If you clicked onto this article then there’s a good chance your work’s Office Christmas party is looming and you are either A) dreading it or B) wanting some advice on how to survive the affair or C) both of the aforementioned! The annual Christmas party at work can be a stressful event indeed. There is the worry of what to wear before you even get there, not to mention the worry of how much you should drink to leave you perhaps a little merry, but not too drunk where you risk severe embarrassment and/or disciplinary action! Fortunately, Medical Specialists® Online Pharmacy are at hand with a few tips on how to enjoy the occasion, whilst both not overindulging and keeping your dignity intact. Prepare yourself Having a glass of milk before you start drinking lines your stomach and will slow the amount of alcohol absorbed. You understandably may want to be at least a little hungry when you arrive to the party as you will then eat something there. However, try to eat something before you go. A filling lunch on the day itself would be ideal and a snack such as an apple just prior to the party is ideal for its fibre content, helping you to feel fuller. This will mean you are not ravenous and end up eating everything in sight! Pace yourself You may be the life of the party at 8pm, but drinking too much too quickly, could leave you being a drunken mess by 9.30pm! The Office Christmas Party isn’t a drinking competition and should not be treated as such. Also, resist the urge to down shots each time you frequent the bar. The sudden burst of high-alcohol content in your blood is a guaranteed path to quick intoxication. Moreover, don’t mix alcohol and try to have some water in-between alcoholic drinks. Eat mindfully The Christmas period is a testing time for trying to keep the waistline down. Office parties usually involve buffets crammed with fatty foods such as quiches, pizzas, sausages rolls, etc. Try to find the healthier options as much as possible and pick out at least one or two vegetables for your plate. You can also choose to ‘downsize’ your plate to trick the brain into thinking you are eating more than you are. Chewing your food longer and eating slower may also trick the brain into thinking you’ve eaten more. Get your Groove On Not all of us have ‘the moves like Jagger’, however there is no harm in dragging yourself up the dancefloor for just one or two songs throughout the night. You may or may not be a natural mover and shaker, but getting up to have a dance will not only show you are one of the team, sociable and getting in the Christmas spirit, but it will also distract you from consuming copious amounts of food and alcohol. Plus, dancing is both a fun and effective way of burning off those excess calories. Show up the next day If you got too drunk at the Office Christmas party, showing up the following day – however difficult it might be – is particularly crucial. After all, there will be others in the same boat as you and you can suffer together! Not only will your boss know exactly why you have failed to make it into work, but your colleagues will also know why you have failed to show up and you will end up being the focus of speculative gossip. It is very unprofessional to pull a sickie and doing so would go down terribly with bosses and colleagues alike. Therefore, it is absolutely important to set that alarm for the morning after. Try to drink a glass of water with a sachet of rehydration salts such as Dioralyte and sip water throughout the day. Remember the social media aspect More and more prospective employers use social media to do basic research on their job applicants. Social media is an incredibly powerful tool that both help you land jobs, and get you fired from them. Celebrities in particularly are finding out the age of Smartphones can be disastrous in terms of how quickly things end up being posted online, so try not to drink to such excess where damaging photo opportunities can present themselves. Such photos can at best result in mockery from your colleagues until the next Christmas party, but at worse could lead to severe disciplinary action from management. Also, avoid taking/posting inappropriate pictures and any pictures you do take that feature others, would need approval first from the person(s) in the pictures before it gets posted to any platform. Medical Specialists® hope that we have provided useful tips on how to successfully navigate through the tricky minefield of the work’s Christmas party. We do not want to be party poopers of course and everyone deserves to let their hair down after a years’ worth of hard work, but there are definitely dos and don’ts when it comes to work social events. After all, such events are certainly not the same as going out drinking with your mates. However, with the advice we have provided, you can have an enjoyable night, whilst still having a job to walk into on the Monday morning!