Set yourself up the way you'd set up a kid for a party
Before a draining event, get fed, rested and hydrated — exactly what you'd ensure for a child before a party. Carry snacks and water and 'pre-game' with those instead of alcohol. Meeting basic physiological needs raises your baseline regulation, so you have more tolerance for the sensory and social load.
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You would never take a child to a party hungry, tired and thirsty and expect them to cope — yet adults routinely arrive at draining events in exactly that state. Basic physiological needs set your baseline regulation capacity: when food, sleep and water are handled, you have more headroom for the sensory and social demand and a higher threshold before overload.
So treat the run-up like prep for a kid: make sure you’ve eaten, rested and hydrated, and carry snacks and water (in your pockets if needed). Reframing this as ‘pre-gaming’ — with the healthy things rather than alcohol — keeps your regulation intact rather than borrowing against it. It’s unglamorous and it’s one of the highest-leverage things you can do before a hard event.
