to avoid physical injury, especially through falling. Help the person to a safe seat or to the floor. If the intoxicated person begins to heave, try to help them to an appropriate place to vomit.
If a person is lying down when they begin to heave or vomit, place them in the recovery position on their side with the higher knee bent. This is to prevent choking. Put something behind their back to prevent them rolling back onto their back or stomach; vomiting in either position can cause them to choke or drown. If they are lying on a couch, ensure that they are facing AWAY from the back of the couch so that any vomit does not pool around the person's face especially on leather couches.
If the person has fallen down, or you find them on the floor and are unsure whether or not they fell down, you MUST take them to get medical attention. Head injuries can easily be incurred in falling down, and intoxication can hide the usual signs of concussion or more serious head injury.
Do not leave someone who is very drunk to fall asleep alone. Stay in the room with them watch a film or TV, read a book, or clean up after the party but keep them in the room with you. If you take them home ensure a responsible person will do the same.
If you can't be with them, or you can't be sure someone else will keep an eye out for them, get on the phone to someone you know who will care enough to do this, such as a parent, guardian, sibling, or friend. Explain that it is urgent and that you have seen how wasted they are. At the very least, keep watch over the drunk person until the changeover of responsibility.
Check regularly to ensure the intoxicated person responds to being stirred. Say their name loudly, ask them firmly to open their eyes, prod them and look for a response. Watch the chest or abdomen for breathing movements. A rate of 12- 20 breaths per minute is normal.
Look for signs of alcohol poisoning. If breathing becomes slow (8 breaths per minute or less or irregular with 10 seconds or more between each breath), and they are unresponsive to being prodded and pinched firmly, this suggests alcohol poisoning. Other possible signs include
Passed out or stupors unconscious or semi-conscious, cannot be awakened
Blue lips and fingertips
Dehydrated
Rapid pulse
Vomiting while asleep and not waking up even when vomiting
Cold clammy hands/ feet.
If you spot these signs, call 911/112/110 emergency services, or your area's emergency number immediately. If you're on campus, call the campus security or university police. Explain the situation clearly.
You will not get into trouble for calling for help. Authorities prefer to keep people alive than to scold for irresponsible behavior. Drinking age laws and campus policies are in place to stop life being endangered, not to cause people to abandon one another during a medical emergency. Treat this like it is a medical emergency, not an offense.
Stay with the intoxicated person until help arrives. Keep them warm and continue to monitor breathing. If a qualified first aider is available, call on them for help while waiting for the ambulance
Don't panic. Stay calm. Although you're likely to be upset and afraid, it won't help the patient if you transfer this fear and anxiety to them. Reassure them, and in doing so, reassure yourself.
If the person is awake or conscious, do not touch or prod them without explaining what you're about to do; they may react violently.
Don't give them stimulating drinks such as tea or coffee. These can cause further dehydration; keep in mind that drinks don't change the state of drunkenness, only the passing of time will sober up the drunk person.
If someone else is present, send them to direct the ambulance paramedics to your position.
Do not jeopardize your own health when looking after the person. Do not try to physically lift a drunken person or stop someone much larger than you falling down–you may injure your back. Instead, concentrate on protecting their head.
If someone gets into a drunken state having taken in seemingly little alcohol, they may be lightweight but be wary of drinks being spiked or an interaction with over-the-counter, prescribed, or illicit drugs as well. Using high-energy drinks in combination with alcohol hides the usual signs of intoxication so that blood alcohol levels can become dangerously high. If you suspect this, get the person home and report it to health authorities, or take them straight to the emergency department.
Telling the person the danger they put themselves in may stop them from over-indulging again. Wait until they're sober and have a heart-to-heart with them about their behavior. You can make it less confrontational by saying something like: "I didn't much like the friends you brought along the other night Susie." Susie will reply: "What friends?" And you can reply: "Making fun of friends Susie. And I'm bored Susie. And undressing Susie. And rolling on the ground Susie." It may seem odd but making the drunk person's behavior sound like a third person can help them better identify with the types of behaviors other people witnessed.
If the person you suspect to be suffering from alcohol poisoning is underagedo not put off calling the emergency services for fear of getting them in trouble. The younger a person is, the more susceptible to alcohol they are, and the longer you leave them, the worse they could get.
Every year in the US alone, a number of drunk students die or get in a car crash as a result of alcohol. Because people assume that passing out, vomiting, and being really drunk will be slept off, resulting in a simple hangover next morning.Unfortunately, thinking this could endanger an inebriated person's life.
When someone at a party near you gets so drunk that they can't take care of themselves, they're at risk of harming themselves, and if they've drunk too much altogether, they may even have alcohol poisoning and need immediate attention. Being able to spot alcohol poisoning in a drunk person could mean that you save his or her life; knowing what to do to take care of a drunk person is therefore an essential skill for all party-lovers.
Recognize someone who has had one too many. Signs that a person has drunk too much include slurred speech, inability to remain standing or sitting up straight, a marked desire to lie down or roll over, questionable walking technique, stumbling, unusual, loud, or embarrassing behavior, violent reactions, bloodshot eyes, feeling extreme temperature differences, etc.
The amount of care your drunk friend or acquaintance will need will depend on how much he or she has had to drink. Each individual's situation will need to be evaluated according to context and circumstances, but the main point is to be prepared to care for them until they're out of danger.
3 Step in to discourage further drinking. Try distracting the intoxicated person from having any more alcohol. Get them away from the alcohol take them to the front yard for a breath of fresh air, suggest that it's time to call it a night and phone a taxi, or simply sit with them away from the drinking area and talk. Find somewhere quiet and not too bright.
If they want drinks, take responsibility for delivering drinks that won't harm them. Try water, or try very watered down versions of their drink. Often you can get away with giving someone who is very drunk soft drinks; simply hand them a coke and claim that it contains vodka. Chances are they won't even notice, especially if you're distracting them in other ways such as talking or watching TV together.If someone tends to over drink, but has not yet drunk too much, suggest less-strong drinks such as beer, and drinks which may be less appealing to drink in quantity having less "drinkability" such as full-flavored bitter foreign beer, instead of mixed drinks and liquor. This can make the level of intoxication easier for the drinker and friends to monitor, and less likely to continue to increase after one has stopped drinking, but is not a substitute for eventually stopping drinking.
Avoid saying anything that could provoke or anger the intoxicated person. Remain calm and reassuring at all times.
Read How to keep your friend from driving drunk for information on stopping a determined drunk from driving.
Lack of coordination will make walking very difficult, so don't suggest this as a way of "sobering up".
If the intoxicated person needs to visit the bathroom, accompany them and wait in the bathroom. It's all too easy for an uncoordinated drunk person to slip and bang a head and get knocked out on the hard surfaces in bathrooms.
4Do your best to help the intoxicated person to avoid physical injury, especially through falling. Help the person to a safe seat or to the floor. If the intoxicated person begins to heave, try to help them to an appropriate place to vomit.
If a person is lying down when they begin to heave or vomit, place them in the recovery position on their side with the higher knee bent. This is to prevent choking. Put something behind their back to prevent them rolling back onto their back or stomach; vomiting in either position can cause them to choke or drown. If they are lying on a couch, ensure that they are facing AWAY from the back of the couch so that any vomit does not pool around the person's face especially on leather couches.
If the person has fallen down, or you find them on the floor and are unsure whether or not they fell down, you MUST take them to get medical attention. Head injuries can easily be incurred in falling down, and intoxication can hide the usual signs of concussion or more serious head injury.
Do not leave someone who is very drunk to fall asleep alone. Stay in the room with them watch a film or TV, read a book, or clean up after the party but keep them in the room with you. If you take them home ensure a responsible person will do the same.
If you can't be with them, or you can't be sure someone else will keep an eye out for them, get on the phone to someone you know who will care enough to do this, such as a parent, guardian, sibling, or friend. Explain that it is urgent and that you have seen how wasted they are. At the very least, keep watch over the drunk person until the changeover of responsibility.Check regularly to ensure the intoxicated person responds to being stirred. Say their name loudly, ask them firmly to open their eyes, prod them and look for a response. Watch the chest or abdomen for breathing movements. A rate of 12- 20 breaths per minute is normal.
Look for signs of alcohol poisoning. If breathing becomes slow (8 breaths per minute or less or irregular with 10 seconds or more between each breath), and they are unresponsive to being prodded and pinched firmly, this suggests alcohol poisoning. Other possible signs include
Passed out or stupors unconscious or semi-conscious, cannot be awakened
Blue lips and fingertips
Dehydrated
Rapid pulse
Vomiting while asleep and not waking up even when vomiting
Cold clammy hands/ feet.
If you spot these signs, call 911/112/110 emergency services, or your area's emergency number immediately. If you're on campus, call the campus security or university police. Explain the situation clearly.
You will not get into trouble for calling for help. Authorities prefer to keep people alive than to scold for irresponsible behavior. Drinking age laws and campus policies are in place to stop life being endangered, not to cause people to abandon one another during a medical emergency. Treat this like it is a medical emergency, not an offense.
Stay with the intoxicated person until help arrives. Keep them warm and continue to monitor breathing. If a qualified first aider is available, call on them for help while waiting for the ambulance
Don't panic. Stay calm. Although you're likely to be upset and afraid, it won't help the patient if you transfer this fear and anxiety to them. Reassure them, and in doing so, reassure yourself.
If the person is awake or conscious, do not touch or prod them without explaining what you're about to do; they may react violently.
Don't give them stimulating drinks such as tea or coffee. These can cause further dehydration; keep in mind that drinks don't change the state of drunkenness, only the passing of time will sober up the drunk person.
If someone else is present, send them to direct the ambulance paramedics to your position.
Do not jeopardize your own health when looking after the person. Do not try to physically lift a drunken person or stop someone much larger than you falling down–you may injure your back. Instead, concentrate on protecting their head.
If someone gets into a drunken state having taken in seemingly little alcohol, they may be lightweight but be wary of drinks being spiked or an interaction with over-the-counter, prescribed, or illicit drugs as well. Using high-energy drinks in combination with alcohol hides the usual signs of intoxication so that blood alcohol levels can become dangerously high. If you suspect this, get the person home and report it to health authorities, or take them straight to the emergency department.
Telling the person the danger they put themselves in may stop them from over-indulging again. Wait until they're sober and have a heart-to-heart with them about their behavior. You can make it less confrontational by saying something like: "I didn't much like the friends you brought along the other night Susie." Susie will reply: "What friends?" And you can reply: "Making fun of friends Susie. And I'm bored Susie. And undressing Susie. And rolling on the ground Susie." It may seem odd but making the drunk person's behavior sound like a third person can help them better identify with the types of behaviors other people witnessed.
If the person you suspect to be suffering from alcohol poisoning is underagedo not put off calling the emergency services for fear of getting them in trouble. The younger a person is, the more susceptible to alcohol they are, and the longer you leave them, the worse they could get.