By Tooba C
Being sober at a rave. A concept that is very foreign to many people who are active ravers, it’s easy to get caught up in the world of getting some sort of buzz in a crowd of thousands of people. Festivals are always selling alcohol because they know that people are there to have a good time, but this doesn’t mean that a good time and tripping out are synonymous.
It doesn’t matter what the reason for you being sober at a rave is; it just matters that you do what is most comfortable to you and to not let anyone tell you what to do. Personally, I enjoy being sober at raves because I feel much more comfortable and have a lot more fun. If I’m not sober, I have fun for a while, and then start to panic halfway through the day. Getting hungover in the middle of the day during a festival is never fun, which is one of the main reasons I prefer to stay sober.
This may be easy for some people, and a lot harder for others. It has become easy for me since I have gone through a few bad experiences and have learned from them. If being sober at raves seems hard to you, here are a few tips that I have used in my last few festivals to help me out:
Get into the music.
My favorite tip of all time: as someone who genuinely enjoys the music at raves, this is so easy for me to do. Just feel the music and dance your little heart out. This is also the perfect chance to whip out those dance moves that you’ve been practicing in the basement of your parents’ house (totally not what I do). This is your opportunity to make the festival memorable, and not get lost in just getting wasted.
Trade kandi.
It doesn’t matter if you’re sober or not, you can be PLUR whenever you want. Trading kandi is a wholesome tradition at raves, and you get to spread the love to people who really need it. This is a great way to make new friends and strike up new conversations. This might help you get comfortable in the rave world, especially if you’re new or it’s been a while since your last rave.
Find the perfect rave friend group.
This is not something you do during the rave, but before the rave, this is super important. You wanna find people to go with who match your energy and are excited to rave as you are. If you’re going with a bunch of people who have never heard of any of the DJs on the lineup, why are you even going with them? No matter if your friends are also sober or not, if you believe you’ll genuinely have fun with them, then you’ll be able to in whatever state you’re in.
Get your energy up.
In order to have a good day, you’re going to need a boost of energy. Most festivals have a great range of food and drink vendors to choose from. And when you’ve been walking around all day, that food tastes even better than it actually is. If you would like to dance, the best way to keep your energy up is to have snacks or even full meals at the rave. I’ve even seen some festivals selling coffee and most have energy drinks to make you wake up when the day feels too long.
Meet new people.
A great tip for festivals and raves overall is meeting new people. As a girl, I know the best way to talk to other girls is to compliment their outfit. You’ll strike up a great conversation or just leave feeling nice since you talked to someone outside your friend group. Hell, maybe you’ll find a rave bae!
Appreciate the festival for what is it.
Whether you’re at a small hometown festival or in the middle of Tomorrowland, the vibes that a festival gives off are like nothing else. Being around the people you love, meeting new ones, great food, great music, amazing atmosphere. It’s easy to get caught up in the little things, like that your outfit isn’t coming together right or your friend is puking next to the port-a-potties, but it’s always important to appreciate the festival. Being sober, this is so much easier to do than it is when you’re wasted.
Sure, I get it. It’s hard to be around people who are all out of their minds, vibing about the music and caring about nothing else, but it is possible to do this as someone who’s sober. You don’t need to be tripping out to have a great time at a festival. If you genuinely enjoy the music, the people you’re around, and the atmosphere you’re in, it is so much easier to have lots of fun.