How to use this checklist
Check off the 8 items across Time & Drinks, Food & Hydration, and Safety Check. The most important rule embedded in the items: the liver metabolizes roughly one standard drink per hour, and time is the only thing that sobers you — coffee, cold showers, and fresh air do not accelerate blood-alcohol clearance. Be especially honest about the Safety Check items, since self-assessment of "feeling sober" is unreliable even at impairing BAC levels.
What your result means
70%+ suggests safety checks pass. 40-69% is a yellow flag — if any unchecked item relates to alcohol quantity, timing since the last drink, or interacting medications, treat it as a red flag. Below 40% means do not drive; use rideshare, taxi, public transit, or a designated driver. Two non-obvious items deserve emphasis: drowsy driving impairs reaction time about as much as a BAC of 0.05%, and common medications (antihistamines, opioids, benzodiazepines, some antidepressants) amplify alcohol's effects even at low intake.
When to trust it
This is a safety-decision checklist, not a BAC calculator — never use it to estimate whether you're under the legal limit. Legal BAC thresholds (0.08% in most of the US, 0.05% or lower in many countries and for commercial or underage drivers) do not equal impairment thresholds; you can be impaired below the limit. The only truly safe rule after drinking is not to drive. When in any doubt at all, choose alternative transportation — the cost of a rideshare is trivial against the legal, financial, and human cost of a DUI or a crash.
Frequently Asked Questions
Am I safe to drive the morning after drinking?
Often not — this is one of the most common DUI convictions. Your body clears roughly one standard drink per hour, and the clock starts from your last drink, not your first. Six drinks ending at 2 AM means around 8 AM you're likely still at or above 0.08, and even below the limit, sleep deprivation plus residual alcohol degrades reaction time. The rule of thumb: if you'd describe last night as 'a big night,' treat the next morning as still impaired and take the bus, or eat a real meal and wait several more hours.
Do coffee, food, or a cold shower sober you up faster?
None of them do anything to blood alcohol — only time works, because only the liver clears it, at a fixed rate. What they do is make you feel more alert while still impaired, which is precisely the dangerous combination: a wide-awake drunk driver with confidence. Coffee changes how impaired you feel, not how impaired you are. The only tactic that helps is time — and a full night's sleep, not a nap.
What should I do if I'm not sure whether I'm okay to drive?
Apply a bright-line rule instead of a feeling. If you've had any alcohol in the last 2 hours, or you'd hesitate to tell a police officer exactly what you drank tonight, don't drive — the cost of a wrong guess ($10,000+, license, record) versus a rideshare ($30) is not a real decision. Tired, upset, or on new medication counts in the same bucket. The checklist exists because self-assessment while impaired is exactly what humans are worst at.