When we come to uni, we are filled with assumptions, concerns and anxieties (hopefully as well as a lot of excitement and new motivation!) and one thing on your mind may be alcohol. I am sure many of the stories you have heard about uni have been centred around drinking games, pres, and crazy nights out. Students are suddenly free from their parents’ supervision and, particularly in freshers’ week, have very few responsibilities. However, there is no pressure to drink, and uni without drinking is still as much (if not at times far more) fun! I have enjoyed plenty of drinking games with squash or coke, and I’ve been so glad to be able to clearly remember all the fun the next day!
No hangover and staying on top of uni work!
Walking into the kitchen to make lunch after a productive morning and seeing your friends from the night out crawl in to finally put something into their empty stomachs always made me laugh a little and feel glad that I hadn’t drunk to the same excess as them! Plus, not drinking too much makes it so much easier to stay on top of the workload. At the end of the day, most of us have come to uni to get a good degree and, whilst we want to also enjoy the social life, we can’t let that bring down our grades. Trying to read difficult texts or solve equations (idk I’m an English Lit student) is going to be a far, far bigger chore when hungover! Save your head and your grades by drinking a little less.
Being with the right group!
If you feel that you can’t have as much fun on a night out because you don’t want to drink, then maybe consider who you have surrounded yourself with. People should never push you into drinking, nor ever make you feel left out due to the decision. Not drinking, or not wanting to drink every time a game indicates for you to drink, is never something to be ashamed of and there will be plenty of other people who don’t drink for all sorts of reasons. Also, when you’re sober, playing drinking games with the right people can be hilarious and you have the fun of remembering it clearly the following day!
Remembering the night!
Where’s the fun in having a great night and then not being able to remember it, or the references your friends continue to make about it? These uni nights really can be some of the best of your life and they’re ones you’re going to want to be able to reminisce about. Rather than making you feel included, drinking too much could end up isolating you if you can’t remember or if you do things out of character, leading me to the next point…
Less likely to have regrets!
I am sure we are all too well aware of one of the biggest cons of drinking: not being able to think clearly and make good decisions. When you are starting uni, friendships are formed quickly and are so important when you’re away from all your home friends and family, and so you don’t want to do something on a night out which could jeopardise this. If you’re constantly causing your new friends to end their night early in order to look after you, you might find yourself feeling a little less popular on nights out.
Budgeting!
I feel I should also mention one of the more obvious reasons as to why some uni students don’t drink too much and this is the tight budgets which aren’t too accommodating for that expensive bottle of gin! When so many uni students feel they must sacrifice eating a healthier meal because they don’t want to buy 5 different ingredients and yet spend £20 on some vodka, something’s not quite right! It’s so important to look after your health at uni when you’re finally standing on your own two feet in the world without someone to look after you when you become ill, and so maybe next time pick up a punnet of grapes instead of that bottle of wine and notice better health and bank account statements!
With these things in mind, why not try drinking a little less at the next pres, or even trying it sober, and see what you think! It’s fun to drink, just not to excess! Stay safe ☺