Secondhand drinking - the other side of alcohol misuse - refers to the negative impacts of a person's drinking behaviors on others. These drinking behaviors include verbal, physical or emotional abuse, neglect, domestic violence, committing a crime or sexual assault and driving while impaired, to name a few. They are the unintentional behaviors that occur when a person's alcohol misuse changes the way their brain works.

Secondhand drinking (SHD) affects 90 million Americans - roughly one-third the population - and when unchecked, provides a breeding ground for adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) - just ask someone who grew up with a parent whose drinking patterns qualified as binge drinking, heavy social drinking, alcohol abuse or alcoholism.

Which brings me to the point of this post - Budweiser's 2014 "drink responsibly" PSA titled, "Friends are Waiting."

If you saw this 1 minute PSA - along with the more than 22 million others who've also viewed it on YouTube - you can appreciate how heartwarming it is. It presents the deep bond and love that Luke and his adorable lab, Cooper, developed over the course of Cooper’s puppyhood to the devoted furry friend we see in the concluding seconds of Copper's joy upon Luke's return after a night out with friends and a few Budweisers.

I believe Budweiser does a great job with the “don’t drink and drive” message, but I also believe they miss the mark on "drink responsibily," for I ask, "What if the devoted Cooper had been a spouse or child?"

Expanding the “Drink Responsibly” Message to Include, “Don’t Cause Secondhand Drinking”

Back to the PSA (if you haven't watched it, yet, take a moment to do so)...

Replace Cooper’s whimpers, looking towards the window when car lights approach and forlornly laying down to wait, with Luke's wife watching the clock; repeatedly texting, “Where are you?;” calling his friends to see if they know where he is; and calling local hospitals to see if Luke’s been admitted. Add to these scenes Luke's two children clamouring for their mom's attention and answers to their questions: “Mommy, where’s Daddy? He promised to read me a story and tuck me into bed!" or “Mommy, what’s wrong?” or “Mommy, you seem sad,” to which Mommy tersely responds, “Nothing, now go to bed!” or "I'm Fine - just go to your room!" or "Stop your fighting - it's giving me a headache!"

While these are very tame examples of secondhand drinking, children who grow up in homes with ongoing alcohol misuse, and thus ongoing secondhand drinking, the physical, emotional and quality fo life impacts are devastating, scary, shame-filled, life-robbing. They are a set-up for a “rest of your life” that NONE of us would ever wish on a child.

Thus we need to expand the "drink responsibily" message to include, "don't cause secondhand drinking." Period.  For more on this, check out my posts, "Secondhand Drinking Impacts on Children" and "Talking to a Child About Secondhand Drinking | A Parent's Drinking."