April 17, 2025
April is Alcohol Awareness Month, and UChicago Student Wellness offers a wide range of resources to help students make informed choices around substance use. One such resource is the Student Recovery Group, a weekly, peer-led meeting where students can share their experiences and build a sense of community in a relaxed, nonjudgmental environment. Hosted at the Student Wellness Center, the group is dedicated to offering fellowship and support to students exploring sobriety or in recovery from alcohol or other drugs.
Beyond providing a meeting space, Student Wellness refers students who need additional support or who may feel uncomfortable discussing certain topics in a group setting to clinicians and mental health providers within the center. According to Health Promotion Coordinator Karina Wilson, one such resource is the BASICS program, a one-on-one intervention designed to help students reflect on their alcohol use, “It’s a more personal setting where students can explore their behaviors and assess their motivation for change,” Karina explains. “They can input biological data, drinking habits, and financial expenses to better understand their Blood Alcohol Concentration and where their ‘sweet spot’ might be. It’s not about saying alcohol is bad or that students need to stop drinking, it’s about helping them make safer, more mindful choices.”
Another key offering is the substance use evaluation provided by Sam Ryland, an AOD (Alcohol and Other Drugs) Coordinator and Psychologist with Student Wellness. “It’s just a conversation about their current use, history of use, what their patterns have been, where the concern and difficulty is,” Ryland explains. These evaluations help students assess whether they might benefit from abstinence-based programming or a harm reduction approach, and can lead to further referrals, treatment plans, or simply more information and clarity around their substance use.
In a college environment where heavy drinking is often normalized, sobriety can feel isolating, which is why building a sense of community around recovery is so important. The Student Recovery Group is actively working to grow its membership and create more opportunities for connection beyond weekly meetings, including a forthcoming mocktail event designed to bring students together in a fun, supportive setting.
Though the stigma around seeking help has lessened over the years, it still lingers. As Karina Wilson explains, “My hope is to normalize sobriety. I want students to understand that recovery isn’t just for people who identify as having an alcohol use disorder or addiction, but for anyone who feels their drinking or substance use habits are affecting their life. Our aim is to offer a community where students feel seen, supported, and safe exploring those aspects of themselves.”
Sam echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that “People choose not to drink or use substances for all kinds of reasons—religious beliefs, medical conditions, family history. Part of my role is demystifying recovery and making the process feel less intimidating.”
For more information on Student Wellness’ Alcohol and Other Drugs programs and initiatives, visit here.