Drinking and Teens

[catnapper]

I'm just curious... is drinking all THAT prevalent among teens? I'm including a poll just so teens who DO drink and don't want to openly admit it can annonymously say they do.

When I was a teen, I hated the idea of drinking. It didn't make sense to me. My friends understood and loved me anyways (and the fact that they always had a designated driver! :p)

It seems today though that alcohol and teens are much more common. Is it really? Even after efforts of parents to tell kids drinking is bad, etc? And can we blame the media with all those ads, music videos and movies highlighting the fun one can have drinking?

Are there really teens out there who DON'T drink? I'd like to think none of mine drink but I also know thats some pretty major denial :(

[JenBKR]

I think it's out there a lot. I didn't actually drink until I was 19, and even then I have never been a big drinker. But I know lots of people who drank a lot earlier than that (including my husband, who told me he only had to go to his aunt & uncle's house at the age of 14 to have a beer :eek: you can bet my kids will never go there alone!). And it's getting worse than when I was in high school :(

[animal_rescue]

My friends do drink mostly on one of my friend's private beach. There will be bonfire and about 5-10 people hanging out, drinking. Not often but some of my friend's have a tolerance and can drink a lot before their actually drunk. I'm very lightweight and not used to beer so I could get drunk easily.

[Flatcoatluver]

My freinds and I will drink once in awhile. We only drink when we are only at one of my freinds house. So not very often, like not even once a month. We only have like one drink and thats it.

[Uabassoon]

I drank occasionally when I was a teenager. My parents never really taught me that drinking was bad, instead they taught me that drinking was something that should be done in moderation. My dad and my aunts would let me have drinks with them, they would buy me things like wine coolers. However they made it VERY clear that if I was ever caught drinking without their supervision I was in big trouble! In my case I think it worked. I lived right on a border town and most of my friends would go to the clubs in Mexico and drink. I figured it wasn't worth the risk because if I wanted to try drinking I just had to ask. I never once went drinking in Mexico with my friends until the day I turned 18. I think they knew that I would be less likley to put myself in a bad situation if I could try it out under their supervision.

[cali]

none of the above. I am a teen, and I will be legal drinking age in a few months(19) I HAVE had some drinks before, but I dont drink casually, or sometimes with freinds, I have had a sip of my brother win cooler(YUK!), I have had some Whisky(even worse), and I have had some wine(which was waaay too dry) for the most part I dont drink, but its because I hate the taste of everything I have tried, and has nothing to do with legality or moral issues.

[Karen]

I didn't drink alcohol in high school, but had plenty of friends who did. They just knew I wouldn't want to, and was not planning on staying in my hometown forever anyway. But I had classmates who were thrown out of the high school musical when they were caught drinking (drunk) the night of the first performance, the scene they were in got a hasty rewrite, 6 fewer dancers. We were 15 years old. I would say more than half my classmates were drinking - probably closer to 90% - before we graduated high school. It was "normal."

I had a few drinks in college (I think a total of 4, maybe 5) before I decided drinking was just something I did not want to do. All my friends did, even though the drinking age had been chaged to 21, and we were 18. They understood my decision for the most part - or just accepted it, and the rides home. The most amazing thing to me was that the woman who kept pushing, saying "Oh, but just try THIS one - it's yummy, you can't taste the alcohol at all" was the adult daughter of an alcoholic who made her childhood miserable. The one person who finally snapped at her, said "Cut it out, X, leave Karen alone! She doesn't WANT to drink, don't you GET it?" was the guy in our crowd who ended up in detox shortly after college.

[lizbud]

I didn't drink alcohol as a teenager and nobody I hung out with did either.
It really never occurred to me to try it.

[jenluckenbach]

I was a teen who NEVER drank. (and I am an adult who STILL never drinks)

[Cataholic]

I drank as a teen, and I drink now. I drank then cause my friends drank. I can't say it was peer pressure....as it wasn't. Today, I drink because I like that taste.

I would estimate at least half of the kids in my class/grade drank.

[Kfamr]

I voted, but the answer didn't apply to me.


I have drank and still do once in a blue moon. I don't drink to get drunk (that is my main problem with drinkers), I drink for the taste of the drink. In fact, I've NEVER been drunk. If I know it tastes good or sounds/looks like it does, more than likely I'll have a sip or glass of whatever.

My parents are 100% aware if I have a drink and usually I am with them when I do. Tonight I actually had a Strawberry Kiwi Margarita, other than today I cannot remember the last time I've drank.

I have a like/hate relationship with alcohol.

[Sevaede]

I will be eighteen on the fifteenth.

Like others, we were taught panton in temperantia. My dad bought wine coolers, say, on New Years and there would be four in a box to be split up amongst four (Or two, at times).

Last year, I was bad bad bad. I drank quite a bit. I got sick once and, then, I got sick again. That was also the last time I've gotten drunk. It was because I wasn't really aware of my limits and trying different drinks.

Oh, I do still have the once in a while sour apple Smirnoffs. Those are *SO* freakin tasty.

[binka_nugget]

I drink here and there with friends. I used to drink to get drunk but now I drink occasionally because I like the taste of some drinks, and because I tend to relax after a drink.

[Alysser]

I never drink and have no interest in it, whats so ever. I WILL probably drink once in a blue moon when I'm older at a party or some other occasion but it'll be very rare. I have no interest in smoking or drinking and I don't think I ever will.

[Miss Z]

I'm 14 and have never ever thought about drinking. Alcohol knackers your brain, poisons your insides and can make you look a real idiot. Of course, having a limited drink for someone over the legal age is fine, but the people who go overboard just make me sick.

Alcohol is a drug, even though it's still accepted in society. It's a depressant, so it slows down the signals to and from your brain. It inhibits the cerebellum which makes you act stupid, and kills brain cells in the medulla which can kill you, even if you only drink heavily once. It's also a poison, and your poor liver has the task of pumping it all out your system, and after a while, it can't take the strain. You can't live without your liver.

Poor George Best suffered due to alcohol, it just shows how dangerous it is.

I don't think anyone at my school drinks, at least not at school, and if they do, I don't want to know them. What's with the rush? Can they not wait for a couple of years? If not, I'll just stick to keeping myself healthy.;)

[buckner]

I'm 18 and I can say that none of those apply to me. I have never drank with friends or without my dad. My dad has offered me sips of whatever he's drinking ever since I was little - he doesn't think alcohol is bad, and neither do I. He taught us that if we were to drink, to never drink and drive, or get in the car with someone who has been drinking. But I just don't like the taste of the stuff - beer, margaritas, whiskey, etc. It's all butt-flavoured to me. :P But, even though I don't like the taste of it, I have drank sips of my dad's. Usually, everytime he's drinking something new, I'll have a sip. But never more than a sip of everything. Even on New Years Eve, he's poured a glass of champagne for me, I take one sip, go "icckkk", and give it away. He tries new stuff every year, and hasn't found one I like yet. :P

So I can't say I've never drank, but I can say that I will NEVER drink to get drunk, I will NEVER be drunk, and I have NOT had anything more than a sip at a time.

[CagneyDog]

So I can't say I've never drank, but I can say that I will NEVER drink to get drunk, I will NEVER be drunk, and I have NOT had anything more than a sip at a time.


This basically sums up my drinking experiences too. I've never been drunk, and never will get drunk. I was also taught that drinking is alright in moderation. A lot of my friends drink just because they are not allowed too. My dad has always allowed me to have a sip of alcohol but I've never taken large amounts because for the most part, it's pretty gross.

[DrKym]

I drank at parties as a teen, not often and not to much excess, I drink as adult in certain circumstances and I have been known to have an after dinner drink. I raised all my kids to respect alcohol and to ask if they are curious, none of my adult kids drink at all neither does my husband, our 9 yr old has no curiosity about it yet so we shall see if it's a 3 out of 3 thing.

[CalliesMom]

I had a handful of drinking experiences as a teenager and somehow always ended up being designated driver. I'm 26 and have a beer maybe once every three weeks/month, but drank a little more frequently when I was in undergraduate in college. I've gotten drunk a couple of times but it was always at a friend's house and made sure I was not driving that night.

I like the taste of some alcoholic beverages and feel anything done in moderation is not a bad thing. I don't drink to get drunk, but just have a beer/margarita with dinner.

[cloverfdx]

My friends and i were allowed the occasional small drink whilst being supervised by a parent on special occasions like Birthdays, Graduations etc. It was never excessive, and we never got drunk. When we hit about 17 and starting having parties without adult supervision things started to change and we did start to drink more and often ended up drunk and ill.

I think we all went through binge drinking stages and i look back now and realise how stupid we were, and we were lucky to never get into any serious trouble. I rarely drink now, i had 2 last night for a friends 24th Bday and that was enough for me. I also witnessed and all in drunken brall outside of the nightclub we were trying to get into, the sight of people bashing the living *&^% out of one another is not pretty :(.

Oops sorry started to ramble a bit :o.

[k9krazee]

So I can't say I've never drank, but I can say that I will NEVER drink to get drunk, I will NEVER be drunk, and I have NOT had anything more than a sip at a time.

That pretty much sums it up for me too. A lot of my friends drink, and it worries me but I stick to my values and I won't ruin my life because of alcohol.

[CathyBogart]

I started drinking a bit at 19 or 20, not sure which. Up until that point I had hated anything alcoholic I had tasted. My drinking habits have pretty much always stayed the same....I drink occasionally, sometimes at parties, sometimes I skip drinking at parties, I am perfectly capable of enjoying myself without it.

I guess the major difference between me and the previous posters is that I do enjoy getting drunk occasionally. Never enough to make myself sick, I always make sure to have plenty to eat, and I ALWAYS have a 2 liter bottle of water with me, that I make myself finish drinking before I go to bed. I've never been hung over, and I'd say I do that maybe once a year, probably a little less often.

Oh, I have also never drank by myself, except once where I was making beer-braised rabbit and I finished the last ~4oz of the beer rather than dumping it down the drain. :)

[Glacier]

I guess the major difference between me and the previous posters is that I do enjoy getting drunk occasionally.

I'm the same way--I enjoy a good buzz every once in awhile--used to be more often, now maybe twice a year and almost always at home--We throw a great party!

I drank as a teen. I was about 17 when I started. Nothing serious though and never got into any trouble with it. My parents were well aware that I was drinking. I had an agreement with my mother that I could call her anytime, anywhere, no questions asked if I needed a safe ride home. I took her up on that a couple times. Moved away from home, drank alot more, never considered it a problem, had a fabulous time, still managed to graduate from university on the Dean's list and a year early.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

I don't drink and have absolutely no desire to even try it. I don't have anything against it as long as people are drinking responsibly, its just not my kind of thing.

[DogLover9501]

I just turned 19 last month, and I've never drank/don't intend to.

One of the things I hate about alcohol, is that some people think they need it to have fun. I would rather be fun the way I am ;)

[DJFyrewolf36]

I had a real problem with alchohol when I was younger. It got to the point where I would have to drink every day (not get drunk, just have a drink or two) and I'd be getting $**tfaced almost every weekend. Dad always had it around plus all my friends were drinkers too. (still managed to graduate high school with honors though, go figure) In college, I kind of began to realize that I hated how the booze was making me feel. I didn't really get help though until my husband came along and made me realize I had an actual problem with drinking. Im proud to say Ive been sober for 3 years. I'll drink a beer on occasion (although I can hardly finish one) but Ive sworn off of all hard alchohol (it makes me ill now)

[ramanth]

I WAS a teen who never drank. (with friends)

If I had a drink under 21 my parents were present. I just never saw the glamour in getting wasted.

It probably helped that I didn't run with the "in" crowd and didn't get invited to many parties. And what parties I did go to I never had alcohol.

[*LabLoverKEB*]

I was a teen who NEVER drank. (and I am an adult who STILL never drinks)
Good for you!
I'm a teen, who has never had a drink, and I really have no intrest to.

[BOBS DAD]

I guess I will weigh in on this!!!

I remember those teens years (way back when)... and all the pressure to "be cool". I was one of those kids who did not drink and went out of my way to make it known. I think it was a little easier for me though to make my stand than maybe others. I was an athlete (sort of the star baseball and basketball player - AWHHH - those glory days - passed me by) and a popular person in HS.

Around 17 years old and on, my Dad would ask me if I wanted a beer on special occasions - like my brothers graduations, Christmas and other holidays. I would occasionally accept - although like most of you - I found the taste bitter and one that most have to "acquire a taste" for. He always said I could have "1" and that he would rather "see" me drink and introduce me to the experience - than to have me sneaking around, experimenting on my own and perhaps overdoing it and getting into trouble. NO PROBLEM... he didn't realize I was an advocate for not drinking amongst my peers.

Now in College...
Well that's another story! All the pressure of classes and long hours, paying for it myself, working at the Public Relations office full time (pretty much - 30 hours a week) and playing baseball - I found myself enjoying parties and that relaxing, letting go experience with a Beer Induced Buzz. And Yes, good thing I never got into any real trouble because I did overdue it more times than I would like to remember. Thank God I did not own a car!!!

Now... Well now is (and has been) since those days, a time of moderation. I don't think I have been "drunk" for as long as I can remember and I've never been sick (throwup sick, hugging the toilet bowl, praying to the porcelain Gods Sick) since shortly after college. It's an occasional Beer now and then. Maybe 3 during the Super Bowl, but all in all - probably on average - a Six Pack every month.

That's my story!!!

P.S. A note on those HS years and trying to find a place and take a position. Everybody turned out about pretty much the same. Those that started early and maybe went overboard - most (with the exception of a few who developed problems) have come back to the very same state with those who defiantly avoided alcohol and eventually matured into moderate, occasional social drinkers. Seemed to have all evened out for "most" folks.

[primabella]

The whole concept of planning to get drunk still confuses me.

I'm 18 and drink occasionally and with friends. I've never been drunk either - I drink for the taste and don't blow my money on things like that so I usually stop at one. Haha. Thing is, I can get totally "drunk" off a good atmosphere. Once I was having a really watered down drink and being my weird self, and my friends assumed I was drunk. Humph. How dare they. ;)

Everything in moderation I say.