By Taryn Eby
It’s a stressful time to be a college student. The country’s economy is in a severe recession which means tuition is rising, loan money is drying up and the post-college job market is looking bleak. It’s no wonder a survey conducted by the Associated Press and mtvU shows 1 in 5 college students is stressed most or all of the time. An online article from MSNBC reports about stress faced by students.
The report shows many causes of stress including schoolwork and grades, financial problems and relationship and dating issues. At West Virginia University, three students take extreme measures to deal with the stress in their lives. One turns to drugs, another to alcohol and the last to sex.
DRUGS
Stress relief from a puff of smoke.
Matt, 21, who refused to give his last name, started smoking pot the summer before he started school at West Virginia University and now turns to it to relieve the stress in his life.
Matt says his number one stressor is schoolwork, followed by family problems and personal health issues. When pot is readily available, he turns to that to ease his stress, but he doesn’t like to smoke alone.
“Drinking alone is depressing. So is smoking. Pot is a social drug. I love to sit around and tell stories with friends while smoking,” said Matt.
While Matt uses pot to deal with his stress, he doesn’t feel the need to always have marijuana in his system.
“If I’m in a really stressful situation and I can’t smoke, it really freaks me out,” said Matt. “But it doesn’t bother me if I’m not high on a normal day.
Matt typically spends about $50 a week on marijuana, but he thinks it’s worth it because of the effect it has on his body.
“It’s relaxing. I have a lot of anxiety in my life and smoking pot calms me down,” Matt said. “I smoke pretty much every day. Sometimes multiple times a day.”
ALCOHOL
Stress relief in a bottle.
Brenna Metzler is like most other freshmen at West Virginia University. She drank some in high school and started drinking heavily once she got to WVU, the number four party school in the country according to the Princeton Review.
“I met a junior at work who ‘tutored’ me in drinking,” said Metzler. “She taught me how to take a beer bong and how to play drinking games.”
Metzler didn’t intend to become such a heavy drinker but the stresses of school started getting to her.
“It was just for fun at first, but once school started, I got so stressed out,” Metzler said. “It makes me feel better when I drink.”
Metzler, whose favorite drink in vodka and cranberry juice, typically spends about 30 dollars a week on alcohol and drinks an average of three nights a week.
“Being drunk makes me feel so free. I can do and say whatever I want and blame the alcohol. It’s great,” Metzler said.
SEX
Bruno's stress relieving space.
Tony Bruno lost his virginity when he was 16. Now 20, Bruno has sex with up to four different girls in a week. And it’s all because he’s so stressed out.
“Sex is exhilarating. It makes me feel alive and so happy,” Bruno said. “My stress level is pretty low because I have so much sex. When I haven’t had sex in a while, I get really stressed out.”
Bruno’s top three stressors are school, work, and worrying about his “booty calls” not being around to relieve his stress. In addition to taking 15 credit hours at WVU , Bruno works three nights a week, from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. as a bar back at Rain, a popular nightclub in downtown Morgantown.
While Bruno’s job is often stressful, he credits working at the bar for helping him meet a lot of girls. Though he’s often too busy to make friends with girls, he’s never too busy to make “regulars” of some of the girls he meets. By regulars, Bruno means girls he can add to his booty call list. Bruno rattles off six girls already on his list, looking like he’s accomplished something revolutionary.
“I’m pretty proud of myself. I don’t have to brag about it anymore because everyone knows,” said Bruno. “I don’t even care if people watch. I don’t take sex seriously.”
Edited by Travis Crum
