As a junior in college, I have made the decision to get and stay sober. Why? The effect that alcohol has had on my studies, relationships, extracurriculars, jobs, and most importantly, my body, has not been a beneficial one. Everyone who knows me personally tends to agree and support my decision to stay sober, however, some of my family and friends have asked me how the will affect my "college experience."

To that I say, there are so many other rewarding activities that I can take part in while attending college than drinking alcohol and partying. I was never the center of the party kind of person, to begin with, so why would I become that person for the sake of a "typical" college experience. I can join book clubs, writers groups, musical groups, and other campus initiatives that all appeal to my interests without the component of partying or alcohol.

Making friends who are also sober has been a key element for me.

These women have been rocks for me to lean on during stressful times. During instances that I would normally turn to alcohol, my sober friends have been indispensable. Even on late nights, these women have been on the phone to talk through whatever situation I find myself in. Whether it is stress about schoolwork and classes, or relationships with friends, or a fight with my family, my friends are always there to listen. In times like these, without fail, they have valuable advice for me and the best part about it is if the situation was reversed, and my friend was stressed, I would be there to offer advice to them as well.

Staying sober has not been an easy task. I have had to reevaluate myself as a person and ask myself why I used to turn to drinking in order to "solve," or more like numb, my problems. Most often, it was to cope with some kind of external stress, which is not a healthy coping strategy by any means.

Additionally, my journey in sobriety has caused me to become a more honest person. I have been able to closely examine my patterns in relationships familial or otherwise without the negative influence of alcohol. This has been the roughest part of my sobriety merely because it has allowed a ton of my grievances to come out of the comfort zone in my head and into the world for other people, and their opinions, to digest. However, this is an essential part of my sobriety and the main reason why I made the decision to get sober so early in life.

I needed a clean slate to examine myself, my strengths, and my faults. It is imperative for me to repair my relationships with others that I have affected, and in turn, grow or mature into adulthood, alcohol-free.