Encouraging a Healthy and Safe Spring Break

By: The Center for Cura Personalis

Spring break is a time when our students get a chance to relax and take a breather from the stress of the school year. It provides them an opportunity to come back rejuvenated after midterms and ready to tackle the rest of the spring semester. However, we recognize that students sometimes make unhealthy decisions during spring break and may be putting themselves or others at risk. Below are some ideas for topics of conversation that you and your student can have before they leave for the break. Having these conversations with them now may help prevent unwanted stress for them (and you!) in the future.

Avoid normalizing media depictions of spring break

Popular movies and TV often portray spring break as one giant party, usually on a beach, with tons of alcohol.  The reality is that the majority of students aren’t spending their breaks this way.  In fact, many choose to go back to their hometowns, catch up on sleep, meet up with old friends, partake in service or mission trips, or earn some extra cash by working.  Avoid normalizing the wild and crazy spring break myths, and challenge your student’s beliefs if they seem to be buying into them.

Plan beforehand for trips

If your student is travelling, make sure that they have planned for any trips accordingly. Think about the following questions when talking with your student about their upcoming trip: How are they getting to their destination and what will transportation look like when they arrive? Are there any travel alerts, delays or warnings they should know about? Do they have extra cash on hand, in case of an emergency? Do they have medications available, if needed? If going out of the country or to an unusual location, have they called their bank to let them know?  Asking a few of these questions and making preparations can make all of the difference.

Maintain healthy routines

While it may seem like a great opportunity to catch up on rest by sleeping all day, this can really throw students off when classes resume the next week.  Encourage students to get extra rest by sleeping an hour or two beyond what they normally would, but not all day.  Consider fitting in medical, counseling, or other appointments that your student might need.  Continuing to exercise and eat healthy can also help maintain some normal routines that will help ease the transition back into classes, work and other commitments when they return to campus.  Emphasizing good self-care and healthy routines can make a huge difference in finishing off the semester strong!

Limit alcohol consumption

Spring break is statistically one of the times during the school year with the highest rates of binge drinking among college students (five or more drinks in one sitting for men, and four or more for women). Binge drinking can put your student at risk for negative side effects such as alcohol poisoning, injuries, or sexually transmitted infections. Furthermore, drinking alcohol in a new or unknown environment can affect your student’s body more quickly than drinking in a familiar setting, which means they may become intoxicated more quickly than expected. Talk to your student about what their plans for alcohol consumption over the break may be, and encourage responsible drinking if they choose to partake.

Check in when someone needs help

Zags have a culture of helping each other, and hopefully, your students will continue this behavior away from campus. Encourage your student to be an active bystander and to step in if they notice a situation that seems a bit off. This may be calling for help for a friend that has consumed too much alcohol or making sure that no one wanders off alone in an unfamiliar place. Remind your student that if they don’t feel comfortable directly confronting a potentially dangerous situation, they can always ask for help from their friends or nearby authority figures. 

Have fun, but prepare appropriately

Spring break is a great time to try out new activities, but it can turn dangerous quickly if your student is not prepared. Encourage your student to wear their seat belt, wear a life vest if out on the water, put on a helmet while skiing, wear sunscreen, and to avoid or limit alcoholic beverages. Accidental injuries are the main cause of death for Americans under 30, and can sometimes be easily prevented.