Are Alcohol Awareness Classes Helpful for Anybody?

Many  people who take  an alcohol class expect to  be bored and to have the concepts not apply to them  They come in looking at  alcohol as a legal, harmless drink that somehow got them into trouble. Almost no student sees himself as having a problem.

Most people drink alcohol. It is estimated that more over 50%  of all U.S. Citizens  aged 12 and older have consumed alcohol within the past 30 days. Among this group of current drinkers almost a quarter admitted to have indulged in binge drinking ( five  or more drinks on any one occasion ). Of those aged 18-25 the number of binge drinkers increased  to more than 40%.

Many of my students say that,  “only alcoholics need alcohol classes  . They think that “street people”  and “bums” are typical alcoholics.  Most people have  a mental picture that all alcoholics are  ”complete losers.”  This is not the case at all. People who abuse alcohol run the gamut, from corporate CEOs, teachers, lawyers,  firemen.  You name it. There is no race or profession where alcoholism does not exist.

Heavy drinking is defined as binge drinking five or more times in the past month. Many of these students, especially those under 25, were shocked to learn that they have regularly  engaged in binge drinking, and that this pattern is abusing alcohol, regardless of how old you are.

One of the most significant aspects of an alcohol awareness class is face the realities of alcohol – the dangers to your mind and body, as well as understanding of drinking patterns and how each student fits in. With court-mandated alcohol classes, you have a group of people  who have all had at least one problematic incident in their life related to alcohol. That is why they are in my class in the first place.

As the alcohol class  progresses I slowly see the recognition on their faces as the students try to place themselves within the national patterns. There is not a student that cannot relate to the topics at hand. Recognizing and admitting there could be a problem can be the hardest challenge people who consume alcohol face. This doesn’t mean that all drinkers have a problem. Quite the contrary, most people  can control their consumption and do not have any issues.