Call 999 if you think someone has alcohol poisoning. Stay with them and follow the call handler’s instructions. If they are unresponsive but breathing normally, place them in the recovery position and keep checking their breathing. If they are unresponsive and not breathing normally, start CPR.
A date that involves drinks can turn into an emergency when someone drinks faster than their body can cope. The person may be a stranger met hours earlier, and the helper may know little about their health or medication. This guide summarises the NHS page on alcohol poisoning, the NHS guide to calling 999 and the St John Ambulance pages on the recovery position and CPR. It applies across the UK. It is general information, not first aid training, and the 999 call handler’s instructions take priority. For prevention, see this site’s guide to alcohol and first dates.
Signs of alcohol poisoning
The NHS says alcohol poisoning can happen when someone drinks alcohol quicker than the body can process it, and that it can make someone seriously ill and may need hospital treatment. It usually follows binge drinking, meaning a lot of alcohol in one session, and alcohol affects people differently. Symptoms start after drinking a lot and may include:
- confusion;
- slurred speech or being unable to speak;
- being unable to coordinate movement, for example to stand, walk or pick things up;
- being sick;
- loss of bladder or bowel control;
- pale or blue-tinged skin, which on black or brown skin may be easier to see inside the lips, on the gums and under the fingernails;
- slow or irregular breathing;
- a seizure or fit; and
- loss of consciousness.
When to call 999
The NHS says to call 999 if you think someone has alcohol poisoning, and also if someone has had a seizure, has lost consciousness or has stopped breathing. It tells people not to drive the person to A&E themselves, because the 999 call handler will give advice. Its guide to calling 999 adds that the handler will ask where the emergency is, such as the postcode or landmarks, what has happened and a contact number for a call back, and that calling 999 does not always mean an ambulance is sent.
On a date, the NHS guide suggests staying with the person until help arrives, calling 999 again if their condition or location changes, collecting any medicines they are taking and writing down their GP details if possible, and telling paramedics about any allergies if known.
While waiting for help
The NHS lists what helps and what does not; the recovery-position and CPR points come from St John Ambulance. Helpers should:
- stay with the person, because they could choke on their own vomit or stop breathing;
- sit them up if awake; if they are unresponsive but breathing normally, put them in the recovery position and keep checking their breathing; if they are unresponsive and not breathing normally, start CPR and follow the call handler’s instructions;
- give water to sip if they are conscious, able to swallow and not vomiting; and
- keep them warm with a jacket or blanket.
The NHS also says not to let them drink more alcohol, not to offer food because of the choking risk, not to give coffee or caffeinated drinks because these can dehydrate, not to put them in a cold shower or bath because of the risk of getting too cold, falling or losing consciousness in the water, and not to try to make them sick.
The recovery position
St John Ambulance says the recovery position is safe for someone who is not responding but is breathing normally. It keeps the airway open and lets vomit drain away. The steps it lists are to kneel beside the person and straighten their legs, remove glasses and bulky pocket items, place the arm nearest you at a right angle with the palm up, bring the other arm across the chest with the back of the hand against the near cheek, pull the far knee up with the foot flat, roll the person towards you onto their side, tilt the head back and lift the chin to keep the airway open, and call 999 or 112 if that has not been done. Their level of response should be monitored while waiting, and they should be rolled onto the other side if they stay in the position for 30 minutes.
The St John Ambulance CPR page says that if an adult is unresponsive and not breathing normally, call 999 or 112 and start CPR straight away, ignoring occasional, irregular gasps. A short first aid course is the way to learn these skills properly.
If a drink may have been interfered with
Alcohol is not the only possible cause of a sudden collapse on a date. This site’s guide to drink spiking and dating covers what the Home Office advises and how to report it.
FAQs
Should I let a date who has had too much to drink sleep it off?
The NHS says to call 999 if you think someone has alcohol poisoning, and also if they have lost consciousness, had a seizure or stopped breathing, and to stay with them because they could choke on their own sick or stop breathing. If they are unresponsive but breathing normally, place them in the recovery position; if they are unresponsive and not breathing normally, start CPR (St John Ambulance).
Can I give them coffee or a cold shower to sober up?
No. The NHS says not to give coffee or caffeinated drinks and not to put the person in a cold shower or bath.
The bottom line
The NHS advice on a date who has drunk too much is to call 999 if alcohol poisoning is suspected, stay with them, sit them up if awake, give sips of water only if they are awake and not vomiting, keep them warm and give no more alcohol, food, coffee or cold showers. St John Ambulance adds: unresponsive but breathing normally means the recovery position; unresponsive and not breathing normally means CPR. A helper who does not know the person well should pass on whatever is known about medicines and allergies and keep the line open for the call handler’s instructions.
Sources
- Alcohol poisoning, page last reviewed 4 June 2026 (nhs.uk)
- How to put someone in the recovery position, clinically reviewed 28 April 2025 (sja.org.uk; the former nhs.uk address now redirects here)
- How to do CPR, clinically reviewed 18 September 2026 (sja.org.uk)
- When to call 999, page last reviewed 3 February 2023 (nhs.uk)