How To Say No To Drugs At University
Your days at university are your formative years. It’s a time to shape your life to kickstart your career, experiment with relationships, perhaps even find the person you’ll settle down and marry.
You’ll meet friends that will last a lifetime, and have more parties than the will for the rest of your life combined. But with that comes temptation, and with such temptation it can indeed make your life follow a very different, unplanned, pathway.
Drugs are rife at college, and while many people experiment and walk away from that with little more than an experience, for others it can lead down a slippery slope that can lead to drug addiction, affecting your studies, relationships and the rest of your life.
Peer pressure can be an awful thing at college and university, and while you may feel obliged to, there are plenty of ways you can say no…
Table of Contents
Be Honest
First and foremost, you could be honest and say you don’t want to. A friendship group should be respectful of that and if you give a solid reason, that will not only nip the question in the bud there and then, but will prevent them from asking you again.
If they ask you again, just continue your stance on the matter and they will eventually give up.
Offer To Be The Designated Driver
A huge number of deaths and accidents on the road are related to drivers under the influence of drugs or alcohol. It’s a staggering 25% in Europe. So, if you can drive, offer to be the designated driver.
Not only will this mean you aren’t pressured into taking any drugs or drinking alcohol, your friends will probably love you for it too!
Just Swiftly Move On
If you just casually want to avoid the subject, either move on the topic of conversation, or if at a larger party, move on to a different group to say hello. If someone’s high or incredibly drunk, they probably won’t notice anyway.
A swift change of the conversation can lead to a better conversation, or to something that you actually want to do. For example, you could say, “oh I was just going to get a slice of pizza actually.” Job done.
Explain the Dangers
It’s probably not going to make you the most popular person at the party, but if you’re close friends with someone or a group of people, then all you’re really doing is looking out for them if you explain the dangers of drugs, particularly if you have an exam, class or an important day of studying the following day.
They may not thank you then, but they’ll certainly think you were right in the morning.