According to sustained investigation by the Institute of Health and Welfare in Finland, abstaining from alcohol is on the rise among younger generations, but sometimes it still feels like a college student who voluntarily desists from drinking is considered a weirdo. Whether you stay at home or you are traveling abroad, being a teetotaler often means that you have to explain your choices and receive some very non-sensical reactions from your company.
Here are a few of phrases that teetotalers hear way too often. The list is made for reasons of identification and explanation, not for judgement! However, if you know a friend who does not drink, chances are that they have heard these already many times…
Why don’t you want to come drink with us? There are also non-alcoholic drinks.
Um, I knew this already but thank you anyway…? The person saying this probably means well, but at the same time they are stating the obvious and missing the point. As someone who has drank the overpriced juice of Finnish bars before, I do understand why someone would decline simply for economical reasons, but usually the biggest concern is whether spending the night with drunk people and seeing them home is not that fun for someone who is sober. It also might not be as fun for the others in the group, if they are expecting everyone to drink.
Solution: Invite your teetotaler friend to an event where the main focus is on something else than the drinks.
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Are you a Christian??
This is something that you may hear from foreigners, but sometimes the Finns ask this, too. The question may be applicable in the frame of American society, yet for an ordinary Finn this question is usually rather embarrassing. While this obviously may be the reason not to drink for many, things are not that black and white. Since being a Christian in Finland does not usually mean abstaining from alcohol and all teetotalers are surely not Christian, the answer to this question might be an explanation of how you were baptized as a child but it has got nothing to do with your drinking habits or simply a stunned Um…
I also only drink wine/high-quality drinks, not beer or cheap booze.
Alright, cool, but I mean I don’t drink at all? Also, you don’t have to explain yourself, since I am not judging.
You just don’t know how fun it is to be drunk.
Teetotalers are usually adults who have deeper and better reasons for not drinking than simply having some fun.
A moderate amount of alcohol lessens the risk of (insert heart stroke, dementia etc. here), you know.
And it also increases the risk of traffic death and violence? According to the most recent scientific studies, even the alleged health benefits of red wine regarding heart and vascular diseases are not likely to hold any truth. Moreover, there are no stated health risks in abstaining from all alcohol. Read more on the Lancet.
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