Washington State University - Chinook Yearbook (Pullman, WA)

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a. Recovering alcoholics struggle to live an ‘alcohol-free’ lifestyle at WSU ... alcohol enabled me to be all the things I wanted to be and it allowed me to carry the illusion that everything will be better tomorrow, Judy said. The friends that knew me drunk or stoned had a hard time accepting me as sober, said Tom. My new friends that didn ' t know before, find it easier to accept me A lcoholism. A dis¬ ease and word packed with a so¬ cial stigma which creates fear in many, while slowly killing the lives of others. Those who manage to get sober, wake up to a world fil¬ led with social drinkers, keg- gars, and parties on the weekends — welcome to typical university life. Judy, a WSU graduate stu¬ dent, has been sober about five years. She realized her alcohol problem when she was only 20. I didn ' t decide to be an alcoholic, she explained. I have a disease and if I hadn ' t quit drinking, I would have been committed or dead. Acceptance is the first step to staying sober. It was hard to admit I was an alcoholic at only 20, she said. But once I took the first step, it got a lot easier after that. College life is probably not the best place to be for a prob¬ lem drinker. A recent alcohol survey of 1985 freshmen at WSU, indicates that 90 to 95 percent of the students drink alcohol or have tried alcohol. Thomas Greenfield, a coor¬ dinator for student services, said that the Student Affairs Alcohol and Substance Abuse Committee undertook a sur¬ vey of last year ' s freshman class. Overall, Greenfield couldn ' t indicate whether or not alcohol was still the num¬ ber one drug abused at WSU, but he feels other drugs are slowly coming into the pic¬ ture. There didn ' t used to be reports of such drug usage a few years ago, he said. The survey indicates about 35 percent of the new stu¬ dents reported getting drunk at least monthly prior to college. By the start of the freshman year, the equivalent percentage was 44 percent. About 26 percent of the freshmen indicated eight or more drinks at a sitting at least monthly during the past year, a level suggested by ex¬ perts as signaling high risk of unwanted consequences. WSU is not the only North¬ west university experiencing problems with high alcohol usage on campus. All across the region alcohol drinking runs rampant, even at some of the dry campuses. At Pacific Lutheran Uni¬ versity, of the 299 students surveyed, 7.3 percent of the freshmen males reported having more than eight drinks. In comparison, WSU Alcohol is often a major social stimulus at college parties. Drex Rhoades photo reported 11 percent of the male students having more than eight drinks. Currently, PLU has a dry campus alco¬ hol policy. The two Oregon universi¬ ties indicated similiar drink¬ ing behaviors. At the Uni¬ versity of Oregon, of the 175 total surveyed, 19 percent of the male students and six per¬ cent of the females admitted drinking in high quantities. Oregon State University re¬ ported 12 percent of the males and two percent of female students surveyed had con¬ sumed more than eight drinks. Greenfield explained that the statistics used here may be low but they document the trends in student drinking habits and the frequency in their drinking. Surprisingly enough, the Oregon and Washington universities had higher alcohol usage than the California universities, he said. 24 Staying Sober On the Prowl

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Lucky to have enough dimes, Tanya Blouhm finishes her last load of laundiy just in time to find change for the dry¬ ers. Gary Foster photo Sprouting from the hills of Terre View Drive, The Meadows Apartments prepare to compete in the ever¬ growing renter’s market. Mike Anderson photo Housing 23 On vh

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For some, alcohol is a means of escape from (he pressures of life. Drex Rhoades photo A couple of the guys ham it up over a pitcher at the Coug. Drex Rhoades photo Those who manage to get sober wake up to a world filled with social drinkers, keggars, and parties on the weekends — welcome to typical university life. Judy is aware of the few ab¬ stainers on campus and pre¬ fers to avoid going into bars. She says she finds other things to do that are just as enjoyable, if not, more en¬ joyable. I do a lot of things in my free time, such as run, do aerobics and school work. I have no problem with time on my hands, she said. I ' m not comfortable being around alcohol but I go out with friends to plays, symphonies or just sit back, play cards and talk. Judy says she has never really felt left out when she does go to parties where alco¬ hol is served. When I go to parties and everyone is drink¬ ing, I never felt left out. It ' s something that just doesn ' t interest me anymore, she said. I normally go to parties only if I have a purpose for being there. (continued)