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College Students

Written By: Recovery
Medically Reviewed By: Catherine Manly, LMHC
July 29, 2022

ART IS A HEALING ACTIVITY

Introduction to College Student Addiction Treatment

College can be one of the most rewarding opportunities for young people to transition into their individuality and independence. But it’s also the place where most people heavily drink and use drugs, often for the first time.

Addiction can happen quickly, but with Prevail Recovery, you can go to a drug and alcohol rehab program designed for college students today.

College offers newfound freedoms for many people who previously only lived with their parents. Social pressure, academic stress, and many other factors contribute to high drinking and drug use rates.

Coping with stress, feeling depressed about being away from home, or succumbing to peer pressure can result in misuse of benzodiazepines like Xanax or stimulants like Adderall in addition to alcohol.

Short Term Effects

Many students who try drugs or alcohol for the first time or who take them under specific circumstances, like right before an upcoming test, struggle with short-term effects like withdrawal symptoms after binge drinking, difficulty focusing, sleeping problems, and increased anxiety or depression.

Long Term Effects

Unfortunately, drug and alcohol abuse for college students is very prevalent, and continued drug and alcohol abuse can negatively affect memory, sleeping patterns, academic performance, mental health, and physical well-being.

The very things that college students use drugs and alcohol to fix often become the biggest problem with long-term substance abuse.

Binge drinking and alcoholism, in particular, come with serious consequences and are very common on college campuses. If you are struggling with drug or alcohol abuse, you can find a rehab for college students that provides individual, heartfelt care.

Turn to Prevail Recovery, a top-rated Florida college student rehab facility.

Substance Abuse & College Students by Stephanie Maitner

STATS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS, BINGE DRINKING, AND ADDICTION

College Student Drug Use Statistics

According to National Surveys:

Over one-third of full-time college students binge drink in the last month.
One-fifth of college students used illegal drugs in the last month.
On an average day, over 2,000 college students drink for the first time in over 1,300 college students use illegal drugs for the first time.
5% of college students regularly drink alcohol, and 28% of college students binge drink.
43% of college students use marijuana, and that rate has increased by 7% in the last five years.
11% of college students reported using Adderall in 2018.

Contact Prevail Recovery today to find a South Florida college student drug rehab program.

COLLEGE STUDENTS AND ADDICTION

Why is College Student Addiction Common?

College student addiction is the result of many overlapping factors.

Pressure and Stress

The pressure of college is one of the most significant factors. It’s common for even high-performing individuals to transition into the college environment and feel a great deal of pressure and stress. This might come from factors like:

Issues with roommates or peers
Trying to find a job or generating the money to pay for ongoing classes and books
Trying to make new friends while also keeping in touch with family and friends from home
Achieving the grades
Involvement in the right groups, social clubs, or academic organizations
Increased classload

To help deal with this pressure, college students often feel the need to unwind. At the end of a stressful work week or after completing a substantial midterm, college students might go out partying and binge drink or use drugs.

Performance enhancing drugs usually prescribed for ADHD are often passed around college campuses for people trying to deal with the stress of their workload or their involvement on campus or to keep the right grades.

Overcoming issues with roommates or anxiety about making new friends are often done with heavy drinking and even party drug use.

Performance Anxiety

All of this pressure and stress leads to performance anxiety, where, again, students are more likely to buy performance-enhancing drugs on campus so that they can stay awake and focus on their workload.

Self-Esteem and Loneliness

College students often experience social isolation, low self-esteem, depression, and anxiety. Typically these are overlapping problems.

When a student moves away to college, especially out of state, they might first experience profound social isolation, not knowing anyone in the area or knowing anything about it.

Social interactions can contribute to low self-esteem. This might lead to or exacerbate pre-existing issues of low self-esteem. This, combined with performance anxiety and the pressure and stress of college, can lead to depression or anxiety disorders or worsen pre-existing conditions.

With South Florida College student drug rehab, Prevail can help.

ADDICTION TREATMENT FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS

Are There Rehabs for College Students?

Yes! Studies show that despite how much drug and alcohol abuse for college students exists on college campuses, there are very few resources or Avenues of support available on campus. That is why it’s important to turn to professional college student addiction treatment.

As a college student, you are at a critical point in your life and experiencing unique stresses. Many college students don’t have the coping skills and stress management techniques necessary to handle things like social anxiety and pressure to perform well in a healthy manner. With Prevail Recovery, we are committed to providing comprehensive care on a case-by-case basis.

But with college student rehab, that’s exactly what you get.

Nutritional Therapy

Our facility starts you off with a detox so you can rid your body of any remaining compounds and start fresh. While many people joke about the Freshman 15 or the sophomore 20, the truth is that younger college students don’t typically consume a healthy diet, especially when binge drinking is a substitute for dinner.

That is why our staff works hard to incorporate nutritional therapy. This integrative medicine gives you education and information on the importance of healthy meals in coping with stress or regulating sleep.

Mental Health Treatment

Then we add mental health treatment as part of our dual diagnosis plan for college student rehab. If you are struggling with depression or anxiety, we offer individual and group therapy that addresses those concerns specifically. A big part of this is learning:

How to identify things in your environment that trigger your symptoms,
How to control symptoms before they get out of hand,
How to apply stress management techniques and coping mechanisms.

Holistic Care

We also provide a range of holistic therapies that support your mental health treatment. This involves family therapy if necessary, yoga therapy, music therapy, art therapy, wilderness therapy, animal-assisted therapy, and more. Sometimes all it takes is learning how to control your breathing, live with discomfort temporarily, and step into nature to find relief from the burdens of academic performance or the crippling feelings of loneliness.

Contact Prevail Recovery to find a South Florida drug rehab program that really works.

HELP FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS

How to Find Addiction Treatment for College Students in South Florida

Not all programs are the same, but with Prevail Recovery, you can get a customized treatment that offers a combination of detox services, outpatient care, Florida dual diagnosis treatment for mental health concerns and addiction, as well as a range of holistic therapies.

With our college student rehab, we specialize in providing care for the demands and stresses facing college students, the most prevalent mental health concerns on campus, and the rising rate of binge drinking and alcoholism.

Let Prevail Recovery help you start your recovery through our Florida addiction treatment.

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