Setting Boundaries with Alcohol and Other Drugs

Welcome! This page and toolkit are your essential guide to Setting Boundaries with Alcohol and Other Drugs.

The information on this page aims to empower you with insights and practical strategies for navigating your relationship with alcohol and other drugs. Whether you're looking to not start using substances, reduce your own consumption, reassess your habits, or support someone in their sobriety journey, RISE Drug Free MKE is here to provide guidance and resources to help maintain a healthy lifestyle. 

For the Setting Boundaries with Alcohol and Other Drugs Campaign, RISE Drug Free MKE has partnered with Marquette University's basketball player, David Joplin, to talk about why it's important to set boundaries with substances as a college student and athlete.  

Setting Boundaries

Setting boundaries is about establishing limits for yourself in order to help you feel safe. It’s about balancing each aspect in your life that deserves your full attention and energy. Whether it’s work or school, friends or family, basketball or pottery, setting boundaries with alcohol and other drugs is crucial to your success in achieving your dreams. Here are a few tips for setting boundaries:

If You Are Under 21

If you are under 21, there's a very clear boundary set for you. Drinking alcohol is illegal. Consuming marijuana, commercial tobacco, and other substances except for medications for a health condition, is illegal, too. And the legal problems that will result from underage drinking could have long-term consequences for you. You may miss out on a scholarship or a job offer that you've worked hard to get. Plus, your brain is still developing up until age 27 or so. That means that if you're drinking or getting high, you're also harming your brain development. That can result in difficulty making good decisions, thinking critically, and developing your potential. So, if you're under 21, the boundary is clear: Substances are off limits. 

Be Clear About Your Boundaries

Write down clear and concise boundaries. Avoid using ambiguous phrases like "I won't drink that much tonight" and opt in for something like "I will only have two drinks tonight."

Practice Saying No

You always have the right to say "no" and you don't owe anyone an explanation. Here are some responses if someone offers you a drink or a joint:

• No, thank you.
• Not at this time. 
• I've decided not to. 
• I don't want to.

Boundaries Are to Protect, Not Control

Don't think of boundaries as things you're not allowed to do. If you set your boundaries in advance, maintaining those boundaries is an act of trust and respect in ourselves. 

Hold Yourself Accountable

When discussing boundaries with people, a key component is having reasonable consequences when someone crosses your boundary. Hold yourself to the same standards that you would hold someone else. 

Drinking Safety

If you're of legal age and decide to enjoy an alcoholic beverage, we hope you're taking proper precaution to make sure nothing ruins the night. Have a plan going into the night: know where you're going, know who is driving, and know what your limit is. 

Before you go out for a night, ask yourself why you're drinking in the first place. Are you drinking to avoid feelings of stress, sadness, anxiety, or anger? Alcohol can often make those negative feels more intense, providing only temporary comfort. 

Before you go out for the night, eat something! Eating high protein foods, like a burger or salmon, before or during the festivities will slow intoxication and keep you level headed for a bit longer. 

While you're out, pace yourself. Do your best to keep your alcoholic beverages to 1 drink or less per hour. This will not only help you stick to your limit, but give your liver time to process the alcohol. So no need to chug or slam your drinks, sipping will still allow you to feel the buzz. 

While you're out, hydrate. Have your drink next to a glass of water or alternate between an alcoholic beverage and a nonalcoholic beverage. Staying hydrated also helps keep the hangover away!

Download Before You Go Out For The Night | Download A Safer Night Out

While a "standard" drink is 5 ounces of a 12% ABV wine and 12 ounces of a 5% ABV beer, it's not always easy to tell how much alcohol is in a mixed drink. For example, red solo cups come in multiple sizes, ranging from 12 ounces to 18 ounces. Not knowing how much alcohol is in your drink, is a quick way to lose track of how much you've had. Drinking slow is drinking safe. Here are a few tips:

• Mix your own drink and control how much alcohol is in it. 
• Pace yourself and limit it to one drink per hour. 
• Alternate between an alcoholic drink and a non-alcoholic drink. 
• Skip the shots. Shots get into your bloodstream way too fast. 

Drinking too much has serious short and long-term health consequences. This ranges from physical injuries, violence, alcohol poisoning, risky sexual behavior, learning and memory problems, cancers, alcohol use disorders, etc. 

So what is considered too much? Binge drinking is defined as having 4 or more drinks on an occasion for women and 5 or more drinks on an occasion for men. Heavy drinking is defined as 8 or more drinks per week for women and 15 or more drinks per week for men. Source: CDC | Alcohol Use

Don't drink at all if you are or may become pregnant, you are younger than 21, or you have health problems that could be made worse by drinking.

Download What is Binge Drinking? | Download What is Heavy Drinking?

Sober Suggestions:

• Inmoxicated: Dry Bar & Bottle Shop in Racine, Wisconsin 
• The Phoenix: National Sober Active Community

Even though it may not seem like it sometimes, people aren't drinking as much as they used to, especially amongst young people. Living in a society (hello, Wisconsin!) that has more bars than grocery stores, it can feel challenging to explore sobriety, but RISE Drug Free MKE has the resources to make it easy!

Check out our Alternatives to Drinking list and share what your favorite sober activities are! 

Download Alternatives to Drinking | Download Mocktail Recipes

Commercial Tobacco and Vaping

Traditional and commercial tobacco are different in the way they are planted and grown, harvested, prepared, and used. Traditional tobacco is tobacco and/or other plant mixtures grown or harvest and used by American Indians and Alaska Natives for ceremonial or medicinal purposes. Commercial tobacco is produced for recreational use by corporations, contains chemical additives and is linked with death and disease. Source: Keep It Sacred

Commercial tobacco is changing. According to Tobacco Free Kids, 4.5% of high school students report smoking tobacco, whereas 14.7% report using e-cigarettes. New products are being developed constantly that make electronic cigarettes and smokeless products smaller, sleeker, and easier for teenagers and young adults to get their hands on. Electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, are providing a new way to deliver the addictive substance nicotine without burning tobacco. The liquid solution used in e-cigarettes typically contains nicotine, propylene glycol, glycerin or some other solvent, and other additives. 

Download Traditional and Commercial Tobacco | Download E-Cigarettes

Marijuana

During RISE Drug Free MKE’s needs assessments, we have determined that marijuana consumption continues to be a negative factor in the lives of our community’s youth. While the vast majority of Milwaukee County middle and high school students say they have not consumed marijuana in the past 30 days, the fact is that many adolescents have a benign or beneficial view of marijuana. When we surveyed students in the 53206 zip code and asked why they consumed marijuana, the top replies were “to deal with anxiety,” “to numb pain from trauma,” “to deal with loss,” and “stop suicidal thoughts.”

It's important that young people know there are alternative and healthier ways to cope with negative emotions. This may include:

• Physical Activities: sports or exercise can release endorphins 
• Mindfulness Practices: meditation or yoga can help manage stress
• Social Support: confiding in friends or family can foster a sense of belonging 
• Creative Outlets: art, music, writing, etc. can help you express emotions
• Professional Support: counseling or therapy can provide strategies to deal with trauma

Consuming marijuana during your teen and young adults years creates many negative consequences for brain and emotional development, the ability to get a job or a college scholarship, or simply to pursue your life goals. Products with THC can cause changes in mood, thoughts, and perceptions of reality. Frequent or heavy use has been linked to problems in cognitive functions, such as learning and memory, attention, processing speed, perceptual motor function, and language.  Source: National Institute on Drug Abuse

Download Marijuana | Download Delta-8

Harm Reduction Vending Machines in Milwaukee

We all want to feel safe in our own homes and to protect our loved ones from harm, whether it's by installing security cameras or keeping a fire extinguisher around to provide safety and security. But we can all take one more step to protect our friends and family, and that's by keeping them away from medications that are not meant for them. Fortunately, it's easy to do and could save their lives or prevent them from becoming hooked on substances.

Now that you know how you can keep your family safe, how do you make it happen? Again, it’s easy. There are Harm Reduction Vending Machines located around Milwaukee County with these supplies, and they are free and available without questions. You can find the map of Harm Reduction Vending Machine locations on the county’s website at county.milwaukee.gov. One of the locations is Community Advocates’ downtown offices at 728 N. James Lovell St., Milwaukee, where anyone can access the items during regular business hours Monday through Friday.

Download Safe Storage and Proper Disposal | Download Harm Reduction Vending Machine

Download the Toolkit

RISE Drug Free MKE's Setting Boundaries with Alcohol and Other Drugs Toolkit is the perfect guide to navigating your relationship with substances. With information about alcohol, commercial tobacco, marijuana, prescription medications, and more, we hope to empower you with the knowledge and tools to make healthy and educated decisions. It provides tips and examples that can help you set boundaries with alcohol and other drugs. 

Download Setting Boundaries with Alcohol and Other Drugs Toolkit

Resources

• CDC - Alcohol Use
• CDC - E-Cigarettes, or Vaping, Products Visual Dictionary
• College Drinking Prevention
• Keep It Sacred National Native Network
• National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Rethinking Drinking
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
• THC Is Changing
• Tobacco-Free Kids
• Tobacco Is Changing 
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration