By Charles Barnard, founder of Success Institutes.
Sixteen year old Olivia sat on the edge of a dock, nursing a red Solo cup filled with something strong and sweet.
The music from the party behind her pulsed like a heartbeat she couldn’t quiet.
Just hours before, she’d failed her chemistry exam. Again.
Her parents were fighting at home.
Her friends didn’t know how to help, so when someone handed her a drink and said, “It’ll take the edge off,” Olivia didn’t hesitate.
For a while, it worked.
Her shoulders relaxed…
Her heart slowed…
Her thoughts dulled…
But the next morning, the anxiety came roaring back… louder, sharper, and now fused with shame.
Olivia had used alcohol to cope with stress, and for a moment, it seemed like relief.
But did it help or make things worse?
The Appeal of Alcohol as Stress Relief
Adolescence is a period of high emotional intensity.
Teens face academic pressure, social uncertainty, family instability, and identity confusion, all while navigating developing brains and hormonal changes.
For many, the promise of a drink that “takes the edge off” is alluring.
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA, 2022), 29.3% of high school seniors reported consuming alcohol in the past month.
While peer influence plays a role, many teens cite stress and emotional pain as reasons for drinking.
A study by Cooper et al. (1992) found that adolescents who drink to cope with stress are more likely to engage in heavy and problematic alcohol use.
In the moment, alcohol may appear to work… It depresses the central nervous system, slowing the heart rate and dulling emotional pain (Gilpin & Koob, 2008).
The body feels relaxed, and the mind becomes quiet.
This chemical shift is what makes alcohol a common form of self medication for anxiety, stress, and even trauma.
The Biology of Escape and Rebound
The relief is deceptive.
Alcohol disrupts the balance of neurotransmitters in the brain, particularly gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA), which has calming effects, and glutamate, which excites the brain.
Alcohol enhances GABA activity and suppresses glutamate, inducing a feeling of sedation (Koob, 2013).
However, as the alcohol wears off, the brain experiences a rebound effect, producing more glutamate and less GABA, leading to increased anxiety and agitation (Silvers et al., 2014).
For teens, whose brains are still developing, this rollercoaster can be particularly damaging.
The prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for decision making and impulse control, is not fully mature until the mid 20s (Steinberg, 2014).
When teens use alcohol to manage stress, they not only mask the root cause but also impair the very brain systems needed to learn healthy coping strategies.
The Cost of FAKE Stress Relief
Seventeen year old Marcus had a reputation for being laid back, always with a grin and a joke, but few knew that he drank before school to manage panic attacks.
“It was the only way I could get through the day,” he admitted after a counselor intervened.
Marcus’s experience reflects a dangerous cycle.
Drinking to cope may provide short term relief, but it often leads to increased tolerance, dependency, and worsening mental health.
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA, 2020) warns that adolescents who use alcohol to manage emotions are at higher risk for developing alcohol use disorders later in life.
Moreover, the very stress teens are trying to escape often intensifies.
Hangovers reduce energy, impair cognitive function, and damage sleep quality, compounding academic and social stressors.
According to a longitudinal study by Colder et al. (2017), adolescents who drank to cope experienced higher levels of depression, lower academic performance, and more interpersonal conflicts over time.
Real Relief Requires Real Skills
Olivia’s story didn’t end at the dock.
After a second episode, this time involving drinking and a fight with her best friend, she agreed to see a school counselor.
There, she learned what alcohol couldn’t teach her: breathwork, emotional labeling, journaling, and self talk.
Over time, she developed new rituals.
A walk around the block instead of a drink.
Talking to a mentor instead of disappearing.
Slowly, her relationship with stress shifted from escape to empowerment.
This transformation is supported by research.
Teens who engage in Social Emotional Learning (SEL), mindfulness training, and cognitive behavioral strategies are significantly less likely to use substances as a coping mechanism (Botvin & Griffin, 2007).
These tools don’t eliminate stress, but they increase resilience.
The Role of Adults and Communities
Helping teens choose real coping tools over alcohol starts with the stories we tell and the support we offer.
Parents, educators, and coaches must model emotional regulation, validate teen emotions, and normalize asking for help.
Instead of simply saying “Don’t drink,” we must teach: “Here’s how to breathe through this. Here’s how to name what you’re feeling. Here’s how to face pain with power.”
When teens feel seen, supported, and equipped, they don’t have to numb out.
They learn to stand up.
Conclusion
Does drinking alcohol reduce stress for teens?
In the short term, perhaps, but in the long term, it worsens the very issues teens hope to escape.
It undermines emotional growth, impairs brain development, and deepens cycles of anxiety, shame, and avoidance.
True relief comes not from a bottle, but from building the mindset, habits, and relationships that help teens face their stress with clarity, courage, and control.
It’s almost never about releiving from stress, the right path is always about becoming strong and resilient enough so that the things that bring you stress are not affecting you anymore in such a way.
References:
- Botvin, G. J., & Griffin, K. W. (2007). School-based programmes to prevent alcohol, tobacco and other drug use. International Review of Psychiatry, 19(6), 607–615. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540260701797753
- Gilpin, N. W., & Koob, G. F. (2008). Neurobiology of alcohol dependence: Focus on motivational mechanisms. Alcohol Research & Health, 31(3), 185–195.
- Koob, G. F. (2013). Theoretical frameworks and mechanistic aspects of alcohol addiction: Alcohol addiction as a reward deficit disorder. Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences, 13, 3–30. https://doi.org/10.1007/7854_2011_164
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. (2020). Underage drinking. https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/underage-drinking
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2022). Monitoring the Future survey: High school and youth trends. https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugfacts/monitoring-future-survey-high-school-youth-trends
- Silvers, J. A., Insel, C., Powers, K. E., Franz, P., Helion, C., Martin, R. E., … & Ochsner, K. N. (2014). vlPFC–vmPFC–amygdala interactions underlie the effects of cognitive reappraisal on negative emotion. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 10(2), 173–181. https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsu042
- Steinberg, L. (2014). Age of opportunity: Lessons from the new science of adolescence. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.