You are at a party with your friends and one of them has had so much liquor that he is beginning to feel bad. What can you do? a) Leave him alone until he passes b) Laugh at him c ) Keep him from getting worse and losing consciousness The correct answer is C. Help him! Drinking can seriously put your health at risk and ruin the party for everyone.
When you are organizing a party you want everything to be perfect and that is why you do your best to prepare what you need in advance … the music, the food, the drinks, your clothes, your hairstyle, you practice some steps for the dance and some ideas for possible conversations with the girl or boy you like. But have you ever thought that you also need to be prepared to know what to do when one of your friends gets intoxicated from drinking too much liquor? We are not exaggerating, knowing how to help a friend who becomes ill from drinking too much can save their life and prevent the party from being completely ruined.
Before the party starts, keep these keys in mind so that when the time comes, don’t just stand there staring or laugh thinking it’s funny. In these cases, the important thing is that you know how to act quickly. Signs of Intoxication Slurred speech or not being able to walk in a straight line can be funny signs that someone has been drinking and are not yet risky. However, there are other signs that a friend is seriously intoxicated by alcohol and needs help:
- Can’t think clearly anymore
- Has hallucinations, sees and hears things that are not real
- Is pale
- Your body temperature drops
- Breathing very slowly and irregularly
- Vomits nonstop
- Have seizures
- Lose consciousness
Call Emergencies
It is not true that you should wait for the effects of the liquor to wear off. When a person is intoxicated, they need urgent medical attention, especially if they are already unconscious. Don’t be afraid to call 911 or ask an adult for help, because what matters most now is your friend’s life. While you wait, we give you the following recommendations …
What you should NOT do
- Don’t leave it alone
- Don’t force him to vomit
- Do not send him to sleep or put him on his back, he may choke on his own vomit or cause vomit to go into his lungs by mistake
- Don’t give him black coffee
- Do not put him in the cold shower (even if you have seen it in the movies) because you can also make him lose consciousness if he has not lost it yet
What IF you should do
- If he’s vomiting, join him
- Try to keep him awake
- Try to be sitting most of the time
- If he lies down, turn him over so he’s always on his side
- If you can, give him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, especially when you see that he has trouble breathing
A good plan for the holidays might be for you and all your friends to learn these first aid tactics. So they can be sure that everyone will take care of themselves. Finally, that’s what friends are for!
