You don't drink!? .. Then why do you always look drunk in your pictures?...

Okay maybe here I look drunk

A slightly drunk Jen on the left.. 

The title was something said to me by my neighbours, it was their reaction to finding out that yes I am a. At University and b. Do not drink. Crazy combination ey?


Spurred by the recent topic of alcohol and the current society on the Big Questions this Sunday coupled with Panorama I have decided to explore the topic of alcohol and give you my take on it... I don't drink whereas Jenny does so i'm hoping she can also give another perspective on this topic. 


My reasons for not drinking are varied, -Not religious. I like to be in control, I have a lot of fun without it and more importantly I've witnessed first hand the detrimental effect that alcohol can have upon a person. It's crazy that this liquid can cause such harm when taken out of hand and that something so small can have such a hold upon a person. Alcohol often becomes a driving force in some people's lives, it can dictate their social life and change their behaviour. I understand the mechanisms behind addiction and can understand how this substance can cause people to act in a different way.


I have always been the sober one on a night out and didn't give it much thought until I got to University and realised the importance that most of my friends place on alcohol. Seeing people getting absolutely off their faces with alcohol used to make me laugh whereas now it just makes me feel horrible. How do people do it? Spend an hour intensely drinking poisonous tasting vodka then submitting themselves to cheap tasting but pricey drinks on a night out? I just don't get it.


Out of most of my friends, many of them say that they could not go on a night out without drinking. Probably because it's the only way they know how to have fun. Alcohol gives people this false feeling of confidence it's almost a veil that hides ones inner self. I think people need to put it into perspective. Alcohol is nothing but a mere substance, why should ones happiness be dependent on a substance? 


I think it can come down to the issue of confidence... Why can't you be confident enough to enjoy yourself, meet new people without being under the guise of alcohol? Give it a go, you can often get away with acting like an idiot pretty much because all of your drunk friends will be too drunk to notice. I would love to hear from any of you who choose to try it!?


It is not my intention that the world should ban alcohol as I do like the odd Baileys ice cream and enjoy a bit of white wine in my risotto. I just think that people need to calm the fxxx down and chill out, it's really not that great and it doesn't do any wonders for that waistline!


(And yes, I will donate my clean liver to someone when I die)