Peer pressure is something many of us faced while growing up. It’s mostly related to young kids and teens and feeling the pressure to do something they never really wanted to do. The little voice inside their head would often tell them it was wrong, dangerous or they were just afraid to do it. However, pressure from our friends would often “push” us to proceed. Does that peer pressure continue into adulthood and pressure us into doing things we don’t want to, such as driving after drinking? For some, yes it does.
You know deep down that driving after drinking is never a good option, but something else leads you to make a poor choice. Considering that any amount of alcohol in your bloodstream can lessen your ability to drive safely and make good driving choices, there must be another reason why you would go against your own good judgement. If this sounds like you, you may be suffering from peer pressure from family or friends.
Being subjected to peer pressure can add a heavy weight on your mental health. It can cause you to start behaving in ways that weaken your core values. It can also affect your self-esteem and you may have the feeling as if you are losing control over yourself and your life. Peer pressure is not just for younger people.
The difficulty of dealing with peer pressure at any age is not wanting to be different from your friends. Although it can be tough, those who place peer pressure on someone else show no risk brought to themselves. They are “suggesting” strongly you do what they are pressuring you to do. This is where you can fight against them. Have confidence that you know the difference between what’s right or wrong, what’s safe or unsafe.
Confidence in yourself and what you’re doing is important as a driver. It’s time to become a leader and not a follower when it comes to making the decision about avoiding driving after drinking. To be that leader, perhaps even set a new peer pressure toward others, use a breathalyzer from Not Your Child Corp. Show your friends that if you are not sober to drive, you will either wait until you are, or find a safe way to get home. Switch the pressure from you to them to follow your lead. Make it a reversal.
To reverse the peer pressure, have the confidence with your own actions. Show your friends that you’re in control of your own decisions. Decisions which can affect the lives of others, not just your own. This new confidence may cause more of your friends to take the same actions as you. Using the breathalyzers from Not Your Child Corp are very easy to use and very cost-effective.
The feeling of overcoming this potential problem and tragedy is enormous. The lives you’re saving by not driving after drinking is more than your own. As they say at Not Your Child Corp; “When you feel different, you drive different. Drive Sober”.
Scott Marshall has spent over 30 years promoting road safety in many jurisdictions. He has been a road safety journalist since 2005. Scott was also an on-air judge on the Discovery Network’s Canada’s Worst Driver during their first 3 seasons on the air. Not YourChildCorp. is proud to have Scott @Safedriver as a frequent contributor, his insights are irreplaceable.
