Have you ever been close to death? Put yourself in a situation that you didn't mean too? Hung out with the wrong people and did some things that you're not proud of?

A couple weekends ago I made one of the biggest mistakes that I've ever made. I was close to dying. I scared myself. I scared my friends and most of all I scared my family. I was going through some things, things that were hurtful and harmful to me mentally and emotionally. I hung out with the wrong crowd and put myself in some situations that I shouldn't have. It all started with our first football game of the season. Of course there was a tailgate going on, so of course people were drinking. I only had one drink at the tailgate, but later on that night I started drinking more. I was hanging out with some girlfriends, and we were all getting ready to go to a concert. We started pregaming, which led to drinking more. I typically know my limit and know when to stop, but for some reason I just kept getting more drunk. Who knows if I did it myself or if someone kept filling my cup behind my back. The night progressed and at one point I started to be mean to my friends and to others around me. I then became unresponsive. At that point an ambulance was called and I was rushed to the hospital. I was stuck with IV's and the doctors and nurses were rushing to flush my system. At one point I woke up to find a few friends and my mom and sister surrounding me. That's the first thing I remember from that night. The doctor's came in and told me that my blood alcohol level was a .299. I was two drinks away from dying. Never in my life have I been at a point so low like this before. I saw my mom and sister crying, my friends surrounding me and telling me how much they loved me.

I woke up terrified. Unsure of what happened and where I was. At that point I realized I had made a huge mistake. I could've died. Never to live and breathe again. I could've lost my friends and family. I could see the hurt in the eyes of the people surrounding me. The disappointment and the uncertainty. They didn't understand why or how I could've gotten to that point. They didn't know about some of the things I was dealing with. I didn't know what I was doing. I numbed the pain in a way that I shouldn't have. Because of my decisions I could've not only hurt myself, but the people all around me. Later on I found out that some of the people I was with stayed at the concert and some of them came to the hospital. That night I also realized some life lessons about friendship, but the biggest lesson of all was about alcohol, about situations you should and shouldn’t put yourself in, and people you should and shouldn't surround yourself with. I learned that life is so precious. One bad decision can take away so much from you, including your life. But my article isn't to get your sympathy or to make you feel bad. My article is here to help shed some light on one of the biggest topics that is affecting people all over the world. One that people don't think is a problem when it really is. Facts are all that we have and knowledge is the key to helping people.

Did you know that alcohol is the most widely used substance of abuse in the US youth? Four out of five college students drink alcohol. How crazy is that? So that means if there are 28,000 students on campus, 22,400 of them drink alcohol. That’s an insane statistic. Most college students drink in social settings, most of them drink to forget their problems, they drink because it helps boost their self-esteem, to make themselves look cooler and to try and fit in. Those are all reasons that you shouldn’t drink. If you think about it, there really isn’t a logical reason to drink. Maybe a glass of wine or a beer every now and then because it helps to reduce your stress. But other than that, is there really a good reason to drink? In my opinion, there isn’t. There are so many negative aspects to drinking that no one thinks about. You could end up in a situation like I was in. You could be close to dying. You have a higher chance of being assaulted because your inhibitions are down. It negatively affects your health. It can lead to violence, crime, drug use, bad grades, and so much more. People, especially teenagers and young adults, don't stop to think about these things but these things are important. They're important, because each of these instances can impact your life for forever. In my case, it could've been death.

My decisions changed my life. They changed it negatively, but they changed it positively as well. I learned from my mistakes. I learned that alcohol is never the solution, no matter what the reason or situation is. Because of my actions, I've lost friends, I've lost the trust of some people around me, I disappointed my family, but most of all I disappointed myself. My family constantly checks on me now. More so than they did before. To make sure that I'm not partying, to make sure that I'm not drinking and if I am it's to make sure that I'm being safe and sticking to one or two drinks. I've lost their trust in a sense and that's the worst feeling in the world. This event has had a tremendous impact on me. I hope that no one ever feels like they need to do what I did. You don't need to drink to forget your problems. There are so many positive activities that you can do in order to deal with the things that you are going through and I promise you are never alone. But before you start drinking, remember to know your limits. Look around and determine if you're in a good atmosphere or not. Look around and see if the people you're surrounded with are people that you can trust. Make sure to stay true to yourself and never let a situation or people pressure you to do anything you're not comfortable doing. Be strong and be smart but most of all, be safe.