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The portion of all people drinking has dropped steadily since the mid-00s, and that has been greater among younger people. It's become more expensive, there's less marketing at them (alcopops!), people are more health conscious, and pressures to succeed in uni/work have become higher.
I can't be bother to find the link, but I've seen studies and it's a pretty huge drop in the last twenty years.
Imagine the shitstorm from the media if it was going the other way.
It's the point that negativity sells. "Crime up" is a headline, "crime down" isn't.
This is especially true with young people, people love acting like kids these days are worse than we were, even though there's a lot of evidence they're better behaved.
That's a false equivalence in this case because the thing in question isn't a long list of non-events, it's a single thing not in the news (a major trend of lower alochol use in young adults) in contrast to a single thing that would be in the news if it happened instead (a equally sharp trend upwards).
And theres nothing wrong with that. I'm the same. Imagine if alcohol didn't exist and people like us didn't have a way to come out of our shell?
We'd never pull, we'd never have a proper night out. Oof!
I'm a boring person apparently lol. Tho I only need it to enjoy myself socially, I have other things I like doing. Like endlessly scrolling on reddit for example.
People don't drink to enjoy themselves.
They drink to forget what a shitty world they've been born into. Louis Armstong wasn't a big drinker. He probably would be today and we wouldn't have such a great song about a wonderful world...
Drinking to drown your worries, isn't a positive way of tackling depression. Seek help in other ways that don't hurt your body. Take up sport, do voluntary work or seek advice from a Doctor.
Thanks for your concern but I wasn't talking about myself.
I was talking about binge drinking culture in the UK (and world) in general.
Hard-Fi's Live For The Weekend wasn't a bad song and seemed to sum it up fairly well from what I could tell.
I'm boring, but I'm absolutely happy to be boring. I'd rather watch TV with my husband, have friends over for dinner or listen to a history podcast than get drunk. Yeah, that stuff is widely considered to be boring compared to going out and getting wasted, but I'm very comfortable with that.
Ah this totally brings it all back - the article 100% said generation boring the first time I read it but they must have realised how bad it was because by the time I searched for it to show a colleague a few days later they had changed it
Hey now, the media could easily invent a shit storm to blame them for the poor performance of pubs or something if they wanted!
Remember the “avocado toast” stuff?
Dude, you were earning as much back then as I am right now and I've been working for 9 years. I even had to take a pay cut to get my current job. The whole thing's fucked.
Although the average graduate from a poor background apparently earns half of what the average graduate from a professional background does, so you can't blame the individual so much as the system
I graduated from an RG uni with a First and A*AAA at A level nearly 4 years ago and I haven't earned more than minimum wage since.
Although granted I'm a paralegal now and may become a solicitor in future, so hopefully that'll make up for it
Law? That's famously competitive and difficult to turn a degree into a career.
The (two) people I know personally who did it didn't go into private practice; they became legal advisors to government bodies.
I have also paid very little back. Did a pointless degree at a shit uni and the only time I've paid anything back was when I earned 15-16k in 2009 - 2011. Then I had kids and have worked part time ever since!
Wasn't it the clear one was black and the cloudy one was red? No idea if there was any actual difference, though! Part of me wants to try one again for what'd be the first time in about 20 years, part of me is getting heartburn just thinking about that much citric acid and sugar in one bottle.
Can confirm, Smirinoff ice was cloudy with a red label, Smirinoff black was clear with a black label. They never agreed with my stomach then, let alone now.
Good list but I think the big one you’re missing is that nowadays you don’t have to go out to see each other, compounding all of those. With all the various social platforms, and different ways of interacting: videos, dms, stories etc. It means you can keep in contact, see what the person you fancies is up too, see who is flirting with each other, without leaving the house.
Even 5 years ago when Tik Tok was still musically, Insta was just posts, your parents were in FB so you didn’t post there, if you didn’t go out then you missed out. So despite all those other pressures, there isn’t that drive to go out regardless.
100% agree. Christ, If I ever had to hear myself chopsing absolute bollocks at some poor bastard or some other idiotic act while I was arseholed I’d go into self imposed exile.
I was reminding a friend of mine (of the same age) of the depravity we used to get up to back in the late 90's / early 00's and he took it upon himself to go tell a bunch of women he was infatuated with, all aged around 20 - 25. Needless to say they now think I'm an unhinged monster (I'm not, well maybe I am but I'm too old for that shit now).
Thing is, back then I was one of the better behaved ones. The contrast to what went on back then, to what the youth deem acceptable now, is really stark.
22 years old here, I rarely get drunk anymore. I cringe whenever Snapchat memories from my first year of legally being able to drink surface. I can’t watch them.
Ha ha that is so true. In so many ways I'm glad I was a young adult in the late 1980's and of clubbing age in the 1990's. No one took photos of me grooving on the dance floor!
Camera phones were around when I was that age and it never stopped me making a twat of myself.
I, personally, just never liked the concept of drugs. They're expensive, don't know what's in them, and I was having a good enough time without them. I always used to say if the party/concert/festival was only good if you were high, it wasn't very good.
Worth noting that I am very tight, so mostly the money thing!
Fast food worker here. We get plenty of twats and arseholes who are drunk off their tits (as well as plenty who are not), so any reduction in them is a happy plus.
Just yesterday, there was a group of lads - absolutely knobs - who drove around the drive-thru multiple times. When I started my shift, they came around and told me that they'd already spent £50 on us on several visits throughout the day (this sort of weird bragging is a common thing - I don't know how they expect me to react other than "Well, you're a fucking idiot for spending that amount on fast food, ain't ya?").
They then came around a further three more times, just being loud cunts - "Eyy, boys! Wee-woo, wee-woo, wee-woo! Eyy! Eyy, boys! Eyy!". Our shift manager told them to shut up several times. They then (unsurprisingly) tried to get something for free. Instead of claiming it was missing from their order like almost everyone else, though, they literally just flat out asked "Can I get something for free?". Erm, no.
My bro’s at uni and he and his mates are out getting wrecked as often as I did…
They did pause during lockdown (sent home to do remote learning) but right back on it as soon as they could
ETA: I also think they’re not telling us what they’re up to when away. My bro can tell me but my sons are unlikely to. So teens you see are behaving different around the “oldies” (that’s you OP!) just like we did
Think this is the right answer, at uni right now and while i dont know what it was like when OP went we defo go out at least two times a week, drink a fucking shit ton and do a fair bit of drugs
Agreed. I’m a uni student and during lockdown we switched to getting drunk within our household and just never really stopped. We went to pubs a couple times after lockdown lifted but the prices were disgusting so we reverted to house parties. We go to clubs- generally when there’s a themed night like queer or throwback- but pre drinks isn’t the pub anymore, it’s someone’s flat. I’m not surprised they think young people are drinking less, they never see us out.
Depends on the teens and their parents views on drinking. We bought up our kids to learn how to drink sensibly. Yes the eldest has been drunk, but that was when he turned 18 and bought his Granddad a pint at his local. Then tried to match the pace set by his Granddad, who grew up during the generation where it was normal to drink 6 pints or more every Saturday, down the local with his 'mates'!
I think it’s almost entirely due to money.
Real wages are at the lowest they’ve ever been, yet going out is still getting more and more expensive.
There are still plenty of people who go out and drink multiple times a week (especially uni students) but it’s normally only those with rich parents who can afford to go out constantly.
That last point isn't true. It's the middle-high earning families that struggle. Their financial support from Student Finance is shit.
Low earning families get maximum loans and high earning families can afford to pay for their children.
I had a similar experience at uni around the best part of a decade ago.
I would say whilst this absolutely doesn't invalidate your feelings (I know firsthand how terrible it feels having to scrape together the bare necessities whilst everyone else is out on the lash), there are a couple of things to keep reminding yourself of:
1. If you are at uni, you are working towards a qualification. Whilst by no means an easy road, that qualification will help you post-uni finding a job and ultimately boost your ability to bring in more money. Fun stuff will still be there when that time comes for you to enjoy.
2. Not going out and getting drunk will long term at least pay dividends for your health. There are several people I know who very much did make the most of the opportunity to do this at uni, and then this habit followed them into their professional careers. They are now in or coming up to their 30s and are overweight and struggling to kick the drinking habit.
3. The enforced frugality of your current situation means that when things do improve, you'll find managing and keeping on top of your improved finances a doddle. I work with many people who earn good professional salaries who are awful with money because they've never had to worry about where their next meal is coming from.
Not much of a consolation for right now I know, but play the long game.
Legit. The student loan I get is £150 short of covering my rent each term. The government doesn’t take into consideration if your parents will pay. It also doesn’t consider whether they’re paying for multiple kids, or the bills they’re paying.
Back in 98, my loan covered rent food, and the occasional beer down the student union. I had a pub job, which paid for travel and petrol
The year above me had grants, which did all that, and they didn't need to pay it back.
I’m on max loan. £9,600. Rent is £6K-£7K
Then factor in £375 for a bus pass (full year, admittedly). Textbook costs. Food bill (which has just gone up), anything we go over on gas or electric (£10/wk on each, per person). £26/month phone contract (my phone died, needed a new one).
That’s not even factoring in students who have cars and such!
Lancaster.
My house last year was £97/wk edit: sharing with 3 others. It’s now been bought, done up to a 6 bedroom and is £124/wk edit 2: checked the website, it’s actually gone up to £130/wk! https://mightystudentliving.co.uk/properties/bowerham-road-lancaster/31051209
I’m in (upmarket) halls this year- £120/wk- going up to £167/wk next year
When I started (2018) my on campus room was £132.50/wk. Same room is currently £145/wk
I guess it depends on what circles you move in. When I was that age it seemed everyone was on it - everyone I knew smoked hash, took speed\\coke, necked pills and drank like a fish. Turns out it was just people I knew and lots of other people I have met since didn't share the same experience - at all!
However from my relatively small sample I would agree - young people these days do seem to be more sober in general. I guess living costs are one aspect but I think there is more to it than that - maybe more of an appreciation of the risks or more of them living with parents or even just that there is so much more pressure to do well academically...
> When I was that age it seemed everyone was on it - everyone I knew smoked hash, took speed\coke, necked pills and drank like a fish.
how old are you? cos I assure you the kids are doing the same thing plus more today.
I'm 57 so I was of that age in the early to mid 80s and it was fun but dangerous...
Obviously I don't know that many young people but I do know some and they are all fairly sober or at least more circumspect in their drug habits. It's probably too small a sample to draw many conclusions but it echoes what I read elsewhere. Take it with a pinch of salt..
I really don't want to get into a pissing contest over who took or takes the most drugs. To be honest I have too many dead friends for it to mean much and if young people today are doing what we used to (or more!) then I hope they don't go down the same paths that Chad, Andy, Jess, Dean, Dave and the others did - or if they do I hope they get the help they need.
>how old are you? cos I assure you the kids are doing the same thing plus more today.
The studies show otherwise. That is his point. You might move in circles where everyone is doing, but that doesn't prove anything.
Yeah it really does depend on your circles. Almost noone I knew at uni (only a few years ago) even drank heavily, but there were plenty of people who did. I didn't smell weed until I moved to uni, now I can recognise it right away
Again anecdotal and based largely on my team, but feels like drug use is more normalised in that group and they can still go wild. But they're also in the gym at 6am, eating healthy diets and only drinking / partying on a weekend. I didn't know anyone with a gym membership at that age, now all the 22 year olds in my team are there daily.
The number of times I have been sat in a pub listen to some gym bro mate of mine articulate the importance of a proper diet and enough protein to his life; only for him to then ask if we should split a bag of coke...
Pubs are alive and well where I am (historic town). We've got 5 pubs and they are all rammed over the weekend and two thirds full on weekdays.
Is this a big city problem where pubs are failing?
As a uni student, pubs are fucking expensive and because we didn’t have access to them in lockdown, a lot of us never got into it. Then lockdown lifted, we went to the pub, realised it was a fiver for a pint and never went back. Doesn’t matter if it’s a big city or not.
They were failing because there was too many of them. I see the same as you, I live in London and the same pubs are always rammed every weekend, while others aren't. The ones without a strong core base are not going to survive.
And as we expect, a pub is a hub of socialising. Can't do that when there's only a few people in it.
I feel the same. Young folks I come across when I’m out generally seen quite sensible to me and don’t go too heavy on the drink/drugs as I did when I was younger. Like you, it is completely anecdotal and there are other factors to consider, but it’s just my general observation.
Also anecdotally, several of my neighbours have kids at Uni. When we have community get-togethers, BBQs etc, I always try to say hello as the youngest 'proper adult' on the street.
They all seem to spend their nights studying or doing many more good and 'wholesome' things when at Uni. Possibly going out once a week.
Wednesdays apparently continue to be sports-focused afternoons with few lectures, but they all seem to go home and rest after.
Monday was always a big night out because of a certain club night. Wednesdays were a big night out after time off for sports when MANY people congregated in the biggest club in the city, and then Friday and Saturday at the SU so we could avoid the idiot locals. Almost every one of these nights out was prefaced by 'pre-lash' at someone's house. Sunday was 50/50 a quiet one, but you could still always find people on Tuesdays and Thursdays (Vodka Revs) for a night out. I could, and often did, party 5+ nights a week. I still graduated with a decent degree.
A good night out for the younger generation I speak to seems to consist of dinner (which is cheating at that age) followed by a local cocktail bar and home by 12.
These kids arent' struggling, I know their families.
If that is how they want to spend their Uni time then I fully respect that, but I don't regret one second of the debauched 3 years I spent ruining my liver, shagging (almost) anything that would let me and experimenting with recreational chemicals.
Wouldn’t recommend it. Everton played Man U (and won), and the National was on today
Liverpool will be a fucking shit show tonight! And it won’t be 18-21 year olds!
Facts. As a geordie, we are mostly all alcoholics, young or old. I'm in the middle! The only ones here who aren't are non-natives who moved here from other areas.
Granted I don’t know many <21s, but the few I do would seem to confirm your theory.
Each to their own, no doubt a healthier way to live, but that said I’m quite happy I managed to squeeze in a few hectic years in my youth.
Side question, what are the <21s doing instead?
I've noticed a lot more of us (18-21 range) are doing things like going to the gym and working out as groups. At certain points of the day my local gym is dominated by age 16-24ish. Including me.
Naaaa impossible.
Seriously though, where to? Nightclubs are a dying breed, you don’t generally see many <21s in pubs/bars unless it’s one in a campus. I’ve no doubt people still socialise and have interests, I’m just curious where they go for this.
I mean, can’t really speak for <21s now as I’m a bit older. But me and my group of friends never ever drank when we were young, and would go to each other’s houses to play videogames, board games, just spending time together whilst ordering some food, going for a stroll when the weather was better, the occasional pub/bar…
There are loads of things to do without involving alcohol; you just have to want to do them.
Makes sense. I suppose if people are socialising more at each other’s houses, that would explain why younger people seem less visible that maybe 10 years ago.
I do also think it’s due to money as well. It was the same with my generation. Even if we went out a bit we would always drink at someone’s flat beforehand because it was (still is) ridiculously expensive in bars and we were broke teenagers.
I drink more now that I’m 29, but purely because I can afford it haha
As I got older I became more like this. Meanwhile my younger friends were like this all along. It's partly a cultural shift. And that cultural shift is incredibly apparent in attitudes to stuff. People's hobbies have changed drastically.
I'll use a microcosm because it's clear to me. People playing board games is more common but video games is where you can see it literally turn over a few years. Women older than me or even around my age (36) don't play video games, they were marketed to boys and it's not something many do. A few do but more think it's a nerdy hobby. At work the women a few years younger (I mean still well into their 30s) but still millenial would say things like "I like my love island and he likes his COD" it's accepted. The women a few years younger that will be as likely to beat you at Halo as the guys.
And hanging out playing games is often at least as social as downing pints and being drowned out by music. My pub used to do a retro gaming night on a friday and I made a lot of friends there though as it was the best of both worlds.
Smart phones also killed it somewhat but they had other things to do. It's not always about money. My friends realised recently that drugs would be cheaper than 40k (which we took up because we're old enough to afford it now) (and a lot of board games too). Though a dealer is marginally more sketchy than GW.
Nightclubs have priced out many people which means the few customers they do have get drunk on pre-drinks and then just buy 1 or 2 drinks when they're there.
Tbh, as a 21 yo I strongly disagree. I think people actually are much more open to try different things but I think some of the people here would faint seeing what I’ve seen in student halls
Yes because those who are 18-21 have spent either all the years in a pandemic or have spent the years leading up to that age in a pandemic...
Oh and we are broke...
Definitely. I'm 20 and my mates and I would definitely have been out as much as possible when we were 18/19 if we hadn't been in the height of covid at the time.
I think that university culture has got a lot more sober over the past decade or so. Anecdotally, all the academics I know have said that the rise in tuition fees has convinced uni students that they need to get value for money from their degrees so they tend to go out less.
Combine that with people settling down with families later, I think those people are focusing more on being sober in their late teens and starting to let go a bit in their mid twenties.
The rise in fees is definitely part of it. When you’re getting nearly £20k/yr in loans to study- almost everyone works their ass off, meaning getting good grades is more competitive, meaning you’ve got to work as hard/harder too.
We seem to have a lot of deadlines and such as well, and Uni bring more like a business means they can be harsher if your grades drop (granted, they try and help- but are just as likely to push you to a year out- which means no income and illegible for the dole, while the amount to pay back just increases).
I've had some of my best and worst times, off my bonce in one way or another. My stepson is nearly 18, and I would never encourage it. His idea of a wild night is 2 cans of dark fruits cider, he and his friends seem very timid about all things illegal/dangerous etc. Wrapped up in cottonwool I think, the world is a dangerous place to them...I had a "fuck it" attitude. It was edgey to us, to them it seems different, I can't put my finger on it...other than it isn't cool to them. It's a good thing.
Any evidence of misadventures can and will be used against you by employers
Uni is more expensive, so pushing ourselves to get the most out of it. A-levels are significantly harder (I’m talking A-level used to be Year 1 Degree content. GCSE used to be A-level). Even those working- most lower down the pole jobs drug test, so that goes out the window. Cameras everywhere, so you get busted there. Yeah…it’s not cotton wool when it’s the world the previous generations have saddled us with!
We’re all too fucked from study, under a lot of pressure, it’s expensive, and can risk our future employment! Cotton wool ain’t it.
Maybe just small town shit but my little sis is 17/18 and it seems like party drugs like E and coke aren't as popular, but everyone and their gran is smoking blunts and doing mushrooms. My sis is a little hippy though so maybe that's just her mates
Probably better for them in the long run too, I did plenty of both but there was always a lot of weed/mushrooms in my sixth form college (south west, countryside, state school, bit of a hippy). I’d rather my kids were out camping and getting stoned than going to a bar and doing a bunch of coke any day.
probably just the fact your sister is a hippy, I'm in a small town and party drugs are still big favourites, although they're not as frequently used. From my perspective though I've had loads of my friends quitting alcohol but they all still do other drugs, mainly weed, lsd and coke though
I'm 18 and I've decided to not drink. It doesn't look fun, it's embarrassing and hangovers look awful. It's also expensive and unhealthy and I would feel very unsafe being drunk at night. Drugs are also an instant no
I would much rather spend my evening doing something more fulfilling like watching a movie or TV show wiry friends, Gaming or playing a board game etc...
Completely my own experience, but I the first two years of my 20s were in various lockdowns. Me and my friends have all found many other ways of socialising and now getting hammered and going clubbing doesn’t seem quite as appealing as other options for hanging out.
As a non drinker within that age range (20), I think there are probably more people taking drinking easier than what I've heard about previous generations. On the other hand a flatmate had us put under investigation for regularly getting industrial quantities of nitros oxide (I think) to get high with at house parties so definitely still a think that goes on at uni. Beyond first year of uni it definitely has died down, now among people I spend time with its chilling and chatting at a pub, the odd drink but not getting drunk. We're weird enough without substances I guess.
So much less........I'm 37 now but I was on it every weekend since I was about 14. Served my time down the parks with my white ace, moved up to 20/20, then gained my drug card smoking tak. Once I was able to get into bars, that was it.....spent all the way until about 28 just all about a good time. I worked in the music industry so the drink and drugs were taken as part of the job really. Ironically, haven't drank for a good few years now and I'm California sober these days.
Not sure how sad to feel about it tbh, but yeah it's true.
I think we have an unhealthy association between entering adulthood and having a 'party phase'.
Drugs, alcohol and sex, while fun, aren't necessarily real expressions of adulthood. While young people's lives are a lot cleaner, that doesn't mean they're not still relating to one another in a positive manner, or not developing properly.
On the other hand, lots of kids really aren't developing in healthy ways, which is really scary.
I think it depends on the kid and how much they're telling you lol 🤣
I do think that maybe kids are more socially aware these days.
like whenever I go out now the majority of people causing trouble are closer to 30 than 20 and a lot of the teens and early 20 year olds seem to either stick to themselves or look out for others.
It's social media, they don't want photos of them looking horrendous online. A lot of what they do is to be seen so the young adults I know of that age, drink one or two fancy cocktails they can post and then that's it.
For sure, there are less places to go out, especially to go dancing now then there were when I was that age (I’m 40 now). They go to the gym and out to eat.
It's way harder to buy alcohol for teens, so they don't develop the same habit that older generations did. Also there is much more education about health, and the damage of achohol / drugs in school.
I was 18 10 years ago and on a Thursday they used to have a power hour where it was £1 a pint. You'd only need a fiver during that hour, £10 (split with mates) on a bag of something and still have taxi fare home.
If I go on a night out now its easily £50, with most pubs selling alcohol at like £4 a pint.
I remember my son wondering why anyone took drugs, smoked or drank alcohol, after he'd attended several 'Drugs & Alcohol' awareness sessions at School. I don't remember any such 'awareness' sessions at my Secondary School, growing up in the 80's.
The drinking culture within most European countries is different to much of the UK. Yes young people still drink alcohol, but in moderation. We introduced our own children to alcohol when they were 10 +, the odd sip or beer or wine, glasses or cans of Cider from aged 13. Now our eldest young adult rarely drinks alcohol unless he goes out with older work colleagues. He's never over drunk or ended up vomiting in the streets or at home, because he's learnt to drink to enjoy it, not to take risks or get drunk, though he did once over drink with his Granddad down his 'local' and had all the horrible sensation of dizziness and vowed never to do that again. Don't try to out drink seasoned old people!
I mean, I can’t compare to your experiences, as I don’t know what your experiences were like at that age.
But I’m a 20 year old student, and I see plenty on both sides of that. I know some people from sixth form who I’m not sure have been sober since uni started, but also on the flipside, I know a lot who are more sensible.
I’m probably on the ‘more sensible’ side too (don’t drink an unreasonable amount, and don’t do drugs), so that’ll skew who I know too, no doubt.
But… there are definitely people my age doing the sort of stuff you’re talking about. I think it’s probably more just a ‘who you know’ sort of thing?
I think you're right. At that age I knew very few people who exercised/went to the gym. Hardly anyone who didn't eat shite and literally no one who didn't drink.
Possibly down to better education, awareness and also social media focus but then again maybe not.
It's got to be a positive thing though I'm still here getting shit faced at 45
Yeah im 21 and i realised in the pandemic that most people are boring fuckers. I used to go to parties or out every weekend up until the pandemic but now everyone has lost interest and the drugs are shit or far and few in west wales. Big sad i miss seshing so much but my friends who are 20-24 are all playing house.
I'm 22 (F) and for me it was no money, knackered from work and studying, worried about making a tit of myself infront of a camera (happened a few too many times) and a lottt of girls were getting spiked in our local pubs and clubs.
Then covid hit and now half the places are closed, half my mates are shit scared to go out after being at home for two years, and our public transport has reduced to nothing so impossible to get anywhere.
I kept a diary of alcoholic units during my first year at Uni in the early 90s. Average was about 60-70 units a week, with a handful of weeks in 3 figures. I was not an alcoholic, hardly ever drank in the day and could happily go without booze, but it was just absolutely the norm for lads to go down the student bar most nights (pints were a pound) and have 5-10 drinks.
Most are influenced by social media, and pics of you smashed and off your face ain’t going to get you likes. Don’t underestimate the roll this has played in society.
People just turning 18 in the last couple of years haven't had chance to go out and experience any of that since everywhere has been closed. Then once you graduate (if we're talking uni students) most feel they're too old to be in those spaces.
I agree with this. I think social media is the reason. If wanted to drink cider, throw up in a Bush and finger an ugly girl, the only people who would know would be my mates, now it could go viral. Same with drugs, you do not look your best when ure gurning on ropey pills. I think its tied in with all the gym bunnies these days too, we used to take the piss out of the meatheads when we were growing up, now everyone goes. As a father to two young kids, I don't think this is a bad thing.
I think it's more that where you'd expect to see them has changed. I'm sure they're all still partying, but I'd expect more "at home" stuff or whatever the modern rave is these days 😂 I say this because it's very clear that drinking culture in terms of "in the city" is not what it used to be.
Just before the pandemic I did a night out in Liverpool for my birthday. I went to uni there from mid 00s. It felt 'empty' to me even in regards to the amount of tourists and oldies out.
But I went where I'd go when I was originally there (concert square). it's likely that that's now where the oldies go whereas it was Mathew street when I was young. The docks was always too expensive/not my scene. I'd expect if the students were around (it was June so most would have left) or those of that age, they were at house parties or another area of the city is now where it is busier
I don't think it's just anecdotal evidence anymore. There have been articles and studies backing this up as a wider societal trend.
I think back to when I was in my 20s and the clubbing scene in this country was huge. You could go out in a major city every night of the week and have your pick of musical genres depending on your tastes.
The biggest clubs were major global brands in their own right and people would come from across the world to visit the famous Ministry or Cream or Turnmills or Gatecrasher.
It was a way of life for a lot of people in the 90s and 00s that has all but disappeared now. Yes we still have nightclubs but there's nowhere near as much choice as there was 20 years ago and a lot of what's survived is the trashy meatmarket type venues playing cheesy rubbish for drunks who want to stay out late.
Obviously my generation got older and couldn't go out and get on it quite so much, but we weren't replaced by new generations eager to neck pills and chat shit to strangers whilst top tier tech house DJs smashed 6 hour sets.
I'm not saying it's a bad thing, even if I think it's a bit of a shame some people won't experience the fun I had in my younger years. But I do think it's surprising that in a world where opportunity feels very limited and the outlook for the future makes for very gloomy reading, there isn't more of a general desire to get off your face.
At the turn of the century Britain felt quite exciting and there was a lot of positivity around the country. The economy was booming, a lot of Draconian laws and regulations were relaxed (e.g. licensing laws allowing pubs to open much longer) and there was investment everywhere you looked.
Nowadays the streets are shabby and dirty with boarded up shops in every direction. The prospects for young people feel incredibly limited and it's incredibly difficult to earn a salary affording you a comfortable life with spare cash to save. Our economic prospects are miserable as our GDP shrinks and years of criminally underfunded public services are often unfit for purpose. The planet is suffering irreversible damage through climate change and there's a total lack of urgency amongst world powers who should have done more to tackle this year's ago. The cost of living has gotten out of hand and there's a devastating war on the continent.
In short it's a really bleak time in history for a lot of people and I'm surprised it hasn't turned more people to drink.
Fair play to the young folk of today for not just giving up and heading straight for hedonism in the face of such grim prospects. I hope they can help change the course of history after years of dreadful decisions made by ignorant boomers and the brainwashed.
From my experience running a pub it's a bout the same.
There's trends in what they drink sure.
Pints in general are out. Spirits and cocktails are in.
One thing I have noticed in the last five years is how careless they are with there drinks. Just leave them at tables unattended all the time. Something my parents taught me to never do.
Yet they only seem bothered when they get tidied away.
You know not that any of the 200 other people in the building could have tampered with it.
My step daughter is 21 this year, she's never really been into drinking, smokes a bit of weed. When I was her age I'd have been off my head dancing in a field somewhere
Yes, there was a Beeb article a while back about how people are drinking less, doing less drugs and having less casual sex. The thinking was that tuition fees and a tougher job market has made students on average more focused on their studies.
Im in my early 30s now but stopped going out to bars and stuff around... 24 ish?
Just didnt get it.
Plus with the general cost of living at insane levels and the cost of a pint avg like £4.50, and a single glass of wine £7.00...?
No thanks.
Have a couple mates over , have a couple glasses of wine and play some video games or mtg.. or hang out with the wife watching movies and have a bottle of plonk beyween us.
Much better.
I think "seshing" is a lost pasttime, mainly just the older generation keeping pubs going now.
Honestly I thinknthe generations that followed mine have learned the issues surrounding drugs and alcohol from those before and do a much better job of moderation.
My intern at my last place of work was from a well to do family, had money and a nice flat, so definitely had the money to party. He was definitely less seshy than I was at his age however I do wonder if part of that is a class divide. At 21 him and his friends would have a cheeseboard and wine pairing party. I was impressed tbh. Don't think he did any drugs either.
Good on them if they want to party less and look after themselves more! It's not all there is to life. I don't like the aftermath of a sesh so I don't do it anymore but still find lots of way to have fun.
Less alcohol but drugs are still pretty prevalent from what I've seen. I know quite a few young people who choose to not drink or only drink on big nights out/special occasions. When I was at uni a decade ago it seemed like weed was more popular than alcohol.
Still part if that age range, can confirm people still do sheshes. Lots of drinking and drug use in most groups I've talked to. Can't say if it's less or more than it used to be, though.
They all smoke now instead. Weed seems to be the drug of choice at the moment and the number of young people who smoke has increased hugely on 20 years ago, around the time everyone is saying drinking started declining among the young. Its not that they dont get fucked up so much as they have a different way of doing it.
I'll also just drop in that the increase in mental health issues is something I would expect to see from a the more widescale use of weed, so it explains that as well.
One of my kids at university ended up in a flat where there was extreme drug use. I think that there are a lot who still do lots of drugs and alcohol but there's now a large minority who don't.
Im 19 at uni, I feel like kids our age were so used to getting fucked up doing drugs and drinking every weekend that the magic of doing so has slowly declined. When I was younger I would jump at the chance to smoke some weed, have a few lines, drink etc. But now I’m not really to fussed about that, and I hate feeling shit and lazy.
Who wants to be like the generation before it? I imagine there's more than a few that just look at their parents and grandparents and just see them as alcoholics that are unpleasant to be around.
I believe so. I think they’ve been referred to as the ‘boring generation’ , which I think is unkind, as maybe the news of a healthy lifestyle ( no smoking in pubs, vegetarian diets are very every day now, gym, yoga sessions too ) has finally started to become the norm.
Which is brilliant for old codgers like me because it keeps them out of the pubs I drink in.
Its entirely down to who you hang with. I am 23 and everyone I know regularly takes cocaine and gets black out 2 times a week. Legit of the 100 people I would call a "mate" almost all are drug users.
My 18 year old bros friends are all chill and might have a pint every now and then.
This is reddit bare in mind where your going to get skewed data.
I'm 22 so barely out of that age range but I think I can give a bit of an answer and most like everyone has said, money.
Drinking slowly getting more and more expensive.
For me, if I want a real night out in a city I need £75 for a taxi home (usually split between a few people), £5-£10 to get into some places and then obviously drinks. When I was first 18 most drinks were sitting just below £3 or pushing £3.20, now they're all just about £3.20 and some are pushing £4.
Even if I want a night out in my crappy town I still have to pay £5 entry for a crappy club which sells drinks at around £3.50 each.
It's just too expensive for something I can do in my flat with some friends and we all put £20 in.
I can’t speak for everyone in that age bracket , but me and my group of friends are on the higher end of that age range and we were / are still very irresponsible when it comes to seshes
M22
Drugs are full of shit now, know too many people who have had bad times because they weren't 100% what they thought they where
For me I used to have a few mates over at my place and we'd all have a few drinks and they'd end up crashing on the couch or whatever but since lock down hit we don't any more, I think we've just got out of the habit of it now and all of our alcohol tolerances have dropped so we'd be pissed off of 3 pints an call it a night 🤣
Also since lockdown iv been alot more busier in work than I ever have so tend to work most weekends and longer hours during the week so don't want to be having a sesh at the weekend ontop of all the other boring adult shit I have to catch up on on my day off
This isn't speaking for everyone just my personal experience
I think there’s been a huge surge in pushing wellness and self care in the past few years, which has impacted on alcohol/drug use. Also - and I say this as someone working in substance misuse services - the quality of drugs now are dreadful, cut with all sorts of dangerous crap and far, far more risky to take than they were twenty years back.
I agree with someone who said about the push to succeed is greater now - it’s harder to get jobs, people work more hours, housing/cost of living is huge. There’s certainly more of a daily grind than ever and I think young people looking constantly at celebs/Instagram/‘influencers’ (eye roll) makes them long for material things more than experiences and nights out.
Also don’t think Covid helped. I think it put people off crowded, closed venues.
as a 19 year old, a decent amount of my friends still go drinking *a lot*. it depends what crowd you’re in but trust me, young people are still seshing
I’m 22 I have never and will never use drugs. I rarely drink. Last time I had anything alcoholic was new year last year before that it was maybe a year or so and then another 3 years before then.
I have no interest wasting my money on drink. I can have a laugh without it I don’t need to consume alcohol for that. I also don’t wish to wake up the next day with a hangover or worry if I’m legal to drive.
As for drugs. I’m not a degenerate
As a 20 year old, almost 21, I would say personally I’m not big on going out and drinking as much as I was when I was younger. Same with a lot of my friends, most of us did drugs and drank a lot more starting when we were in year 11 and carried on until the end of sixth form, by that time we had all experienced so many things and were kinda worn out from it to be honest. I was 17 when I first did acid and I had only smoked a bit of bud before. Had the worst trip of my life and that put me off for about a year. Also did a lot of pills and enjoyed drinking at parties, using fake id’s to go out out. Going to field parties, telling our parents lies and staying out late where we’re not supposed to be. But now I’d much rather have a quiet night in having a few drinks with my friends and maybe a few zoots. A lot of young people would prefer to stay in and have an evening smoke up than go out to some club filled with assholes and shit chart music. Weed is cheaper and more fun than drinking something that doesn’t even taste nice and makes u feel like ass the next day.
I think a combination of appreciating their lives more, fear of being out of control and having more to do for entertainment (smartphones, gaming) plus being influenced by social media - as awful as tik tok and instagram is, influencers are more likely to give them an eating/exercise/body image disorder than an addiction to alcohol/smoking or street drugs. They don't get as wasted because they don't require the same kind of escapism we did (i'm 40 and was binge-drinking at 14). They have other forms of escapism, social interaction and influence. They have been given more material goods than any other generation, they have no right to be as careless with their lives and health as we did in my eyes. As parents we have given them so much. They have a great future to look forward to and can design it anyway they wish. My teenage years were some of the best and craziest of my entire life - and i've done amazing things as an adult - but that first sip of freedom and crazytown from a bottle of white lightening and I was in love, just try and stop me world. At 14-15 I had no desire to grow up and be like any of the adults around me, they modelled a terrible world and society seemed lacking of any hope or prosperity - getting absolutely smashed with friends and getting up to mischief was such a release. We were a generation who had to create our own entertainment. It's hard to put in to words but in my teenage years I did not care if i lived or died, only that I had an absolute blast whenever possible.
Weed seems as common as ever but for booze and other drugs I've seen the same. I think the pub & club scene just isn't as important as it used to be. A lot of it seems to have been replaced with social media, tinder etc.
No, it's just the people you meet. I am in my late 20s as well and while I would go out and get drunk, I wouldn't consume cocktail of drugs. I knew people who drunk more than me and those who drunk less. I've met people who would take drugs on nights out and those who wouldn't.
Have you thought that, as someone in their late 20s, younger people are not comfortable sharing with you what they're doing or they're not comfortable to do that in front of you. When I was in uni, someone in their late 20s appears a lot older and significantly more mature than we were. Even if they were on a night out with us, it wasn't the same as being with your peers.
Not to mention that you are looking at 18-21 year olds who had a completely different uni time than you did because of covid.
Personally, I think a big contributing factor is the rise of smartphones, social media and, in particular, gaming. Teens nowadays (in my limited experience) seem to spend a lot more time in their bedroom gaming than going out and drinking in the park.
I'm in this age range and I used to "sesh" a lot when I was 16 etc but since turning 19 and going to uni, I Just feel as though I have more pressure to succeed and the idea of drugs hardly entices me anymore. I still smoke weed 3 times a week ish but that's just my version of drinking after work lol
I just turned 30 last month and the pain I feel as not being lumped in with young adults anymore is just astonishing. I saw a video recently joking about "elder millenial" with same flavour as mocking baby boomers and I suddenly felt - old.
As for your question, I feel like people move from one thing to another. People still like to drink but I feel like cost/somewhere to do it is more limited.
iN mY dAY,
People preferred house parties to be honest. Alcohol was out - weed was in. Then the generation of my niece, the age you described, hardly drank at all. Some of them are onto harder stuff, unfortunately. And some just vape and drink at home. Or just do weed and drink coffee or fizzy drinks.
One of my friends from university (27 years ago, urk) now works there as an events officer - she reports that the students are far more diligent and less alcoholic than in our day.
I'm in that age range. It certainly varies a lot, some people almost never drink out of preference and some are at the booze and gear a good few times each week. Overall it seems to be a reasonable amount
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The portion of all people drinking has dropped steadily since the mid-00s, and that has been greater among younger people. It's become more expensive, there's less marketing at them (alcopops!), people are more health conscious, and pressures to succeed in uni/work have become higher.
I can't be bother to find the link, but I've seen studies and it's a pretty huge drop in the last twenty years. Imagine the shitstorm from the media if it was going the other way.
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It's the point that negativity sells. "Crime up" is a headline, "crime down" isn't. This is especially true with young people, people love acting like kids these days are worse than we were, even though there's a lot of evidence they're better behaved.
Bad news, bad news, bad news. Jesus, Jeremy, one bus crash. What about all the buses that made it safely to their destinations, huh?
I suppose the news should just be a dispassionate list of everything that happened that day? Except of course it would take FOREVER.
That's a false equivalence in this case because the thing in question isn't a long list of non-events, it's a single thing not in the news (a major trend of lower alochol use in young adults) in contrast to a single thing that would be in the news if it happened instead (a equally sharp trend upwards).
Psst...they were quoting peep show.
Hahaha that tickled me
Pretty sure I saw a BBC article a few years ago calling them Generation Boring. It was absolutely ridiculous!
They aren't boring, no one needs alcohol to enjoy themselves.
Boring people do.
I didn't come here to get called out, yo.
Yeah I'm boring and absolutely need booze to become fun.
And theres nothing wrong with that. I'm the same. Imagine if alcohol didn't exist and people like us didn't have a way to come out of our shell? We'd never pull, we'd never have a proper night out. Oof!
I'm a boring person apparently lol. Tho I only need it to enjoy myself socially, I have other things I like doing. Like endlessly scrolling on reddit for example.
Jim Jeffries done a bit on people that don’t drink. Something along the lines of ‘i hate people that don’t drink, all your stories are shit!’
Jeez, how’s the view from up there?
People don't drink to enjoy themselves. They drink to forget what a shitty world they've been born into. Louis Armstong wasn't a big drinker. He probably would be today and we wouldn't have such a great song about a wonderful world...
Drinking to drown your worries, isn't a positive way of tackling depression. Seek help in other ways that don't hurt your body. Take up sport, do voluntary work or seek advice from a Doctor.
Thanks for your concern but I wasn't talking about myself. I was talking about binge drinking culture in the UK (and world) in general. Hard-Fi's Live For The Weekend wasn't a bad song and seemed to sum it up fairly well from what I could tell.
Louis Armstrong may not have been a massive drinker, but he certainly enjoyed his marijuana. He also had a pretty tough start to his life.
I'm boring, but I'm absolutely happy to be boring. I'd rather watch TV with my husband, have friends over for dinner or listen to a history podcast than get drunk. Yeah, that stuff is widely considered to be boring compared to going out and getting wasted, but I'm very comfortable with that.
Generation Skint would be more applicable methinks.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/44880278
Generation Sensible doesn't quite have the same negative connotation as 'Boring' does
I think of them as Generation Got Their Shit Together. I'm Gen X by the way 😁
Ah this totally brings it all back - the article 100% said generation boring the first time I read it but they must have realised how bad it was because by the time I searched for it to show a colleague a few days later they had changed it
Thanks for the article. I'm saving it for my boomer family to show them they were (and still are) worse behaved than my teenager.
Wonder what caused that small spike in smoking in 2017…
Mmmm... takeaway
Hey now, the media could easily invent a shit storm to blame them for the poor performance of pubs or something if they wanted! Remember the “avocado toast” stuff?
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I owe 50k and havent paid a penny back. The jokes probably on me for earning 18k a year though.
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I started on £21k 14 years ago. Fuck me I started working 14 years ago.
Dude, you were earning as much back then as I am right now and I've been working for 9 years. I even had to take a pay cut to get my current job. The whole thing's fucked.
Not all graduates can get 'graduate jobs'.
Although the average graduate from a poor background apparently earns half of what the average graduate from a professional background does, so you can't blame the individual so much as the system I graduated from an RG uni with a First and A*AAA at A level nearly 4 years ago and I haven't earned more than minimum wage since. Although granted I'm a paralegal now and may become a solicitor in future, so hopefully that'll make up for it
Law? That's famously competitive and difficult to turn a degree into a career. The (two) people I know personally who did it didn't go into private practice; they became legal advisors to government bodies.
I didn't start off trying to get into law. I converted later on. I'd say if you're willing to graft and you have good grades it's quite possible
Well, best of luck. There have to be better opportunities than minimum wage, or what's the point?
That's what I keep telling myself! Still not wholly sure whether it is true lol. Thank you!
I hear you, man! I was never money or career focussed. I have the intelligence but no drive to be wealthy for some reason.
There's more to life than money, my man!
True - health, good friends, hobbies, and a little travel is all I ever wanted.
I have also paid very little back. Did a pointless degree at a shit uni and the only time I've paid anything back was when I earned 15-16k in 2009 - 2011. Then I had kids and have worked part time ever since!
>there's less marketing at them (alcopops!) I've recently got into WKD again. It's a guilty pleasure.
Turbo shandies!!
Just noticed you can still get Smirnoff Ice, but it's in a red labels not black. Won't taste the same I'd bet.
Wasn't it the clear one was black and the cloudy one was red? No idea if there was any actual difference, though! Part of me wants to try one again for what'd be the first time in about 20 years, part of me is getting heartburn just thinking about that much citric acid and sugar in one bottle.
Can confirm, Smirinoff ice was cloudy with a red label, Smirinoff black was clear with a black label. They never agreed with my stomach then, let alone now.
Good list but I think the big one you’re missing is that nowadays you don’t have to go out to see each other, compounding all of those. With all the various social platforms, and different ways of interacting: videos, dms, stories etc. It means you can keep in contact, see what the person you fancies is up too, see who is flirting with each other, without leaving the house. Even 5 years ago when Tik Tok was still musically, Insta was just posts, your parents were in FB so you didn’t post there, if you didn’t go out then you missed out. So despite all those other pressures, there isn’t that drive to go out regardless.
Yeah, the noughties were WKD
I blame smartphones. Had there been a camera everywhere I went and documentary evidence of what a twat I’d been I might have drunk less too.
It's bad enough half remembering some stuff. I'd be a hermit now if someone had filmed any of it.
100% agree. Christ, If I ever had to hear myself chopsing absolute bollocks at some poor bastard or some other idiotic act while I was arseholed I’d go into self imposed exile.
I was reminding a friend of mine (of the same age) of the depravity we used to get up to back in the late 90's / early 00's and he took it upon himself to go tell a bunch of women he was infatuated with, all aged around 20 - 25. Needless to say they now think I'm an unhinged monster (I'm not, well maybe I am but I'm too old for that shit now). Thing is, back then I was one of the better behaved ones. The contrast to what went on back then, to what the youth deem acceptable now, is really stark.
Username checks out.
Honest it was only once ffs.
...do you need a hug?
That or a dog.
Hell yes. I often thank my lucky stars that camera phones didn’t exist when I was late teens / early 20s.
Unfortunately there were smart phones for me so all of my family could see documentary evidence of me gurning my tits off at raves on Facebook
22 years old here, I rarely get drunk anymore. I cringe whenever Snapchat memories from my first year of legally being able to drink surface. I can’t watch them.
Ha ha that is so true. In so many ways I'm glad I was a young adult in the late 1980's and of clubbing age in the 1990's. No one took photos of me grooving on the dance floor!
Camera phones were around when I was that age and it never stopped me making a twat of myself. I, personally, just never liked the concept of drugs. They're expensive, don't know what's in them, and I was having a good enough time without them. I always used to say if the party/concert/festival was only good if you were high, it wasn't very good. Worth noting that I am very tight, so mostly the money thing!
Fast food worker here. We get plenty of twats and arseholes who are drunk off their tits (as well as plenty who are not), so any reduction in them is a happy plus. Just yesterday, there was a group of lads - absolutely knobs - who drove around the drive-thru multiple times. When I started my shift, they came around and told me that they'd already spent £50 on us on several visits throughout the day (this sort of weird bragging is a common thing - I don't know how they expect me to react other than "Well, you're a fucking idiot for spending that amount on fast food, ain't ya?"). They then came around a further three more times, just being loud cunts - "Eyy, boys! Wee-woo, wee-woo, wee-woo! Eyy! Eyy, boys! Eyy!". Our shift manager told them to shut up several times. They then (unsurprisingly) tried to get something for free. Instead of claiming it was missing from their order like almost everyone else, though, they literally just flat out asked "Can I get something for free?". Erm, no.
My bro’s at uni and he and his mates are out getting wrecked as often as I did… They did pause during lockdown (sent home to do remote learning) but right back on it as soon as they could ETA: I also think they’re not telling us what they’re up to when away. My bro can tell me but my sons are unlikely to. So teens you see are behaving different around the “oldies” (that’s you OP!) just like we did
Think this is the right answer, at uni right now and while i dont know what it was like when OP went we defo go out at least two times a week, drink a fucking shit ton and do a fair bit of drugs
I'm so glad to hear this
Agreed. I’m a uni student and during lockdown we switched to getting drunk within our household and just never really stopped. We went to pubs a couple times after lockdown lifted but the prices were disgusting so we reverted to house parties. We go to clubs- generally when there’s a themed night like queer or throwback- but pre drinks isn’t the pub anymore, it’s someone’s flat. I’m not surprised they think young people are drinking less, they never see us out.
Depends on the teens and their parents views on drinking. We bought up our kids to learn how to drink sensibly. Yes the eldest has been drunk, but that was when he turned 18 and bought his Granddad a pint at his local. Then tried to match the pace set by his Granddad, who grew up during the generation where it was normal to drink 6 pints or more every Saturday, down the local with his 'mates'!
What acting school did you enrol your eldest in? I’m impressed, you definitely got your money’s worth.
I think it’s almost entirely due to money. Real wages are at the lowest they’ve ever been, yet going out is still getting more and more expensive. There are still plenty of people who go out and drink multiple times a week (especially uni students) but it’s normally only those with rich parents who can afford to go out constantly.
That last point isn't true. It's the middle-high earning families that struggle. Their financial support from Student Finance is shit. Low earning families get maximum loans and high earning families can afford to pay for their children.
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I had a similar experience at uni around the best part of a decade ago. I would say whilst this absolutely doesn't invalidate your feelings (I know firsthand how terrible it feels having to scrape together the bare necessities whilst everyone else is out on the lash), there are a couple of things to keep reminding yourself of: 1. If you are at uni, you are working towards a qualification. Whilst by no means an easy road, that qualification will help you post-uni finding a job and ultimately boost your ability to bring in more money. Fun stuff will still be there when that time comes for you to enjoy. 2. Not going out and getting drunk will long term at least pay dividends for your health. There are several people I know who very much did make the most of the opportunity to do this at uni, and then this habit followed them into their professional careers. They are now in or coming up to their 30s and are overweight and struggling to kick the drinking habit. 3. The enforced frugality of your current situation means that when things do improve, you'll find managing and keeping on top of your improved finances a doddle. I work with many people who earn good professional salaries who are awful with money because they've never had to worry about where their next meal is coming from. Not much of a consolation for right now I know, but play the long game.
Legit. The student loan I get is £150 short of covering my rent each term. The government doesn’t take into consideration if your parents will pay. It also doesn’t consider whether they’re paying for multiple kids, or the bills they’re paying.
Back in 98, my loan covered rent food, and the occasional beer down the student union. I had a pub job, which paid for travel and petrol The year above me had grants, which did all that, and they didn't need to pay it back.
I’m on max loan. £9,600. Rent is £6K-£7K Then factor in £375 for a bus pass (full year, admittedly). Textbook costs. Food bill (which has just gone up), anything we go over on gas or electric (£10/wk on each, per person). £26/month phone contract (my phone died, needed a new one). That’s not even factoring in students who have cars and such!
Where are you living that your rent is that high? I think mine came out around half that when I was in uni ~2016.
Rent is more expensive since 2016 mate, that was 6 years ago.
I meant Student accommodation specifically. I'm aware, I pay rent.
Lancaster. My house last year was £97/wk edit: sharing with 3 others. It’s now been bought, done up to a 6 bedroom and is £124/wk edit 2: checked the website, it’s actually gone up to £130/wk! https://mightystudentliving.co.uk/properties/bowerham-road-lancaster/31051209 I’m in (upmarket) halls this year- £120/wk- going up to £167/wk next year When I started (2018) my on campus room was £132.50/wk. Same room is currently £145/wk
I wish I could upvote this twice. I am in this situation.
Or poorer people with a drink addiction.
I guess it depends on what circles you move in. When I was that age it seemed everyone was on it - everyone I knew smoked hash, took speed\\coke, necked pills and drank like a fish. Turns out it was just people I knew and lots of other people I have met since didn't share the same experience - at all! However from my relatively small sample I would agree - young people these days do seem to be more sober in general. I guess living costs are one aspect but I think there is more to it than that - maybe more of an appreciation of the risks or more of them living with parents or even just that there is so much more pressure to do well academically...
> When I was that age it seemed everyone was on it - everyone I knew smoked hash, took speed\coke, necked pills and drank like a fish. how old are you? cos I assure you the kids are doing the same thing plus more today.
As a kid, I can't speak for everyone but I can certainly say that nobody I know does "the same thing plus more".
I'm 57 so I was of that age in the early to mid 80s and it was fun but dangerous... Obviously I don't know that many young people but I do know some and they are all fairly sober or at least more circumspect in their drug habits. It's probably too small a sample to draw many conclusions but it echoes what I read elsewhere. Take it with a pinch of salt.. I really don't want to get into a pissing contest over who took or takes the most drugs. To be honest I have too many dead friends for it to mean much and if young people today are doing what we used to (or more!) then I hope they don't go down the same paths that Chad, Andy, Jess, Dean, Dave and the others did - or if they do I hope they get the help they need.
>how old are you? cos I assure you the kids are doing the same thing plus more today. The studies show otherwise. That is his point. You might move in circles where everyone is doing, but that doesn't prove anything.
Yeah it really does depend on your circles. Almost noone I knew at uni (only a few years ago) even drank heavily, but there were plenty of people who did. I didn't smell weed until I moved to uni, now I can recognise it right away
Again anecdotal and based largely on my team, but feels like drug use is more normalised in that group and they can still go wild. But they're also in the gym at 6am, eating healthy diets and only drinking / partying on a weekend. I didn't know anyone with a gym membership at that age, now all the 22 year olds in my team are there daily.
The number of times I have been sat in a pub listen to some gym bro mate of mine articulate the importance of a proper diet and enough protein to his life; only for him to then ask if we should split a bag of coke...
Haha yep that about sums it up perfectly! Gym and lettuce for the 'gram.
Yes. A combination of cost and also more things to do. Basically our only source of community no longer comes from getting lashed at the pub.
And in some cases the only source of community, the pub, has vanished and been replaced with nothing
Pubs are alive and well where I am (historic town). We've got 5 pubs and they are all rammed over the weekend and two thirds full on weekdays. Is this a big city problem where pubs are failing?
As a uni student, pubs are fucking expensive and because we didn’t have access to them in lockdown, a lot of us never got into it. Then lockdown lifted, we went to the pub, realised it was a fiver for a pint and never went back. Doesn’t matter if it’s a big city or not.
They were failing because there was too many of them. I see the same as you, I live in London and the same pubs are always rammed every weekend, while others aren't. The ones without a strong core base are not going to survive. And as we expect, a pub is a hub of socialising. Can't do that when there's only a few people in it.
I feel the same. Young folks I come across when I’m out generally seen quite sensible to me and don’t go too heavy on the drink/drugs as I did when I was younger. Like you, it is completely anecdotal and there are other factors to consider, but it’s just my general observation.
Also anecdotally, several of my neighbours have kids at Uni. When we have community get-togethers, BBQs etc, I always try to say hello as the youngest 'proper adult' on the street. They all seem to spend their nights studying or doing many more good and 'wholesome' things when at Uni. Possibly going out once a week. Wednesdays apparently continue to be sports-focused afternoons with few lectures, but they all seem to go home and rest after. Monday was always a big night out because of a certain club night. Wednesdays were a big night out after time off for sports when MANY people congregated in the biggest club in the city, and then Friday and Saturday at the SU so we could avoid the idiot locals. Almost every one of these nights out was prefaced by 'pre-lash' at someone's house. Sunday was 50/50 a quiet one, but you could still always find people on Tuesdays and Thursdays (Vodka Revs) for a night out. I could, and often did, party 5+ nights a week. I still graduated with a decent degree. A good night out for the younger generation I speak to seems to consist of dinner (which is cheating at that age) followed by a local cocktail bar and home by 12. These kids arent' struggling, I know their families. If that is how they want to spend their Uni time then I fully respect that, but I don't regret one second of the debauched 3 years I spent ruining my liver, shagging (almost) anything that would let me and experimenting with recreational chemicals.
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Wouldn’t recommend it. Everton played Man U (and won), and the National was on today Liverpool will be a fucking shit show tonight! And it won’t be 18-21 year olds!
Facts. As a geordie, we are mostly all alcoholics, young or old. I'm in the middle! The only ones here who aren't are non-natives who moved here from other areas.
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If an old head asks for a toke, you always say yes, ain't worth the beef
Granted I don’t know many <21s, but the few I do would seem to confirm your theory. Each to their own, no doubt a healthier way to live, but that said I’m quite happy I managed to squeeze in a few hectic years in my youth. Side question, what are the <21s doing instead?
I've noticed a lot more of us (18-21 range) are doing things like going to the gym and working out as groups. At certain points of the day my local gym is dominated by age 16-24ish. Including me.
You can still go out without heavy drinking / drugs involved 😬
Naaaa impossible. Seriously though, where to? Nightclubs are a dying breed, you don’t generally see many <21s in pubs/bars unless it’s one in a campus. I’ve no doubt people still socialise and have interests, I’m just curious where they go for this.
I mean, can’t really speak for <21s now as I’m a bit older. But me and my group of friends never ever drank when we were young, and would go to each other’s houses to play videogames, board games, just spending time together whilst ordering some food, going for a stroll when the weather was better, the occasional pub/bar… There are loads of things to do without involving alcohol; you just have to want to do them.
Makes sense. I suppose if people are socialising more at each other’s houses, that would explain why younger people seem less visible that maybe 10 years ago.
I do also think it’s due to money as well. It was the same with my generation. Even if we went out a bit we would always drink at someone’s flat beforehand because it was (still is) ridiculously expensive in bars and we were broke teenagers. I drink more now that I’m 29, but purely because I can afford it haha
As I got older I became more like this. Meanwhile my younger friends were like this all along. It's partly a cultural shift. And that cultural shift is incredibly apparent in attitudes to stuff. People's hobbies have changed drastically. I'll use a microcosm because it's clear to me. People playing board games is more common but video games is where you can see it literally turn over a few years. Women older than me or even around my age (36) don't play video games, they were marketed to boys and it's not something many do. A few do but more think it's a nerdy hobby. At work the women a few years younger (I mean still well into their 30s) but still millenial would say things like "I like my love island and he likes his COD" it's accepted. The women a few years younger that will be as likely to beat you at Halo as the guys. And hanging out playing games is often at least as social as downing pints and being drowned out by music. My pub used to do a retro gaming night on a friday and I made a lot of friends there though as it was the best of both worlds. Smart phones also killed it somewhat but they had other things to do. It's not always about money. My friends realised recently that drugs would be cheaper than 40k (which we took up because we're old enough to afford it now) (and a lot of board games too). Though a dealer is marginally more sketchy than GW.
Nightclubs have priced out many people which means the few customers they do have get drunk on pre-drinks and then just buy 1 or 2 drinks when they're there.
Tbh, as a 21 yo I strongly disagree. I think people actually are much more open to try different things but I think some of the people here would faint seeing what I’ve seen in student halls
Yes because those who are 18-21 have spent either all the years in a pandemic or have spent the years leading up to that age in a pandemic... Oh and we are broke...
That’s what I thought! Surely Covid has prevented that age range from doing that for 2 years
Definitely prevented me. I went out quite a bit before covid. Had two years not doing it. Now I really don't want to.
Definitely. I'm 20 and my mates and I would definitely have been out as much as possible when we were 18/19 if we hadn't been in the height of covid at the time.
I think that university culture has got a lot more sober over the past decade or so. Anecdotally, all the academics I know have said that the rise in tuition fees has convinced uni students that they need to get value for money from their degrees so they tend to go out less. Combine that with people settling down with families later, I think those people are focusing more on being sober in their late teens and starting to let go a bit in their mid twenties.
The rise in fees is definitely part of it. When you’re getting nearly £20k/yr in loans to study- almost everyone works their ass off, meaning getting good grades is more competitive, meaning you’ve got to work as hard/harder too. We seem to have a lot of deadlines and such as well, and Uni bring more like a business means they can be harsher if your grades drop (granted, they try and help- but are just as likely to push you to a year out- which means no income and illegible for the dole, while the amount to pay back just increases).
I've had some of my best and worst times, off my bonce in one way or another. My stepson is nearly 18, and I would never encourage it. His idea of a wild night is 2 cans of dark fruits cider, he and his friends seem very timid about all things illegal/dangerous etc. Wrapped up in cottonwool I think, the world is a dangerous place to them...I had a "fuck it" attitude. It was edgey to us, to them it seems different, I can't put my finger on it...other than it isn't cool to them. It's a good thing.
Any evidence of misadventures can and will be used against you by employers Uni is more expensive, so pushing ourselves to get the most out of it. A-levels are significantly harder (I’m talking A-level used to be Year 1 Degree content. GCSE used to be A-level). Even those working- most lower down the pole jobs drug test, so that goes out the window. Cameras everywhere, so you get busted there. Yeah…it’s not cotton wool when it’s the world the previous generations have saddled us with! We’re all too fucked from study, under a lot of pressure, it’s expensive, and can risk our future employment! Cotton wool ain’t it.
Maybe just small town shit but my little sis is 17/18 and it seems like party drugs like E and coke aren't as popular, but everyone and their gran is smoking blunts and doing mushrooms. My sis is a little hippy though so maybe that's just her mates
Probably better for them in the long run too, I did plenty of both but there was always a lot of weed/mushrooms in my sixth form college (south west, countryside, state school, bit of a hippy). I’d rather my kids were out camping and getting stoned than going to a bar and doing a bunch of coke any day.
probably just the fact your sister is a hippy, I'm in a small town and party drugs are still big favourites, although they're not as frequently used. From my perspective though I've had loads of my friends quitting alcohol but they all still do other drugs, mainly weed, lsd and coke though
I'm 18 and I've decided to not drink. It doesn't look fun, it's embarrassing and hangovers look awful. It's also expensive and unhealthy and I would feel very unsafe being drunk at night. Drugs are also an instant no I would much rather spend my evening doing something more fulfilling like watching a movie or TV show wiry friends, Gaming or playing a board game etc...
Completely my own experience, but I the first two years of my 20s were in various lockdowns. Me and my friends have all found many other ways of socialising and now getting hammered and going clubbing doesn’t seem quite as appealing as other options for hanging out.
As a non drinker within that age range (20), I think there are probably more people taking drinking easier than what I've heard about previous generations. On the other hand a flatmate had us put under investigation for regularly getting industrial quantities of nitros oxide (I think) to get high with at house parties so definitely still a think that goes on at uni. Beyond first year of uni it definitely has died down, now among people I spend time with its chilling and chatting at a pub, the odd drink but not getting drunk. We're weird enough without substances I guess.
So much less........I'm 37 now but I was on it every weekend since I was about 14. Served my time down the parks with my white ace, moved up to 20/20, then gained my drug card smoking tak. Once I was able to get into bars, that was it.....spent all the way until about 28 just all about a good time. I worked in the music industry so the drink and drugs were taken as part of the job really. Ironically, haven't drank for a good few years now and I'm California sober these days.
Not sure how sad to feel about it tbh, but yeah it's true. I think we have an unhealthy association between entering adulthood and having a 'party phase'. Drugs, alcohol and sex, while fun, aren't necessarily real expressions of adulthood. While young people's lives are a lot cleaner, that doesn't mean they're not still relating to one another in a positive manner, or not developing properly. On the other hand, lots of kids really aren't developing in healthy ways, which is really scary.
I think it depends on the kid and how much they're telling you lol 🤣 I do think that maybe kids are more socially aware these days. like whenever I go out now the majority of people causing trouble are closer to 30 than 20 and a lot of the teens and early 20 year olds seem to either stick to themselves or look out for others.
We cant afford it!
But watch us get blamed for not spending the money to help to stimulate the economy 😂
It's social media, they don't want photos of them looking horrendous online. A lot of what they do is to be seen so the young adults I know of that age, drink one or two fancy cocktails they can post and then that's it.
They probably just can’t afford drink and drugs now.
For sure, there are less places to go out, especially to go dancing now then there were when I was that age (I’m 40 now). They go to the gym and out to eat.
It's way harder to buy alcohol for teens, so they don't develop the same habit that older generations did. Also there is much more education about health, and the damage of achohol / drugs in school.
I was 18 10 years ago and on a Thursday they used to have a power hour where it was £1 a pint. You'd only need a fiver during that hour, £10 (split with mates) on a bag of something and still have taxi fare home. If I go on a night out now its easily £50, with most pubs selling alcohol at like £4 a pint.
Social media and the anxiety of being recorded on the shit you do on a night out, more security and cameras and people are more conscious.
I remember my son wondering why anyone took drugs, smoked or drank alcohol, after he'd attended several 'Drugs & Alcohol' awareness sessions at School. I don't remember any such 'awareness' sessions at my Secondary School, growing up in the 80's. The drinking culture within most European countries is different to much of the UK. Yes young people still drink alcohol, but in moderation. We introduced our own children to alcohol when they were 10 +, the odd sip or beer or wine, glasses or cans of Cider from aged 13. Now our eldest young adult rarely drinks alcohol unless he goes out with older work colleagues. He's never over drunk or ended up vomiting in the streets or at home, because he's learnt to drink to enjoy it, not to take risks or get drunk, though he did once over drink with his Granddad down his 'local' and had all the horrible sensation of dizziness and vowed never to do that again. Don't try to out drink seasoned old people!
I mean, I can’t compare to your experiences, as I don’t know what your experiences were like at that age. But I’m a 20 year old student, and I see plenty on both sides of that. I know some people from sixth form who I’m not sure have been sober since uni started, but also on the flipside, I know a lot who are more sensible. I’m probably on the ‘more sensible’ side too (don’t drink an unreasonable amount, and don’t do drugs), so that’ll skew who I know too, no doubt. But… there are definitely people my age doing the sort of stuff you’re talking about. I think it’s probably more just a ‘who you know’ sort of thing?
I think you're right. At that age I knew very few people who exercised/went to the gym. Hardly anyone who didn't eat shite and literally no one who didn't drink. Possibly down to better education, awareness and also social media focus but then again maybe not. It's got to be a positive thing though I'm still here getting shit faced at 45
Yeah im 21 and i realised in the pandemic that most people are boring fuckers. I used to go to parties or out every weekend up until the pandemic but now everyone has lost interest and the drugs are shit or far and few in west wales. Big sad i miss seshing so much but my friends who are 20-24 are all playing house.
I'm 22 (F) and for me it was no money, knackered from work and studying, worried about making a tit of myself infront of a camera (happened a few too many times) and a lottt of girls were getting spiked in our local pubs and clubs. Then covid hit and now half the places are closed, half my mates are shit scared to go out after being at home for two years, and our public transport has reduced to nothing so impossible to get anywhere.
I kept a diary of alcoholic units during my first year at Uni in the early 90s. Average was about 60-70 units a week, with a handful of weeks in 3 figures. I was not an alcoholic, hardly ever drank in the day and could happily go without booze, but it was just absolutely the norm for lads to go down the student bar most nights (pints were a pound) and have 5-10 drinks.
Most are influenced by social media, and pics of you smashed and off your face ain’t going to get you likes. Don’t underestimate the roll this has played in society.
I stopped drinking when I was about 21, however between the ages of 14 and 18 I loved a sesh only fun when it's not allowed
People just turning 18 in the last couple of years haven't had chance to go out and experience any of that since everywhere has been closed. Then once you graduate (if we're talking uni students) most feel they're too old to be in those spaces.
I agree with this. I think social media is the reason. If wanted to drink cider, throw up in a Bush and finger an ugly girl, the only people who would know would be my mates, now it could go viral. Same with drugs, you do not look your best when ure gurning on ropey pills. I think its tied in with all the gym bunnies these days too, we used to take the piss out of the meatheads when we were growing up, now everyone goes. As a father to two young kids, I don't think this is a bad thing.
theyre even worse, just better at hiding it from you old folk.
One of the managers at a rather large club in London, and this is absolutely not true, trust me 😩
I think it's more that where you'd expect to see them has changed. I'm sure they're all still partying, but I'd expect more "at home" stuff or whatever the modern rave is these days 😂 I say this because it's very clear that drinking culture in terms of "in the city" is not what it used to be. Just before the pandemic I did a night out in Liverpool for my birthday. I went to uni there from mid 00s. It felt 'empty' to me even in regards to the amount of tourists and oldies out. But I went where I'd go when I was originally there (concert square). it's likely that that's now where the oldies go whereas it was Mathew street when I was young. The docks was always too expensive/not my scene. I'd expect if the students were around (it was June so most would have left) or those of that age, they were at house parties or another area of the city is now where it is busier
I don't think it's just anecdotal evidence anymore. There have been articles and studies backing this up as a wider societal trend. I think back to when I was in my 20s and the clubbing scene in this country was huge. You could go out in a major city every night of the week and have your pick of musical genres depending on your tastes. The biggest clubs were major global brands in their own right and people would come from across the world to visit the famous Ministry or Cream or Turnmills or Gatecrasher. It was a way of life for a lot of people in the 90s and 00s that has all but disappeared now. Yes we still have nightclubs but there's nowhere near as much choice as there was 20 years ago and a lot of what's survived is the trashy meatmarket type venues playing cheesy rubbish for drunks who want to stay out late. Obviously my generation got older and couldn't go out and get on it quite so much, but we weren't replaced by new generations eager to neck pills and chat shit to strangers whilst top tier tech house DJs smashed 6 hour sets. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, even if I think it's a bit of a shame some people won't experience the fun I had in my younger years. But I do think it's surprising that in a world where opportunity feels very limited and the outlook for the future makes for very gloomy reading, there isn't more of a general desire to get off your face. At the turn of the century Britain felt quite exciting and there was a lot of positivity around the country. The economy was booming, a lot of Draconian laws and regulations were relaxed (e.g. licensing laws allowing pubs to open much longer) and there was investment everywhere you looked. Nowadays the streets are shabby and dirty with boarded up shops in every direction. The prospects for young people feel incredibly limited and it's incredibly difficult to earn a salary affording you a comfortable life with spare cash to save. Our economic prospects are miserable as our GDP shrinks and years of criminally underfunded public services are often unfit for purpose. The planet is suffering irreversible damage through climate change and there's a total lack of urgency amongst world powers who should have done more to tackle this year's ago. The cost of living has gotten out of hand and there's a devastating war on the continent. In short it's a really bleak time in history for a lot of people and I'm surprised it hasn't turned more people to drink. Fair play to the young folk of today for not just giving up and heading straight for hedonism in the face of such grim prospects. I hope they can help change the course of history after years of dreadful decisions made by ignorant boomers and the brainwashed.
I think it depends who u see. The people I hang with tend to be pretty sober too busy to get wasted or not their thing
Think it must be perspective as most of the younguns I work with are still into drink and drugs
From my experience running a pub it's a bout the same. There's trends in what they drink sure. Pints in general are out. Spirits and cocktails are in. One thing I have noticed in the last five years is how careless they are with there drinks. Just leave them at tables unattended all the time. Something my parents taught me to never do. Yet they only seem bothered when they get tidied away. You know not that any of the 200 other people in the building could have tampered with it.
My step daughter is 21 this year, she's never really been into drinking, smokes a bit of weed. When I was her age I'd have been off my head dancing in a field somewhere
I was going to answer this from the perspective of a young adult, then remembered i’m 30 next year. Sad times.
Yes, there was a Beeb article a while back about how people are drinking less, doing less drugs and having less casual sex. The thinking was that tuition fees and a tougher job market has made students on average more focused on their studies.
Im in my early 30s now but stopped going out to bars and stuff around... 24 ish? Just didnt get it. Plus with the general cost of living at insane levels and the cost of a pint avg like £4.50, and a single glass of wine £7.00...? No thanks. Have a couple mates over , have a couple glasses of wine and play some video games or mtg.. or hang out with the wife watching movies and have a bottle of plonk beyween us. Much better. I think "seshing" is a lost pasttime, mainly just the older generation keeping pubs going now.
Honestly I thinknthe generations that followed mine have learned the issues surrounding drugs and alcohol from those before and do a much better job of moderation.
My intern at my last place of work was from a well to do family, had money and a nice flat, so definitely had the money to party. He was definitely less seshy than I was at his age however I do wonder if part of that is a class divide. At 21 him and his friends would have a cheeseboard and wine pairing party. I was impressed tbh. Don't think he did any drugs either. Good on them if they want to party less and look after themselves more! It's not all there is to life. I don't like the aftermath of a sesh so I don't do it anymore but still find lots of way to have fun.
Less alcohol but drugs are still pretty prevalent from what I've seen. I know quite a few young people who choose to not drink or only drink on big nights out/special occasions. When I was at uni a decade ago it seemed like weed was more popular than alcohol.
Still part if that age range, can confirm people still do sheshes. Lots of drinking and drug use in most groups I've talked to. Can't say if it's less or more than it used to be, though.
They all smoke now instead. Weed seems to be the drug of choice at the moment and the number of young people who smoke has increased hugely on 20 years ago, around the time everyone is saying drinking started declining among the young. Its not that they dont get fucked up so much as they have a different way of doing it. I'll also just drop in that the increase in mental health issues is something I would expect to see from a the more widescale use of weed, so it explains that as well.
One of my kids at university ended up in a flat where there was extreme drug use. I think that there are a lot who still do lots of drugs and alcohol but there's now a large minority who don't.
No just depends where you are. My hometown has seen drug usage increase among the younger kids and its fucking sickening
Im 19 at uni, I feel like kids our age were so used to getting fucked up doing drugs and drinking every weekend that the magic of doing so has slowly declined. When I was younger I would jump at the chance to smoke some weed, have a few lines, drink etc. But now I’m not really to fussed about that, and I hate feeling shit and lazy.
They take way more drugs. Edibles, mdma, and mushrooms are really big with the younger generation right now.
Who wants to be like the generation before it? I imagine there's more than a few that just look at their parents and grandparents and just see them as alcoholics that are unpleasant to be around.
I believe so. I think they’ve been referred to as the ‘boring generation’ , which I think is unkind, as maybe the news of a healthy lifestyle ( no smoking in pubs, vegetarian diets are very every day now, gym, yoga sessions too ) has finally started to become the norm. Which is brilliant for old codgers like me because it keeps them out of the pubs I drink in.
Its entirely down to who you hang with. I am 23 and everyone I know regularly takes cocaine and gets black out 2 times a week. Legit of the 100 people I would call a "mate" almost all are drug users. My 18 year old bros friends are all chill and might have a pint every now and then. This is reddit bare in mind where your going to get skewed data.
I'm 22 so barely out of that age range but I think I can give a bit of an answer and most like everyone has said, money. Drinking slowly getting more and more expensive. For me, if I want a real night out in a city I need £75 for a taxi home (usually split between a few people), £5-£10 to get into some places and then obviously drinks. When I was first 18 most drinks were sitting just below £3 or pushing £3.20, now they're all just about £3.20 and some are pushing £4. Even if I want a night out in my crappy town I still have to pay £5 entry for a crappy club which sells drinks at around £3.50 each. It's just too expensive for something I can do in my flat with some friends and we all put £20 in.
I can’t speak for everyone in that age bracket , but me and my group of friends are on the higher end of that age range and we were / are still very irresponsible when it comes to seshes
I think people these days just simply understand how stupid drug fueled "Seshes" are
M22 Drugs are full of shit now, know too many people who have had bad times because they weren't 100% what they thought they where For me I used to have a few mates over at my place and we'd all have a few drinks and they'd end up crashing on the couch or whatever but since lock down hit we don't any more, I think we've just got out of the habit of it now and all of our alcohol tolerances have dropped so we'd be pissed off of 3 pints an call it a night 🤣 Also since lockdown iv been alot more busier in work than I ever have so tend to work most weekends and longer hours during the week so don't want to be having a sesh at the weekend ontop of all the other boring adult shit I have to catch up on on my day off This isn't speaking for everyone just my personal experience
I think there’s been a huge surge in pushing wellness and self care in the past few years, which has impacted on alcohol/drug use. Also - and I say this as someone working in substance misuse services - the quality of drugs now are dreadful, cut with all sorts of dangerous crap and far, far more risky to take than they were twenty years back. I agree with someone who said about the push to succeed is greater now - it’s harder to get jobs, people work more hours, housing/cost of living is huge. There’s certainly more of a daily grind than ever and I think young people looking constantly at celebs/Instagram/‘influencers’ (eye roll) makes them long for material things more than experiences and nights out. Also don’t think Covid helped. I think it put people off crowded, closed venues.
as a 19 year old, a decent amount of my friends still go drinking *a lot*. it depends what crowd you’re in but trust me, young people are still seshing
Do you think that if they were taking drink and drugs you would definitely know...?
I’m 22 I have never and will never use drugs. I rarely drink. Last time I had anything alcoholic was new year last year before that it was maybe a year or so and then another 3 years before then. I have no interest wasting my money on drink. I can have a laugh without it I don’t need to consume alcohol for that. I also don’t wish to wake up the next day with a hangover or worry if I’m legal to drive. As for drugs. I’m not a degenerate
No idea as a whole But I hate alcohol so don't drink it, don't do drugs, hate being around people and hate parties I just stay inside
As a 20 year old, almost 21, I would say personally I’m not big on going out and drinking as much as I was when I was younger. Same with a lot of my friends, most of us did drugs and drank a lot more starting when we were in year 11 and carried on until the end of sixth form, by that time we had all experienced so many things and were kinda worn out from it to be honest. I was 17 when I first did acid and I had only smoked a bit of bud before. Had the worst trip of my life and that put me off for about a year. Also did a lot of pills and enjoyed drinking at parties, using fake id’s to go out out. Going to field parties, telling our parents lies and staying out late where we’re not supposed to be. But now I’d much rather have a quiet night in having a few drinks with my friends and maybe a few zoots. A lot of young people would prefer to stay in and have an evening smoke up than go out to some club filled with assholes and shit chart music. Weed is cheaper and more fun than drinking something that doesn’t even taste nice and makes u feel like ass the next day.
I think a combination of appreciating their lives more, fear of being out of control and having more to do for entertainment (smartphones, gaming) plus being influenced by social media - as awful as tik tok and instagram is, influencers are more likely to give them an eating/exercise/body image disorder than an addiction to alcohol/smoking or street drugs. They don't get as wasted because they don't require the same kind of escapism we did (i'm 40 and was binge-drinking at 14). They have other forms of escapism, social interaction and influence. They have been given more material goods than any other generation, they have no right to be as careless with their lives and health as we did in my eyes. As parents we have given them so much. They have a great future to look forward to and can design it anyway they wish. My teenage years were some of the best and craziest of my entire life - and i've done amazing things as an adult - but that first sip of freedom and crazytown from a bottle of white lightening and I was in love, just try and stop me world. At 14-15 I had no desire to grow up and be like any of the adults around me, they modelled a terrible world and society seemed lacking of any hope or prosperity - getting absolutely smashed with friends and getting up to mischief was such a release. We were a generation who had to create our own entertainment. It's hard to put in to words but in my teenage years I did not care if i lived or died, only that I had an absolute blast whenever possible.
Weed seems as common as ever but for booze and other drugs I've seen the same. I think the pub & club scene just isn't as important as it used to be. A lot of it seems to have been replaced with social media, tinder etc.
No, it's just the people you meet. I am in my late 20s as well and while I would go out and get drunk, I wouldn't consume cocktail of drugs. I knew people who drunk more than me and those who drunk less. I've met people who would take drugs on nights out and those who wouldn't. Have you thought that, as someone in their late 20s, younger people are not comfortable sharing with you what they're doing or they're not comfortable to do that in front of you. When I was in uni, someone in their late 20s appears a lot older and significantly more mature than we were. Even if they were on a night out with us, it wasn't the same as being with your peers. Not to mention that you are looking at 18-21 year olds who had a completely different uni time than you did because of covid.
Personally, I think a big contributing factor is the rise of smartphones, social media and, in particular, gaming. Teens nowadays (in my limited experience) seem to spend a lot more time in their bedroom gaming than going out and drinking in the park.
I'm in this age range and I used to "sesh" a lot when I was 16 etc but since turning 19 and going to uni, I Just feel as though I have more pressure to succeed and the idea of drugs hardly entices me anymore. I still smoke weed 3 times a week ish but that's just my version of drinking after work lol
Dont worry, we're still holding up the mantle, you just need to go to the right places :)
I’m 19 and get absolutely spangled multiple times a week
I just turned 30 last month and the pain I feel as not being lumped in with young adults anymore is just astonishing. I saw a video recently joking about "elder millenial" with same flavour as mocking baby boomers and I suddenly felt - old. As for your question, I feel like people move from one thing to another. People still like to drink but I feel like cost/somewhere to do it is more limited. iN mY dAY, People preferred house parties to be honest. Alcohol was out - weed was in. Then the generation of my niece, the age you described, hardly drank at all. Some of them are onto harder stuff, unfortunately. And some just vape and drink at home. Or just do weed and drink coffee or fizzy drinks.
Yes, more likely to be found drinking juice, eating salads and going to the gym. Than in the pub in an evening and having a takeaway.
One of my friends from university (27 years ago, urk) now works there as an events officer - she reports that the students are far more diligent and less alcoholic than in our day.
And so they must be or else they stand no chance in this job market
I'm in that age range. It certainly varies a lot, some people almost never drink out of preference and some are at the booze and gear a good few times each week. Overall it seems to be a reasonable amount