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For Students: Do You Have a Drinking Problem?

It's common to experiment with alcohol in college. In moderation, following your school's policies and local laws, drinking can be a harmless part of social activity. However, frequent drinking, drinking to excess (binge drinking), and drinking as an emotional or social crutch can have harmful consequences. Using alcohol in this way can harm your health, hurt your performance as a student, damage your relationships with friends and family, lead to risky or dangerous behavior, and set the pattern for a lifelong and self-destructive drinking habit.

It's important to recognize the difference between harmless drinking and a drinking problem—even in college, where drinking to excess can seem like normal behavior. Acknowledging and dealing with a drinking problem could prevent you from hurting yourself or someone else and can set you on a path to a happier and more successful future.

Do you have a drinking problem?

A drinking problem can take different forms. It might be a pattern of behavior that hurts you in the short term. It could also be the start of a long-term problem with alcohol addiction. If you're concerned about your drinking (or the drinking habits of someone you know), ask yourself the following questions, noting how many times you answer, "yes."

In the past year, have you

• Had times when you ended up drinking more, or longer, than you intended? (Vomiting and blacking out are clear signs you've had too much to drink. Being unable to say "no" to another drink is also a sign of a drinking problem.)
• Promised yourself you'd cut down or stop drinking, but ended up drinking or drinking to excess again?
• Spent a lot of time drinking or being sick from drinking, or spent a significant part of a day getting over the aftereffects?
• Found yourself craving a drink at a specific time every day, or needing a drink before a social situation?
• Found that drinking—or being sick from drinking—often interfered with your schoolwork, work, or other responsibilities? Or caused you to miss or be late for class?
• Found that drinking caused trouble with your family or friends? (Losing a friend because of your drinking is one example. Limiting your social circle to others who drink is another. Feeling resentful when friends or family express concern over your drinking is yet another.)
• Given up or cut back on activities that were important or interesting to you, or gave you pleasure, in order to drink?
• More than once gotten into situations while or after drinking that increased your chances of getting hurt (such as driving, swimming, getting into a fight, using machinery, walking in a dangerous area, or having unprotected sex)?
• Continued to drink even though it was making you feel depressed or anxious or adding to another health problem? Or drank again after having had a memory blackout or after saying or doing something while drinking that you later regretted?
• Had to drink much more than you once did to get the effect you wanted, or found that your usual number of drinks had much less effect than before?
• Found that when the effects of alcohol were wearing off, you had withdrawal symptoms, such as trouble sleeping, shakiness, restlessness, nausea, sweating, a racing heart, or a seizure? Or sensed things that were not there (visual or auditory hallucinations)?

Any of these symptoms may be cause for concern. The more symptoms, the more urgent the need for change. The questions are adapted from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5^th edition (DSM–5), which offers guidelines for interpreting the number of "yes" answers:

• Two or three "yes" answers indicate a mild drinking problem.
• Four or five "yes" answers indicate a moderate drinking problem.
• Six or more "yes" answers indicate a severe drinking problem.

(Note that "drinking problem" is used in this article as the common term for an alcohol problem. The clinical term, used in DSM–5 and by treatment professionals, is alcohol use disorder, or AUD.)

What to Do if You're Concerned About Your Drinking

It's tempting to ignore the signs of a drinking problem, especially when you're young and haven't experienced the full consequences of problem alcohol use or the challenges of breaking an addictive habit. However, it's when you're young, before those habits become more embedded, that you're best able to make a positive long-term change. It's also now, while you're in college, that you have the most to gain from getting your drinking under control.

If you're drinking to cope with stress or social anxiety, try other ways to calm yourself, either on your own or with the help of friends. Think about who you spend time with, and avoid groups or situations that are likely to lead you to drink.

If you find it hard to cut down or stop drinking, seek help. Ask at your school's health service if supports are available to help you, whether in the form of tools and information, professional counseling, or a support group. Help is available outside of your college, too. Consider participating in a local Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) group. Social support from others who have dealt with a drinking problem can be very effective when changing an addictive habit and sustaining that change.