Contrary to popular belief, there is no universal university experience. Mine can be
considered a bit more different than most, as I don’t drink alcohol. I’ve never felt the urge to
and I don’t see the point in drinking simply because it’s the norm when it’s not exactly good
for me. Coincidentally, I much rather prefer a night in over a night out, although I should
mention that I don’t mind being around drunk people as long as they’re okay with my sober
self. To have a university experience which differs from the stereotypical view has taught me
that you don’t need to live up to people’s expectations in order to be happy. In fact, trying to
do so might leave you feeling unfulfilled. By sharing my own experiences, my wish is
therefore to encourage you to choose your own path over the ones of others.
When I was younger, not all of my friends understood that when it came to alcohol, it wasn’t
a matter of when for me, it was a matter of if. Despite respecting my decision not to drink,
some of my friends would therefore make me feel pressured to do so. Since then I’ve realised
that this sort of contradictory behaviour is far from uncommon. Most often, people tend to
tell me that they’re impressed by me not drinking until they find out that I’ve never even tried
alcohol. I do agree that going from drinking to never doing it again poses a bigger challenge,
but I don’t see the logic in going from complimenting me to implying that I’m a bore in a
matter of minutes. If anything, it shows just how hard it is to please everyone, and I would
therefore suggest that you try to please only yourself.
Don’t get me wrong, being different isn’t always easy. Although I’m happy with my decision
not to drink, it’s a fact about myself that I find rather scary to share. Out of all the reactions
that people have had to my decision over the years, some hurt more than others. I wasn’t
particularly bothered, nor was I thrilled, when the person in charge of my group during a pub
crawl came up to me to tell me that he was surprised I had stayed throughout the whole crawl
(pro tip: pub crawls are (most often) free if you don’t drink), neither was I too upset when a
friend of a friend told me that he took personal offence at me not drinking. What does hurt
though is feeling even the slightest bit of judgement from someone you’re trying to get to
know and that you want to like you. If that turns out to be more than a fleeting feeling, I ask
myself if someone who makes me feel bad about being myself is someone I’d like to have
around. The answer is always no.
Some might say that you can’t have a complete uni experience without alcohol, but I
wouldn’t want my experience to be any other way. I’m surrounded by people who accept me
for who I am, who constantly make me laugh until my cheeks hurt, and who know just how
to comfort me when I’m sad. They don’t like me less for not drinking alcohol, and I
personally don’t think that any real friend would. I hope that you find that the same is true for
you.
