St. Cloud State University

How to avoid getting arrested [or worse!] in your first few days and weeks as a college student at St. Cloud State University
(Some tips from concerned students)

We remember the excitement that accompanies the first few days on campus. This is a great time in your life and we hope that it goes really well for you. To help, we offer the following bits of advice and encouragement.

House parties can be fun and provide an opportunity to meet new people. At the same time, these parties present a few risks for you. You can't be safe and responsible for yourself and others if you are wasted. So, here are some tips that might help:

• Set a limit on how much you want to drink and don't let anyone push you to drink more.
• You will handle your alcohol better if you eat before you go, but avoid anything salty, as this will make you thirsty and you may drink more.
• You're at a party to have fun, right? So, why not slow down? Drink slowly. If you do get thirsty, drink water or pop in between alcoholic drinks.

How to avoid getting arrested or lose your housing privileges:

• Due to special funding from the State, there will be more police officers on patrol in the neighborhood around the campus.
• Rowdy behavior and being drunk in public draws the wrong kind of attention to yourself.
• Don't start off the semester with a minor (minor in possession) ticket to pay off (try explaining this expense to your parents!)
• Don't get cited for carrying an open container of an alcoholic beverage, as this will likely get you into serous trouble with the law, and they are out looking for just this kind of behavior.
• Don't come back to the residence halls wasted and rowdy; this is your likely ticket to a conduct violation and may be your ticket out of the hall.

How to reduce your risk for being raped or humiliated:
Be aware that someone who wants to make you an object of a joke or even worse, wanting to make you a vulnerable target for rape, can easily slip drugs like rohypnol and GHB into your drink.

• Don't drink beverages that you did not open yourself and do not drink beverages from a communal container.
• Don't share or exchange drinks with anyone.
• Watch your drink being poured and carry the drink yourself.
• Don't leave your drink unattended, while talking, dancing, using the restroom, or making a phone call. If you realize that your drink has been left unattended, discard it.
• Appoint a designated "sober" person when you go to parties and have an agreement that everyone who goes there leaves together- no matter what.

Many of the party rapes reported to the Sexual Violence Prevention Program occur after someone is left behind by their friends.

Every fall, the University Sexual Violence Prevention Program, works with students who have been raped at house parties. Know that an acquaintance rapist will look for someone who is new to the party scene and will first try to gain your trust. In several cases a rapist has pretended to be trying to protect someone by offering to take them home or help them in some way. The next step they will try is to isolate you from your friends or from others at the party by offering to help you find the bathroom or your friends or to take you to a room to lie down if you are feeling sick.

Sometimes alcohol may seem like a way to deal with nervousness to meeting new people or to blend in with the college crowd. Realize that this is a false comfort. Alcohol puts us a risk in new situations and can reduce your ability to make good decisions and to recognize unsafe situations. Instead of meeting new people at parties where everyone is intoxicated, attend a Kick-Off event or other campus event where you can meet people that you may have a common interest with other than getting wasted.

Do not accept a ride from someone you do not know very well, even if that person is a friend of a friend. Always have money for a taxi or another alternate way home.

When to get help
If one of your friends is acting very intoxicated in comparison to the amount of alcohol they have had, or is having difficulty breathing or waking up, take steps to ensure their safety and if necessary get them to the St. Cloud Emergency room or call 911 (if calling from a campus phone, dial 9 to get an outside line and then dial 911) and tell them your friend should be tested for drugs.

If you suspect that a friend has an alcohol abuse problem be sure to encourage them to visit the Alcohol/Drug Awareness & Prevention Team in the Student Health Center.

College can be a truly great time! Enjoy yourself: safely and responsibly!

Brought to you by concerned returning St. Cloud State University students as organized by the Vice President for Student Life and Development. Nothing in the forgoing should be interpreted as an encouragement to drink if you are not of legal age.

What to say if someone's alcohol use concerns you

Many people are uneasy when they know other people-family, friends or coworkers who use alcohol in dangerous or unhealthy ways. If this happens to you, you may ask yourself. What is my role? What should I do when a family member or friend is drinking too much, or at inappropriate times, or is acting in some ways that are upsetting? What should I say?"

A simple and straightforward approach to letting him/her know you are concerned is often the most helpful. Yet, it can sound easier to do than it really is. Hot everyone will be thankful that someone cares enough to share his/her concern. None of us can control what a person says or does in reaction to what we say. But we can control what we say, how we say it and where and when we talk to a person we are concerned about.

While there is no foolproof way to share concern with another person, the following process has worked well for many people. Read through these ideas and try them out the next time you want to tell a family member or friend that you are concerned about something he/she is doing?

TELL THE PERSON THAT YOU CARE ABOUT HIM/HER

• You are a good friend and I'm upset because I see you doing things that are dangerous.
• I love you and don't want you to hurt yourself

TELL THE PERSON EXACTLY WHAT HE/SHE HAS DONE THAT CONCERNS YOU

• Last night you had eight beers in less than three hours and then you tried to drive home.
• You haven't been to our last two project meetings
• Our professor told us that class participation is important, and you missed four classes in the last two weeks.

TELL THE PERSON HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT THE WAY YOU SEE HIM/HER ACTING

• I get angry when __________________
• I get really scared when _________________

AFTER YOU TELL THE PERSON THAT YOU CARE, WHAT YOU'VE SEEN AND HOW YOU FEEL, IT'S IMPORTANT TO BE WILLING TO LISTEN TO WHAT HE/SHE SAYS
You may find that the person will say nothing. He/she may not have been prepared for this and will not be ready to talk with you. Or he/she may become angry and tell you it's none of your business. Or the person may thank you and say he/she will make changes. Others may tell you about a problem that goes well beyond your ability to be helpful. In all cases, it is important to listen to what the person says. (Alcohol Choices and Guidelines for College Students by Roger Svendsen and Tom Griffin, 2000.)

WHAT CAN YOU DO- Recognizing Alcohol Poisoning and Taking Action to Help

There are steps that you can take if you encounter someone who could be suffering from acute alcohol poisoning. It is dangerous to assume a person will be fine by "just sleeping it off."

TRY TO WAKE THE PERSON
First, try to find out if the person is at all attentive. Are they unconscious? Can they be woken up? Try and call their name. Pinch their skin- because they should have some reaction. Remember alcohol is a depressant and it will numb the nerves so by pinching the skin you can gauge how far along in the "overdose" process they are.

TURN THE PERSON ON THEIR SIDE/DO NOT LEAVE THEM
Turn the person on his or her side. You turn the person on their side so that if they get sick and vomit, the airways will not be blocked and they will not choke. Stay with them. Only leave them if you have to go to a phone or to get someone to help you. Monitor the breathing. Make sure they do not rollover on their back.

CHECK SKIN COLOR or TEMPERATURE
What is their skin color and temperature? Is enough blood getting to the skin? A sign that you should get help is if a person has pale or bluish skin, or the skin is cold or clammy. This person is not getting enough oxygen.

CHECK THE PERSON'S BREATHING
How is the person breathing? If a person is breathing irregularly with a few breaths and then nothing for awhile- this is a sign that medical attention is necessary. If the person's breathing is too slow or shallow- less than 8 breaths a minute- or more than 10 seconds in between breaths- this is another sign you should get help.

THERE ARE NO ABSOLUTES/ EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT
These are just some of the potential sign of acute alcohol poisoning. A person may have one or all. For instance, there is no guarantee that if a person is breathing 9 times a minute they will be fine, or if they are breathing 7 times a minute they will die. If you cannot wake the person up at all, it is a serious situation. If you are at all concerned, don't hesitate to get help
(Excerpt taken from Bacchus Gamma -Alcohol Poisoning)

ALCOHOL RELATED FACTS:

Traffic crashes are the greatest single cause of death for every age from 6 through 33. About 45% these fatalities are in alcohol-related crashes

Approximately 17% of all drivers involved in fatal crashes in 1999 were intoxicated at the time of their crash.

In 1999, over 55% of drivers involved in fatal crashes who also had a positive alcohol test result had BAC levels of 0.15+

ALCOHOL QUIZ

1. T or F Alcohol is TOXIC to the human body
2. T or F Alcohol, food, and non-alcoholic beverages are all digested the same way.
3. T or F You can suffer withdrawal symptoms after your first time drinking
4. T or F As long as you've gotten a few hours of sleep, you'll be fine to drive the morning after you've been drinking
5. T or F Passing out can be life threatening

Answers to Quiz
1. TRUE There is a limit to how much alcohol the human body can tolerate. When you drink too much, your blood alcohol level can rise to a point where it actually becomes poisonous
2. FALSE Alcohol is not digested like other foods or beverages. It passes directly into the bloodstream though the tissue that lines the stomach and small intestine.
3. TRUE Alcohol, like other drugs, has withdrawal symptoms. The common hangover has symptoms like headache, nausea, dehydration, and the shakes similar to the symptoms of withdrawal from narcotics, like heroin, and depressants, like tranquilizers.
4. FALSE Your motor coordination can be affected for as many as ten hours after you finished your last drink. So before you get in the car to drive home the morning after a party, think twice about your ability to drive safely.
5. TRUE If you drink so much that you pass out, it's because the alcohol has caused your brain to start shutting down, resulting in your loss of consciousness. The amount of alcohol it takes to make you pass out is dangerously close to the amount of alcohol it takes to kill you.

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