With Freshers’ week fast approaching, alcohol is a topic on most students’ lips.
We know drug taking can feel like a rite of passage for Freshers, but ignoring the risks of addiction is a dangerous game to play.
There’s no need to choose between a fun Fresher’s experience and your health. It’s possible to have a great time, make friends, get involved with events, and still keep your addiction risk low.
If you’re dealing with the signs of dependence or addiction, it’s never too early or late to seek help.
Don’t let anything, including your studies, get in the way of your long-term wellbeing.
Please call us on 0800 140 4690 for advice and support.
University is a major life transition. Many 18-year-olds go from being under the watchful eye of their parents to enjoying total freedom in another part of the country.
With new routines, new friends and more academic pressure than ever, it can be a make-or-break situation for students.
With freedom comes choice. When we’re young and inexperienced, it’s expected that we’ll make some unhealthy choices. Maybe sleeping too little, having a poor diet, not calling our parents enough.
But some choices come with more severe consequences than others. Plenty of Freshers are drinking too much, some are developing a dependence on drugs without even realising it, and others are experiencing mild to severe addiction.
That’s not to say that all Freshers are in need of professional help.
For instance, although many could improve their relationship with drinking vastly, there’s a significant difference between someone who’s in control of their drinking and someone who’s not.
It’s not necessarily the person who goes out every weekend and out-drinks the group.
It can be the person who keeps suggesting drugs or alcohol at every social event, the one who drinks alone every night in private, or the one who doesn’t know how to drink without binge drinking.
The signs are often there, but the normalisation of university drinking culture means they get missed or ignored.
In today’s blog, we’re going to highlight the risky relationship between university and addiction, before emphasising how students can avoid substance abuse, and maintain a healthy relationship with alcohol.
Alcohol is the drug of choice for many students. As it isn’t an illicit substance, many people fail to realise just how damaging alcohol can be.
Other common substances used by students include:
Each of these causes different symptoms, some that take place during the drug use, and others that persist afterwards.
These symptoms don’t necessarily appear during early drug use. Students can develop health issues after months or years of drug-taking, so the specific risks remain unpredictable.
If a dependence or addiction develops, new symptoms will gradually appear, and they won’t necessarily go away if the student stops taking drugs. In fact, cold turkey quitting can make the situation worse, as it can be fatal.
In many cases, professional addiction treatment is needed.
If we look for early signs of substance abuse, we have a better chance of resolving issues before dependence or addiction gets worse.
People who seek professional help in these early stages are much more likely to stay sober than people who delay.
Here are some early signs to look for in yourself or your friends/loved ones:
These signs can be very subtle, so it’s important to take any sign seriously, even if you aren’t certain that substance misuse is present.
A student who is misusing substances won’t be able to nurture other areas of their life effectively.
They may still be functioning well externally, but there will always be some sort of impact on their health, which will take away from their energy and motivation.
For example, these students might struggle with a lack of sleep, unbalanced nutrition, poor hygiene, or an unstable day-to-day mood.
Substance misuse can make it very challenging for students to be consistent with their studies. They may neglect their essays, skip their lectures, struggle to concentrate in class, and ultimately perform poorly at university.
The strain on relationships is another common consequence of substance abuse. Students who misuse drugs may encounter trust issues, a lack of connection, and tension in their romantic and platonic relationships.
They may struggle to maintain long-term connections, meaning they pull away from their home friends and family.
As you can imagine, this often has serious effects on students’ mental health, and can increase the risk of depression and anxiety. The outcome of this can be extremely varied, but in severe cases, students can end up having to quit university.
University is one of the hardest environments to be in if you’re trying to avoid substance abuse. However, if you get practical, it’s definitely possible to keep your risk as low as possible.
It’s much easier to avoid substance abuse if you have a solid routine you can rely on, meaning you know where you want to be and what you want to be doing.
Routines also help us to stay on top of our sleep, nutrition and energy levels, which prevents us from being more vulnerable to addiction.
If you go into situations with no expectations, that’s when you may end up making a decision you regret.
Set expectations for yourself. Do you want to avoid drugs and alcohol completely? Do you want to say no to shots? Are you happy to drink, but binge drinking is a no?
You can always adjust your expectations along the way, but just make sure it’s something you’ve considered before you’re faced with any peer pressure.
Supportive friends are crucial for avoiding substance abuse as a student.
The crowd you surround yourself with will heavily influence your lifestyle, and if everyone around you is misusing drugs, it’ll be much harder to avoid.
Find friends who share your stance on substances, or friends who will at least respect your decisions and not pressure you to do drugs.
Don’t be fooled by the constant clubbing ads. There are so many opportunities to make new friends during Freshers without drinking!
Look for sober activities, where you’re more likely to meet people on the same wavelength as you. You don’t have to avoid drinking activities entirely, but why not mix it up with some sober outings too? Think sports, gigs, quizzes, brunches, hikes, and city trips!
Therapy isn’t just for people with a diagnosed mental health condition. It’s for everyone.
Weekly therapy sessions can keep you grounded, giving you an opportunity to share any challenges you’re facing, and get help with making healthier decisions.
Don’t underestimate the impact of this support when you’re dealing with change all around you, as well as pressure to conform to the stereotypes of student life.
If your relationship with drugs or alcohol is causing you problems, we’d always advise getting some help. For dependency or addiction, this is more than a vague suggestion. Professional help can turn your life around.
So, where can you get help for substance abuse as a student?
Avoiding substance abuse isn’t always as simple as saying no. We are complicated creatures, with all sorts of vulnerabilities, and any of us can end up battling addiction.
So, we’ve got to be proactive. Together, let’s learn the risks of addiction and put boundaries in place to prevent substance abuse.
If a problem already exists, it’s unlikely to go away on its own. We invite you to reach out to us on 0800 140 4690 for support in finding suitable dependence or addiction treatment.
Below, we outline answers to common questions about addiction issues for students:
It depends what you mean by normal. It’s common for university students to drink heavily, but it’s neither safe nor healthy.
Students aren’t immune to substance use disorders, so even if all their friends are drinking excessively, it doesn’t mean they can mimic this behaviour safely. They may manage this for a time, but addiction tends to creep up slowly.
Yes, stress is one of the common risk factors for addiction.
It’s one of the many reasons students are particularly vulnerable to addiction, as the stress of academic pressure, moving cities and being away from family can push students into dangerous drug-taking behaviours.
[1] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10012457/
Boris is our editor-in-chief at Rehab 4 Addiction. Boris is an advisor with more than 20 years in the field. His knowledge covers a broad of topics relating to addiction, rehab and recovery. Boris is an advisor and assists in the alcohol detox and rehab process. Boris has been featured on a variety of websites, including the Verywell Mind and Healthline. You can connect with Boris online at LinkedIn or X.com.
