How do you survive new year’s eve when you don’t drink

How do you get through new year’s eve if you don’t drink?

Every time I’m at a party by around 9pm everyone else is drunk, conversations stop making sense, volume goes up and I’m just soberly observing the chaos. I feel like an alien watching a different species communicate.

It’s not that I judge anyone it’s just exhausting to be the only clear headed person in a room full of intoxicated people who think they’re having the best night ever. By midnight I’m counting minutes instead of celebrating.

Is there a way to make sober new year’s eve actually enjoyable? Do you plan different kinds of activities, leave early, find sober friends or just opt out entirely?

I want to know if sober nye is something people genuinely enjoy or if the night is fundamentally designed around drinking and always going to feel miserable without it.