The college years can be a stressful time, for many reasons. You may have moved across state or even across country to go to your school of choice, which means that you are far away from your family that you are used to be with all the time. Depending on what you are going to school for, you may have a lot of tough courses and an extremely busy schedule ahead of you.
Many new college students will also be spending time working while they are going to school. That means even more stress and even longer day. All that stress in college can quickly lead to substance abuse. Most times, there is an underlying issue when it comes to addiction, from a brain disorder to using substances as self-treatment.
Don’t Even Experiment
While it can seem a benefit to take a pill that can give you more energy so you can stay up later and study, any kind of drug can lead to addiction. Plus, each time you take a drug, even if it’s a prescription one, you risk your life. Even if it is your prescription, if you are taken it different than recommended you could be harming yourself and you could risk overdose.
You may think that taking speed once, because you have midterms due, will just be that one time thing. However, once you’ve felt the effects it can be hard to say no the next time you “need” it. Instead, try to set better hours to work and study so that you have time for everything.
Be Careful At Parties
Rape is something that is far too prevalent on college campuses, and 80 percent of college students that are roofied are women. When it comes to parties, it’s simply part of the college seen to go and have some fun and have a drink or a few. However, you need to make sure you have a buddy with you when you go partying, and you also never want to accept a drink from someone else, or leave the one you have unattended.
By have a buddy, even if someone does slip something in your drink, they can be there to see that something is wrong and make sure that you get home safely.
Get Help
For some college students a few nights of parties and drinking each week is simply normal, and not a problem. However, if your drinking or drug use gets out of control, and becomes something you need just to get through the day, then it’s time to look for help.
If you become addicted to alcohol or another substance it can be detrimental to your college career. You may get kicked out or drop out. Things could be much worse than even this, from jail time to death. Get help, and if you have a college friend that has a problem, get them help as well.
