How community services are tackling substance abuse in students

Trends show that student drinking is down, but the threat of developing alcohol or drug addiction still looms, and is often hidden in plain sight. Fortunately, local and community services are on hand to tackle this still very current challenge. 

University can be a very stressful time for most students, with a significant amount facing issues such as exam stress, financial anxieties, loneliness, isolation, and mental health issues.

University is also a time where for many, there is an instilled culture of drinking and recreational drugs, whether it’s due to social pressure, exploring newfound independence, or just for a bit of fun.

Too often, a combination of these factors creates a risk of sending these young people down a dangerous path towards substance abuse and, in severe cases, full-blown addiction. 

Of course, this isn’t the case for everyone, and the occasional indulgence is common and to be expected at university, which can be done in a safe and positive way. However, it’s easy to lose your grip on control when the short-term dopamine boost from drinking or using drugs becomes a constant craving, and creates the facade of comfort in the face of whatever issues you may be dealing with. 

Interestingly, recent reports indicate that this problem is not as much of a threat as it was in years before, with Gen Z increasingly embracing sobriety, due to factors such as heightened health awareness and the cost of living. But although the numbers have decreased, that doesn’t mean that those who are susceptible to developing dependence face any less serious of a risk, and the struggle is still very real for many. 

According to research by charity SOS UK from 2024-2025, 14% of students who drank reported their reason for drinking alcohol as recreation to deal with stress, 8% to escape reality, 5% to cope with a difficult life event, and 4% to self-medicate for a mental health problem. In other words, as an unhealthy coping mechanism. Similarly, 13% of students who take recreational drugs reported that taking them made their mental health conditions worse, and 4% said that this caused a new mental health problem. 

One student struggling with alcoholism, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “I accidentally was self-medicating and I didn’t even realise it.

“Drinking’s the scaffolding I guess, and if you take that out it feels like it will kind of collapse.” 

Many nationwide substance abuse and addiction charities exist online to help those with these hidden struggles, but there is nothing more vital than the existence of local and community support. 

Sandhya Java is the Young Adults Recovery Coordinator at Wear Recovery, which is an addiction rehabilitation centre in Sunderland that provides one-to-one recovery support for physical and mental health and alcohol or drug detox confidentially and for free. She works with local young people aged 18-25 to build treatment plans and help improve their wellbeing. She said: “I think the fact that we’re in person, available on the ground, we’re accessible. I think that’s extremely important.”

“I could move around quite a lot, but because I work with them consistently throughout their journey, I do their assessments, which is basically step one, all the way until we see them to discharge. So it kind of helps in that continuity of care, as well as building rapport. Because I think that’s a massive part of coming into treatment, not knowing who you’re going to speak to, especially the worry and the scare of having to repeat your story to different people. I think we’ve tried to curb that, avoid that by having one person kind of do all of it.” 

Very often, people who are addicted to drugs or alcohol are burning the candle at both ends, as poor mental health can be a reason why they developed a dependence to begin with, but continues use, while creating the illusion of relief, actually feeds into worsening mental status, negatively impacting other aspects of their lives. 

“One of the first things that I would do is to say, Well, are you getting any mental health support? If you are, what does that look like? And if not, can i lay out a platter of options for you that are available.

“Obviously, I don’t have a magic wand, and nothing comes to immediately, but at least it’s knowing that there are options available, and it will come through in a couple of weeks, in a couple of months, We offer in house counseling as well, so we’ve got two lovely counselors and a clinical psychologist within the service.” 

Sandhya Java, Young Adults Recovery Coordinator at Wear Recovery

Wear Recovery isn’t the only option for students, as the University of Sunderland is also equipped with a wellbeing service that provides mental health advice and support. Welfare Advisor Ian Yarrow is part of the team, citing a worrying “rise in ketamine and nitrous oxide use amongst students in the UK.”

“The biggest effects that I see here in wellbeing are when substance use impacts an important aspect of a student’s life. This could be academic, work related, social, health or financial. Equally it may be the substance use of a close friend or relative that presents the impact.

“Quite often students avoid seeking help, for a variety of reasons, and getting past those barriers is probably the biggest difficulty in providing assistance.”

Young people struggling with addiction may find it difficult to reach out for help perhaps due to a deep-rooted shame, perhaps due to denial, or perhaps due to stigma. Whatever it is, it’s crucial to understand that there is non-judgemental, local, community help available, and Sandhya echoes these sentiments.

“I think the most important thing for us to do is to break that taboo and that stigma. I wish I could go on top of buildings and just shout that really, I’m just here to listen. I have no judgment. I’m not criticizing you really, I just worry. I worry.”