Dos and Don’ts of Partying: A College Student’s Guide

By Kristen

One awesome thing about college is that there is always some type of event or party going on. It doesn’t matter if it’s 5:00 pm, 1:00 am, 6:00 am… it’s pretty much guaranteed that at least a dozen groups are doing something. Unlike the parties in high school, where most people knew each other and could easily spot an outlier in the crowd, college parties are a new world.

No one cares about who knows who and new faces are always welcome, because students are always looking for new people to connect with. Grade-school students tend to cling to one another—as those are the main people they have associated with since kindergarten and it’s comfortable to them. However, once you start college it’s a different ballgame. The majority of new students come in without knowing anybody and are forced to either put themselves out there or lock themselves in their dorm rooms for the next four years.

The students who decide to venture out generally do so without a clue as to what awaits them. Many people naturally expect things to be the same and are surprised that they well, aren’t. Whether you are preparing to go to your first party or a veteran, there are several things you need to know for the rare occasions when something goes wrong.

What to do:

Learn to recognize when alcohol intoxication turns into alcohol poisoning.

A person who is extremely drunk may pass out a few times, but they can generally be stirred. Their speech will be slurred and their sense of balance nonexistent, but normal respiratory function will be distinct, as well as [mostly] normal body temperature. However, if a person seems to have any of the following:

• severe difficulty communicating
• the inability to sit or stand
• an unusually high or low temperature—you can check by placing your cheek onto the other person’s cheek. Holding a hand to someone’s forehead is a terrible way of monitoring internal temperature due to the ease at which your hands can shift temperatures.
• a prolonged loss of consciousness (meaning over one minute or so)
• uncontrollable vomiting
• abnormal respiratory function (e.g. rapid, slow, or shaky breathing)
• spontaneous muscle jerks, which could indicate mild seizure activity

Educate yourself on the medical amnesty policies in your area.

Medical amnesty policies protect parties who seek medical attention for others while involved in illegal activities, such as underage drinking and drug abuse, from suffering the legal consequences of their actions. These policies were created in hopes of saving lives. The Medical Amnesty Initiative is a non-profit organization with the goal of a set amnesty policy in each state. A list of states and details can be found on the page.

Hold your cup close to you, and keep it in your field of vision at all times.

If for any reason you need to put it down (to look through a bag, to go to the bathroom, to meet a friend, etc.) get a new drink when you return. Someone waiting to spike your drink only needs two seconds of you looking in the other direction to slip something in it, much less you completely walking away from it.
Team up with a friend and make a plan to keep an eye out for each other.
This may sound useless, as two drunken people are, but knowing that you are responsible for another person can decrease the amount of alcohol you choose to consume.

Know your limits before going to a party.

If you have never even touched hard liquor before, it’s best not to start your night off with five shots of vodka. Sipping beers or even mixed drinks at home is much different than chugging hard alcohol. If you are used to drinking margaritas, daiquiris, mimosas, etc., you may think it is okay to drink the same volume of straight up rum. It isn’t.

What NOT to do:

If you are planning on going out for the night, whether to a house party or a neighborhood bar, never go alone.

Walking around in an area full of streetlights littered with people is no safer than going through a dark alleyway alone. If someone wants to make you their next victim, that person is likely able to do so without attracting attention. It takes seconds for someone to appear behind you and grab your waist like any significant other would do, then threaten to harm you if you scream or try to run. These criminals have done this before, and chances are you will find yourself helpless with no idea of what to do. Always bring a friend along and maintain awareness of your surroundings. Pepper spray is an easy thing to carry along as well (check to make sure it is legal in your area), and it would give you time to call out for help if something ever happens.

The more you drink, the more likely you are to make terrible decisions.

Dancing on a table at the bar is one thing, but getting sick all over the bartender before falling over is another—and you can bet someone would catch that with their phone. Social networking is not just a teenager-driven activity anymore. Your professors, co-workers, current and future employers, and family members are much more likely to have Facebook and LinkedIn accounts than they used to be. Pictures and rumors spread like wildfire, and all it takes is a single post from a fellow partygoer to change an employer’s mind about hiring you. Do not drink so much that you lose control over your actions—one public disaster can easily become your trademark. Employers do not want the woman who will embarrass the company or the man who will pass his reputation along to his network.

Never drag a drunk person into a cold shower.

It is commonly believed that the ice-cold water will awaken from their stupor, but all it really does is turn a plastered mess into a cold and wet (and potentially angry) plastered mess that will be even more difficult to take care of. This also raises their risk of hypothermia, and in worst-case scenarios can send them into life-threatening shock (especially if they are suffering from alcohol poisoning). While rare enough to be virtually unheard of, it can happen and is not worth the risk.

If someone is vomiting uncontrollably or blacking out, don’t leave them alone, even if they claim to be “fine”.

Instead, turn the person onto the side and keep a bowl and wet towel handy. Never, under any circumstance, lay someone on the back or stomach. If someone throws-up while face-up or face-down, they have a high risk of choking on their own vomit and aspirating it into their lungs. This is known colloquially as “dry-drowning”, and is usually associated with younger children who inhale too much water while in a pool. The saying “you can drown in a teaspoon of water” may not be completely accurate, but it is not unfounded.

In most situations, common sense allows you to recognize when actions can lead to dangerous consequences. We generally think that streaking through the park at night is a stupid idea, but when someone is under the influence of alcohol or other drugs it suddenly seems like an adventurous, thrilling opportunity waiting to be explored.

Educate yourself and know your limits before going out on the weekends. It’s easy to blow it off when it’s time to leave, but articles like this one and the millions available all over the web may one day save your life or the lives of your friends. Don’t let yourself decide that alcohol and drug education is unimportant. You will be wishing you knew what to do when something happens to a person you really care about.

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