Consquences of Underage Drinking
Due to heavy drinking at a young age it can hurt a developing brain, which grows and matures til your mid -to late twenties. Also, drinking causes a secondhand behavior that teens can't control which is unprotective sex and unwanted sex. Heavy drinking at a young age can risk your life as well due cancers such as oral cavity, larynx pharynx, and esophagus; liver cirrhosis; panceatitis; and hermorhagic stroke. Students who drink frequently usually fall behind academically. About 1 in 4 college students report academic consquences from drinking which include missing class, falling behind in class, doing poorly in exams or papers, and receiving lower grades than the average student.
Symptoms of Drinking Alcohol
- Uncontrolled shaking hands
- Profuse sweating,even in cold conditions
- Anxiety
- Persistent insomnia
- Nausea or Vomiting
- Hallucinations
- Seizures
Stories of Teenagers Experience with Alcohol
“When I was thirteen, friends would make fun of me if I didn’t have a drink. I just gave in because it was easier to join the crowd. “I was really unhappy and just drank to escape my life. I went out less and less, so started losing friends. The more lonely I got, the more I drank. I was violent and out of control. I never knew what I was doing. I was ripping my family apart. “Kicked out of my home at age sixteen, I was homeless and started begging for money to buy drinks. After years of abuse, doctors told me there was irreparable harm to my health. “I was only sixteen but my liver was badly damaged and I was close to killing myself from everything I was drinking.” —Samantha
“By the time I was in my mid-twenties I was locked in to drinking. “A lot of my first concerns were about drinking, and everything else came second. I started to realize that when I did not have a drink I had a sense of panic and I would start shaking. “If I had to go without a drink, I would go through shakes and sweats. I couldn’t go for more than a few hours without a drink.” —Paul
“This past year I have gone to work drunk, blacked out in clubs and bars and can’t remember getting home. Ashamedly I slept with someone and could not even remember the person coming home with me until we bumped into each other the next day. “I have destroyed two relationships because I hurt them so much through my drinking, but I put drinking first. My family are so hurt that their daughter is killing herself for apparently no reason.” —Jamie
How to Avoid Drinking
- Put your problems in writing
- Ask for help
- Avoid peer pressure
- Enjoy the benefits of not drinking and living a much healthier life
- Throw out all the bottles and cans at the house to reduce temptation
- Start new hobbies/behaviors
Alcohol Rehabilitation Centers
- New Life Recovery Centers
- Los Gatos Drug and Alcohol Recovery Centers
- Support Systems Homes Inc
- The Addiction Recovery Center
- Life Choices Treatment
- Positive Progression Inc.
- Wellness Retreat Recovery Center
- Red Road Recovery