You're out having fun with your friends and you're a few drinks in. It isn't anything too serious, but your words are starting to slur and your balance is slightly off. Flash forward to the end of the night when everyone wants to go home, but none of you planned for someone to be a designated driver. Your friends decided that since you're the one who had fewer drinks, that you should drive home. In your head, you're thinking, "I can't talk correctly so I shouldn't drive but everyone else is too drunk to even walk...it's only right around the corner, but still".
So many people are stuck in this sort of this situation every weekend and end up risking not only their lives but others as well. According to the organization MADD (mothers against drunk driving), every two minutes, a person is injured in a drunk driving crash. I don't know about you, but to me, this statistic is terrifying. This alone should deter anyone from getting behind the wheel after a few beers, but sadly it doesn't.
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Another scary, fact according to The Center for Disease Control is, twenty-eight people die EVERY day due to alcohol-impaired driving, just in the United States alone. This statistic doesn't just include those who were behind the wheel, but bystanders who were in the cross fire of an accident as well. This may seem small, but this amounts to one death every 53 minutes.
Getting behind the wheel while impaired is the most selfish thing you can do not only towards yourself but to your family, friends and everyone else on the road. At all levels of BAC the risk of getting into a crash is greater...and the only way to sober up is with time. Drinking coffee, eating greasy foods, or taking a cold shower are all just myths, so don't risk yourself and others over a lie. On average, just two drinks alone already impairs your ability to perform two tasks at once and your ability to track moving targets.
As someone who's lost a loved one to a drunk driving accident, I'm begging you to not be selfish. I was only four when I lost my father. I wonder every day what could have been. I've watched my family be destroyed because of this unfortunate accident and I wouldn't wish it upon anyone. Just please stay safe, and realize there are many options. Call a cab, an Uber, a friend or family member who would love to see you safe the next day and not get that awful. phone call. Don't become a statistic.
