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Table of Contents
Alcohol Abuse & Addiction
Alcohol Problems
Do You Know Someone with a Drinking Problem?
An Experiment
Binge Drinking: a buzz word...
Sex Under the Influence
What is Alcoholism?

Alcohol Abuse & Addiction
A recent survey has revealed that the majority of Canisius College Students either do NOT drink at all -or have only four or less drinks at social events.
  • The media has given a lot of attention to problem drinking, especially binge drinking, on college campuses.

  • The majority of Canisius students do not have a drinking problem. However the inappropriate use of alcohol remains an issue of concern for a minority population.

  • This self-help material is designed to stimulate your thinking about alcohol. It does not advocate prohibition, but care and attention to yourself and those around you.

  • In the next few years, with or without knowing it, you will be making many crucial decisions about what you and your life will be like in the future. How alcohol and other substances fit into your life will be one of those decisions.
It's Normal Not To Drink
Contrary to prevailing student perceptions, not all Canisius College students drink. In fact many college students have never consumed alcohol.

It's also normal to drink moderately at some times and not drink at all at others.

Don't drink if:
  • You really don't want to.

  • You're upset, anxious or angry.

  • There's a chance of unintended or unwanted sexual activity.

  • You're pregnant or think you might be.

  • You'll be driving.

  • You're taking certain medications occasionally or routinely. Ask your health care provider for guidance about drinking and medicines.
It's Normal To Drink Moderately
When you drink, it's normal to know your limits and take steps to stay within them.

Know What You're Doing
Find out how your body processes alcohol. Learn about blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and the variables it affects.

Click here to access an online BAC calculator from Intoximeters, Inc.

Make a Plan and Set a Limit
It's tough to know when to stop if your judgment is impaired. Make decisions about your limit before you start drinking.

Eat Before You Drink
And eat while you're drinking. Food in the stomach slows down alcohol absorption.

Choose Your Drinks
Choose drinks with vegetable or fruit bases. Water or carbonated mixers increase impairment.

Quenching Your Thirst
Don't quench your thirst with alcoholic drinks, they make you thirstier. Try water first.

Space and Pace Your Drinks
Four drinks over 3 hours doesn't mean 3 the first 30 minutes and I 3-1/2 hours later. Spread them out. Alternate alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks. Sip, don't gulp. It's just as cool.

Avoid Drinking Games
Their purpose is to get you drunk fast. You can easily exceed your limit. Learn ways to refuse drinks.

Keep Track
Keep track of how much you've had. Don't succumb to peer
pressure that encourages you to drink more than you want.
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Alcohol Problems
The majority of Canisius students make choices about alcohol that don't jeopardize those things they find important: their academics, their health, their friendships, their relationships. Hopefully you will work toward making the same positive decisions. However, a student minority do experience difficulties in this area.

What Is A Drug?
A drug is any substance that changes how the body works once it gets inside the body. Some examples of drugs are alcohol, ecstasy, cocaine, steroids, marijuana, inhalants, and nicotine.

Why Do People Drink?
Students give many different reasons why they may drink. Some students say they drink because of peer pressure and to be part of a crowd. Some use alcohol to avoid difficult situations that may arise at school and work and with family and friends. Others use alcohol to avoid uncomfortable feelings, like anxiety or sadness. Anyone who drinks runs the risk of developing an alcohol problem. A serious problem can develop quickly, especially among college students.

Your College Alcohol Self-Inventory

(Click here for a printable document version)
Answer all questions and get your results. Every "Yes" = 1 point.
  1. I drink alcohol for other than religious reasons.

  2. I have drunk five or more drinks in a row at least once in the last two
    weeks.

  3. I have drunk to intoxication at least once in the last two weeks.

  4. I have drunk alone in the last three months.

  5. I have drunk alcohol daily (at least five days of each week) for the last month.

  6. I have said or done something under the influence of alcohol I regret.

  7. I have drunk during the last three months so that I could do something that I felt I could not do as easily without alcohol (i.e. talk, relax, be more sexual).

  8. I've experienced a blackout (memory loss) while drinking in the last three months.

  9. I have driven under the influence of alcohol in the last three months.

  10. I have missed school or work due to the effects of alcohol at least once in the last three months.

  11. I have experienced withdrawal (shakes, sweats, flushed faced) after stopping drinking in the last three months.

  12. My drinking has harmed my personal relationships in the last three months.

  13. During the last three months, I have often drunk in larger amounts or over a longer period of time than intended.
Add your "yes" scores on questions 2-13. This is your severity score. The range is 0-12. 50% of Canisius College students average score is 2.4. 84% of Canisius College students score 5 or below. If an answer to any question or your total score concerns you, please consider changing your drinking behaviors or talking to a counselor. Call 888-2620 for an appointment.

"If alcohol is causing you problems, you have a problem with alcohol."

"If you drink a lot of beer, you drink a lot."
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Do You Know Someone with a Drinking Problem?

If you are trying to figure out whether a friend has a drinking problem, you need to evaluate:
  • changes in his or her behavior while drinking;

  • the reasons for his or her drinking; and

  • the impact of your friend's drinking on his or her relationships, studies, and goals.
Your friend doesn't have to get "falling down drunk" or drink every night to be in trouble with alcohol. Focusing on the reasons for your friend's drinking and the impact of the drinking will often help you determine whether your friend has a drinking problem.

If you think that your friend has a drinking problem, contact the Counseling Center, or refer to the resources page to get the information and emotional support you need to act on your decision. And be sure to tell the problem drinker that you are looking for ways to help; don't be secretive.

Talk to the Drinker
Don't be too polite to bring up the topic. Show your concern, but be tactful. Ask whether the person feels he or she has a drinking problem and continue asking questions that encourage frankness. Avoid sermons, lectures, and verbal attacks. Keep an open mind about how the person evaluates his or her situation. And know you own limits - do not continue the discussion if you start getting impatient or angry. You may find that short, periodic discussions of the problem work best.

Once you have raised the subject, the person may respond defensively, deny having a problem, or agree that he or she has a problem with alcohol.

Dealing with Defensiveness
Make it clear to the problem drinker that you dislike the behavior, not the person. If you drink, be honest about your own drinking and attempts to control it. Understand that the person's defensiveness is based on fear of facing the problem and is not directed at you.

Dealing with Denial
If your discussions have no effect on your friend's drinking behavior, you should still tell him or her how the drinking problem affects you. For example, you can say how hard it is for you to enjoy going out together to a party because you are afraid he or she will get sick, pass out, or otherwise embarrass you both.

Dealing with Agreement
If at some point your friend agrees that drinking is creating personal problems, you may want to ask:
  1. "Why do you think you have a problem with alcohol?"

  2. "What do you think you can do about it?"

  3. "What are you going to do about it?"

  4. "What kinds of support do you feel you need from me to stop or limit your drinking?"
Progress, Not Perfection

In some cases, even though the drinker agrees there is a problem, he or she may be unable or unwilling to act as quickly or directly as you would like. Keep in mind that alcohol-related habits are hard to end or control. If your friend is struggling, try to:
  • Remain supportive by recognizing the effort the person puts into even small attempts to limit drinking.

  • Be prepared for some steps backward as well as forward.

  • Help your friend make contact with recovering alcoholics.

  • Encourage nondrinking behavior by planning activities not related to alcohol and by curbing your own drinking when you are with your friend.

Adapted from material made available to the American College Health Association by the University Health Services, University of Massachusetts, copyright 2002.

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An Experiment

Try an experiment at your next party:
  • Between each drink, substitute a glass of soda or ice water and eat whatever nibblers are available.

  • Let at least one-half hour lapse between finishing one alcoholic drink and beginning the next alcoholic drink. See if you don't feel more relaxed and consume less alcohol.

  • Some people are just plain thirsty after arriving at a party. Try this: drink two glasses of soda or ice water before consuming your first alcoholic beverage. This helps quench your thirst and may relieve empty stomach grumbling.

  • Another experiment is to set a limit as to how many drinks you will have, and stick to that limit.

  • Part of your decision-making process should take into account when, where, what, and with whom you are drinking.

  • Recognize that everyone has the right to abstain from drinking and respect that right.

  • If experiments like this do not work for you, it may be a good time to examine the role that alcohol plays in your life.
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Binge Drinking: a buzz word...

Imagine sitting in a restaurant and seeing the guy next to you drinking an entire six-pack of soda in one sitting. Pretty strange, huh? Now imagine that person drinking a six-pack of beer in one sitting. What do you think about that? Some college students can watch or participate in this behavior without a second thought.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) state that:
  • For males, social scientists define binge drinkers as someone who has five or more drinks at any one time within a two-week period.

  • For females, the consumption rate is four or more drinks at one sitting during a two-week period.
The Bacchus and Gamma Peer Education Network reports that:
  • 44% of U.S. college students engaged in binge drinking during the two weeks prior to being surveyed.

  • Students who are active in athletics are 1-1/2 times more likely to binge drink.

  • Binge drinkers were 16 times more likely to miss class, have unprotected sex, damage property and get injured than non-binge drinkers.

  • Between 75% and 90% of all violence on campus is drinking related.
Binge drinking may result in alcohol poisoning, which is a Medical Emergency!

People with the following symptoms cannot help themselves and it is up to you to get immediate medical attention for them:
  • Unresponsive to someone talking or shouting at them

  • Unresponsive to being shaken

  • Unable to wake up

  • Unable to stand up

  • Slow, loud, or unusual breathing

  • Purplish skin

  • Clammy skin

Sex Under the Influence

The problem with the use of alcohol, especially too much alcohol, as a substitute for real comfort is that you put yourself at risk physically, emotionally and even spiritually. When you drink to make things easier, things usually get more difficult. Maybe not at that moment, but often afterwards.

"When I went to the party I didn't plan on sleeping with anyone. When I woke up with him in the morning. I wished I hadn't. I guess I must have had more than a couple of beers."

"Great smile, really likable…When she showed an interest in me, I was thrilled. It was a fun night and I guess everything felt right because I went home with her. Then, in the morning, her attitude was really different. I felt angry at both of us."

Some Facts to Consider:
  • 50% or more of all rapes are alcohol related.

  • 67% of women were intoxicated when an unplanned pregnancy occurred.

  • 72% of all offenders in assault cases had been using alcohol.
Date Rape -- Going Too Far
  • If you're too drunk to understand a person trying to say "No."

  • If you're too drunk to listen and respect a person trying to say "No."

  • If you have sex with a person who is incapable of giving consent.

It is Rape!!
Even if you think you would never in a thousand years force sex on a person, you might lose control if you've been drinking.

It has happened before, and thousands of college students have suffered the consequences. In these situations, drinking does not excuse the crime or make things easier for you or the person in question. Although alcohol may help you rationalize sexually aggressive behaviors,

Rape is rape, drunk or sober!
The most valuable weapon against unwanted sexual situations is a clear line of communication. You have to make your limits known and the earlier the better -to eliminate the guessing game.

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What Is Alcoholism?

If alcohol abuse is not treated, it can progress into alcoholism. When drinking becomes physically or psychologically addictive, it is considered ALCOHOLISM.

What Are the Warning Signs for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism?
  • Needing alcohol to cope with strong positive or negative feelings

  • Driving a car while under the influence of alcohol

  • Gulping drinks to feel the effects more quickly

  • Becoming angry or depressed while drinking

  • "Blacking out" or not remembering what took place while you were drinking

  • Neglecting people and events that don't involve drinking

  • Using alcohol to relieve stress or sleeplessness

  • Being able to handle larger and larger amounts of alcohol over time

  • Having a few extra drinks when others won't notice

  • Being uncomfortable at occasions when alcohol is not available

  • Wanting to continue drinking when others say you have had enough

  • Feeling a little guilty about your drinking

  • Being secretly irritated when someone talks to you about your drinking

  • Having a reason for the occasions when you drink heavily

  • When sober, regretting things that you have said or done while drinking

  • Failing to keep promises about controlling or cutting down on drinking

  • Having the shakes and finding that it helps to have a little drink

  • Eating very little or irregularly when you are drinking

  • Having an increasing number of work, family, social, or school problems
"One morning you wake up and open your eyes. Your head feels like it weighs way too much... Your brain hurts... You feel mildly nauseated and you can't tell if you need to eat or eating will make you sick... Next to you in bed is a man. Perhaps you know him, perhaps you don't."
Caroline Knapp, Drinking: A Love Story

Awareness is your best defense!

Here are a few suggestions for staying aware and alert:
  • Be wary about accepting drinks from anyone you don't know well or long enough to trust.

  • If you are accepting a drink, make sure it's from an unopened container and that you open it yourself.

  • Don't put your drink down and leave it unattended.

  • Notify other females you know about the effects of this dangerous drug.

  • If you think that you have been a victim, notify the authorities immediately!!!
And some additional thoughts for men:
  • Women are our partners, sisters, mothers, cousins, and friends. We need to join with them in making life safe and happy for all of us.

  • Let your female friends know about the devastating potential this drug has when used by unscrupulous men on unsuspecting women to try to avoid the personal responsibility for committing sexual assault and rape.

The decision to drink any alcoholic beverage is your choice alone. Learn to say "no" to those who push you into drinking more than you should.

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