A woman is claiming that a non-alcoholic beer she ordered at a restaurant—and the error that followed—derailed more than three years of sobriety.
The video documenting the tale came from creator Lil Egg Foo (@spicylilramen), getting more than 2.9 million views as of Friday.
In it, she’s filming herself eating oysters and drinking what she thinks is a non-alcoholic beer at what appears to be (given the oyster sampler card next to her oyster plate) Elliott’s Oyster House on Pier 56 in Seattle.
“She doesn’t know it but she’s about to break her 3 year and 5 months of sobriety because the restaurant accidentally served her real beer instead of NA beer that will send her spiraling and struggling with her sobriety,” the on-screen caption reads. The six-second clip first shows her taking a long drink from a tall beer glass in front of her, and then eating an oyster with the beer nowhere in sight.
The next video in her timeline shows her in a hospital bed with an IV attached to her, and the simple on-screen caption, “Rock bottom.” The caption accompanying the video reads, “The only way is up from here!”
As of Friday, the most recent video in her timeline declared she was back to being sober a second day, capturing a view of herself from one of the Space Needle’s observation decks, with a caption explaining, “Yes, I relapsed but it’s okay because my mistakes don’t define me. It’s how I move forward that defines me. I am going to come back from this stronger and better.”
What is a slip vs. a relapse?
At first, it seems like just a one-time mistake following just the videos. But as she explains in one of the comment threads on the initial post, when someone tried to argue her sobriety streak was still intact, “I’m not [3 years sober] because i kept drinking and relapsed 2 more times after this. So it may have been an accident at first but the rest was my choice and what i have to live with.”
According to The Recovery Village, “A slip, also which can also be known as a lapse, is a situation where someone has a very brief ‘slip’ where they drink or use, but they stop quickly afterward, avoiding a full relapse into addiction. Usually, this happens when a person decides to use again but instantly regrets the decision.”
The article notes that sometimes a slip can reinforce a person’s desire to remain sober, and that person is able to bounce back from the misstep. However, as happened with the creator, according to her account, “Others allow a slip to turn into a full-blown relapse or even a total downward spiral with no escape in sight.”
An article on NBC News about Dry January—in which people aim for an alcohol-free reset to start the year—noted that even when people drink when they don’t initially intend to, exploring why they decided to drink and how much they drink provides a “learning opportunity” to help people evaluate their drinking and whether they need to cut back, stop altogether, or are content with their current consumption patterns.
Encouragement from others
The video brought support from others recognizing the level of her struggle.
“From one sober baddie to another, this does not change your sobriety,” said one. “You can hold a grudge against the restaurant – but try not to hold it against yourself. This is not your fault.”
“I am sorry this happened to you, but do applaud your accountability,” another said. “Good luck to you in your journey.”
“Try to be gentle with yourself,” someone else advised. “Take deep breaths and let it go with the exhale. You’ve made more decisions not to drink, than to [drink]—which means you’re on the right path.”
A bartender jumped into the conversation as well, noting, “This makes me so sad. As a bartender I always pour the N.A. beer in front of the customer and hand them the can to read for themselves. I would never wanna be the reason someone relapsed.”
@spicylilramen it’s fine, i’m fine (not really) #sober #soberlife #sobertok #sobertiktok #sobriety #sobrietyrocks ♬ DIM – Yves
The Daily Dot has reached out to the creator via TikTok comment and to Elliott’s Oyster House via email.
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