Everywhere you go on the internet you run into this idea of "missing out." Missing out because you had to study or missing out because you had to work or missing out just because.
I've never really understood that concept.
I don't go to college parties, and to be honest, never once have I felt like I was missing out on something because I'm not there.
What is there to miss out on, anyway?
A bunch of people who have had just a little too much packed together in an already cramped house? Yeah...sounds like a really good time...
I'm not sure when "sober fun" became an archaic concept, but we really need to stop shaming people who choose to live their lives against the college norms.
It's kind of odd if you really think about it. We're shaming people for deciding that paying thousands of dollars per a year for an education means that you actually care about the education.
In fact, every year there are 1,800 college students who die as a result of alcohol consumption. You may think, "oh that doesn't sound that bad if you think about how many college students are out there."
But to be quite honest, that number should absolutely terrify us.
It should terrify us that those 1,800 students weren't around anyone who could call for help when they showed the first signs of alcohol poisoning.
It should terrify us that the friends of those 1,800 students were also too drunk to know what was going on, didn't recognize what was going on or just plain downright ignored it.
So why are we still shaming students who choose to not go out and party for a good portion of their nights each week?
Who would willingly put themselves in that situation?
I know, I know, "it'll never happen to me."
Well, I bet that the 1,800 students who die every year never thought it would happen to them either.
Whether or not you choose to drink alcohol is up to you. Neither I or anyone else can really make that decision for you.
I get it, I know that 80 percent of college students drink in some capacity. I know it's considered a "college norm."
But it doesn't have to be a "norm" to see students dying from alcohol and to see 50 percent of college students participating in binge drinking and to see 20 percent of college students able to be classified as having an alcohol use disorder.
Fellow students, wake up. I'm sick and tired of hearing about alcohol-related incidents and deaths on our college campuses.
I'm sick and tired of hearing about how many students blacked out at a party.
What is the fun in that?
I'm certainly not missing out on everything college has to offer, but maybe, just maybe, you are.
