# alcohol before presentation



## supercow911

is it okay to consume some alcohol before a speech to calm my nerves down? I was thinking of just drinking one bottle of Corona before my upcoming speech, but will that do it? will it give me a little buzz at least? i know this is not a long-term cure for sure, but im only going to do it just this one time..


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## john kimble

Want my opinion? I say go for it. BUT, no your limit. Meaning know how much you will need to loosen up. I noticed you asked what you will feel with a beer and how long. So im going to take it as you dont usually drink.

For example, when I first started with a debt collection company I had training. I drank half of a Four Loko. If you dont know what drink that is, one can is equivalent to 6 beers. Its 12% alcohol. Anyways I felt half of it was good. 

For a speech? You could probably get away with one beer and loosen a tiny bit. Everything will depend what time you drink it because by the time you give the speech, your "loosening" up will probably be gone already. I had training at 8am so I would leave the house at 730, drink half the can around 745 and be in the room by 8. I felt good for maybe almost 2 hours.

Also, the Four Loko doesnt really have a "smell" as strong as a beer. Anyone can smell beer so be careful. My suggestion is get yourself the corona you want and test for yourself how long it will last and if it makes you feel good. You dont want to stumble and forget your words.


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## Very Close

If this is your first time, don't do it. You need to see first how your body would react to that. Sometime it just makes it worse.


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## Aeroflot

Don't do it. You shouldn't have to rely on a substance to get you through trouble.


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## emmalin

I think that it depends on your personality, will you really stop after this one time? If you find the right amount and deliver your presentation with a good feeling, then that might help with the next one (more confidence). BUT it will also be tempting to just do it again next time, because it worked so well this time and couldn't hurt since you don't plan to do it forever, and then the time after that you'll tell yourself the same and so on. - Trust me, that's a road you dont want to get on


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## velocicaur

Get a benzo, they're legal.


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## ddecimal

Alcohol will not help in this situation. It will take more than one beer to loosen you up. If you do drink enough to loosen you up, you are going to smell like booze. That would not be a good thing. I agree with velocicaur. A benzo is more appropriate.


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## moke64916

Eventually you will reach a point where you won't need anything to calm down your nerves before a presentation. Go for it if you want to. Your an adult. I will tell you what caused you to want to drink a beer before the presentation.

You started thinking about the future. Which has not happened yet. Got yourself anxiety ridden about it, now you want to drink a beer to calm your nerves. If you do then wash out your mouth with mouth wash so the people don't know you drank a beer before a business presentation.

Peace,

Moke


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## Snowblind89

Alcohol would certainly make me less anxious in social situations. However, i cannot imagine myself doing a presentation even after a beer. Knowing my thought process I would probably be worried about people knowing that i drank and judging me for it.


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## introvert395

In the old days, I used to think that coming in really tired or poping a sleeping pill might calm my nerves. Didn't work too well. :no


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## Monsoon

Personally, I would make sure to exhaust all possible options before using any kind of substance or drug to help deal with a SA symptom.

How big or important is this speech? I would not do something like this, but if this is a huge thing, I especially would recommend against it. If I did do something like this, I'd have to try it out on something not important first.


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## Brew29

No, I would not recommend it. 

Right before your speech, relax your shoulders and stay relaxed during the speech no matter what. Your body (and mind) will relax if you allow it to. Let your body work through it. 

Good Luck!


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## cellophanegirl

For me personally, drinking before a presentation would just make me more nervous. One beer isn't enough to put you in i don't give a **** mode, but it's enough to slow your mental capacities a bit. I'd just freak out that everyone would think I was drunk and it would be worse than not drinking at all.

But I'm not you and you know yourself better than I do. Do what works for you. 

Personally, being super prepared for a speech helps me, because just knowing that I'm prepared for it gives me enough confidence to slow my anxiety a bit.


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## jimity

I just know one beer wouldn't cut it for a presentation for me. I'd have to drink on an empty stomach and consume at least 3 drinks or around two full strength beers to get the dizzies and slow my mind down enough and loosen up. But a problem with alcohol is that if you decide to use it to calm you down and then find it isn't working as you had thought it would, it tends to make you feel even worse because your "strategy" of coping has now failed and if you can't find another coping method in time, it can send you into panic mode. This is what happened to me and I stupidly drank more and more until I finally threw up... and I still was panicking even after 10 drinks. But if you think you need it to get you through this one time i suggest you drink on an empty stomach around 30 mins before the presentation because it will hit within 15 - 20 mins and last for perhaps an hour or so, depending on how much you drank (i suggest 2.5 drinks standard for the psychological effects with minimal physical effects but be mindful of the physical effects so that you can hide them better). I make sure I always have a 200ml bottle of jb on hand so I can take it with me and just keep it in my pocket. If you will need to give further presentations in the future, I would keep my mind focussed on how people are reacting in the situation during the speech so you can think back the next time you give a speech and remember that people were alright during the last presentation and you should taper off the alcohol.


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## Lucy in the Sky

Dead Leaves said:


> It works for me. I'm in art school and I drink before every critique. I also make sure not to sleep the night before, so I'm in extra "I don't give a ****" mode. I really doubt it would be a big deal if anyone suspected I was intoxicated. I couldn't be bothered to care anyway.


no sleep is a great ideaa:yes


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## mcmuffinme

almost everyone fears public speaking to some extent. most people's presentations are stupid, terrible or boring- or some combination of those. There's a reason we're all not in the entertainment business. We're just average people as most people are.

and I think if you think it'll ease your nerves than a little alcohol is fine. how often do people even need to give presentations- it's pretty rare. so have fun with it, study hard, be safe and be smart.

and if you're awkward- who cares? i bet money you won't be the only student with an awkward presentation. plus, after this class- if you're in college anyway- you'll never see these people again. they may as well not exist as far as the rest of your life is concerned. If the world is in actuality like the matrix there existence is literally fictional, lol.


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## Dead Leaves

Lucy in the Sky said:


> no sleep is a great ideaa:yes


Yeah, it's bad advice - I should've kept it to myself. It _does_ work for me, but I don't really have to do much thinking during critiques. I'm sure a traditional presentation would be disastrous under those conditions.


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## sometimealone

Ive tried it before, i had a few drinks before a friend came over just to take the edge off as im really a different person when tipsy but it didn't work. The panic and high nerves just over-ride any effect from the liquor so ive never really bothered with that again. I think id need to drink a 6pack quickly to have the desired effect and maybe have a few shots to wash them down

I honestly wouldnt recommend it though, using alcohol to mask problems just feels so and is very wrong, im my opinion anyway. I was very disappointed in myself for even trying it


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## cosmicserpent

Alcohol depresses the nervous system. It works great for me. Sometimes you need it for certain things. Don't feel guilty. Just don't start drinking every day. Use the tools you need that work for you to get the job done.


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## aw1993

I'm not condoning it at all, its your decision, but I've done it and honestly it does help because for me I can't control my physical symptoms so that was my only option. I wouldn't be able to get through it because I would be shaking too bad and wouldn't even be able to think. I just took enough to not get those awful panic attack symptoms, but still able to think and act normally. I mean my therapist refused to give me xanax because it was like "taking a shot before going to class" well then thats what I'm going to do if thats what works because I can't get through it and do a good job without some help.
Also, if you have a tendency to become addicted, I wouldn't do it...I'm good about just taking it when a public speaking situation comes up. I could never drink everyday. bleh


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## peytonfarquar

Go for it. You have to learn where your sweet spot is. For me, it's what amounts to between 1 and 2 ounces of pure alcohol, so 2 to 4 beers. One Corona might take the edge off a bit but I would personally use more. You also must time it right. Based on how full your stomach is, symptoms vary and time frame is affected. It can take over an hour to peak on a full stomach or take as little as 20 minutes on an empty stomach. I use the Listerine Breath Strips to eliminate alcohol breath (and as a chaser since I find the taste of almost all alcohol terrible). Find an alcoholic cocktail that works for you. 

Oh, if I only knew about alcohol like this when I was back in school. I'm lucky to have a non-addictive personality. I drink a lot of times to reduce stress for social situations. Would not have been able to purchase a car. Would not have been able to title the car at the BMV like I did today.

Alcohol is the best short-term solution for SA that I have yet found even with all the side-effects. I've only been called out on my drunkenness a few times and that's when I was still learning the effects of alcohol and boundaries. It wasn't in a public place but I have vomited in front of others and blacked out. I best not ever exceed 4 ounces of pure alcohol again.


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## a degree of freedom

I personally would not because I want in future situations like that to have the added evidence to back it up when I tell myself I will be fine.


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## 8love8

Maybe 2 or 3 beers would do it. Wash your mouth out, chew a couple mints...I don't know, people with social anxiety supposedly have addicted personalities.

I could of used a couple of beers when I once gave a presentation. I was so nervous, my face was beet red and I was stumbling through words and giggling. My heart was pounding like a drum and I was hotter then hell & sweating. People were giggling too. The teacher pulled me out of the classroom after I was done and she told me to go home & change my t-shirt. I asked her why and she said "b/c your shirt says sex. I was like what "it says SOX but in fancy writing. A White Sox baseball T-shirt". And she was like oh okay. No wonder people were laughing at me and some of the stuff in my speech could have been seen like I was talking about sex. I was so embarrassed & humiliated. I never gave a speech after that, I would just take a zero.


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## No Limit

Well I could get to the point with drinking that I'm comfortable, but I'd be too clumsy at that point to do an actual presentation. What worked for me with I had to take a speech class was a prescription of Xanax. I was still nervous in front of the class, but at least with the Xanax, I wouldn't freeze "like a deer in headlights" in front of the class.


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