Buzzed, Drunk, or Wasted?
If you haven’t drank much before, it can be a little intimidating getting started. Trust me, I had one single drink before I turned 21 and I was totally at sea. You hear a lot of different stories and claims about alcohol before you even get started. People say “I can drink 4 shots and not feel a thing!” or maybe you watch your mom get totally silly after 2 margaritas. It’s hard to know what to expect!
Everybody’s different
As you begin drinking, you’ll figure out your own tolerances. As a rule, when you first start you will really feel the alcohol, but the longer you drink and the more you drink, you will build up a tolerance. Some people treat this tolerance as a badge of honor. Personally, I find it a little irritating since now you have to drink (and spend) more to feel the same thing.
Physical differences like height, weight, and fat or muscle content can also contribute to different experiences. Someone who is 5’2” and 110 lbs will experience 2 cocktails very differently than someone who is 6’5” and 200 lbs. They just have more room to store it in.
The DOW Index
Figuring out how sober/drunk/wasted you personally are is an imperfect science. Breathalyzers are good for knowing a technical number, but it doesn’t really tell you what it feels like to be drunk. That’s why I created the DOW Index: Drunk or Wasted. A detailed explanation as well as a whole chapter about drinking safely can be found in the link below. It’s totally free and I think it’s pretty neat.
How to Be 21 - Patreon
But that’s a lot of stuff to read and maybe you’re getting ready to go out tonight and only have a few minutes. Let’s make this one short(ish) and sweet so you can keep partying.
what’s the difference?
Not Even Drunk
DOW Index 0 - 2
On the way to “Drunk” you have to pass through “Not Even Drunk”, and the trip can be fast or slow, depending on you. On the DOW index these would be Levels 0-2. You are physically being affected by the alcohol, but mentally and emotionally you are still fully in control of yourself. Remember, reaction time is a Physical trait, not a mental one. You can bowl while you drink, but I wouldn’t play dodgeball.
Buzzed and Drunk
DOW Index 3 - 5
I consider “Buzzed” to be when you are unquestionably mentally and emotionally affected by the alcohol. This is when the inhibitions start to slide off. You laugh a little louder, tell a joke you wouldn’t normally, and just generally relax. You are also definitely no longer safe to drive. It’s tempting to do so, but your reaction time is significantly slower and while you may be able to handle a normal drive home, in the event that something is wrong or different, you will not be able to react appropriately.
Drunk is just a step beyond this. Words seem to slip out of your mouth without you really thinking about them. You can dance or sing or generally act like an idiot without feeling too self conscious. That’s why Karaoke exists. On the other hand, if you have any thoughts that need to stay ‘inside thoughts’, it can get a little uncomfortable.
Wasted
DOW Index 6 +
The real deciding factor between all the other stages and ‘wasted’ is that wasted isn’t fun. It can feel a little fun while you’re doing it, especially when you’re young. But it doesn’t look fun, and it won’t feel fun the next day. Since you are (almost certainly) young, you’ll hear people say ‘wasted’ when they mean ‘falling over, completely unaware, dangerously drunk’. I don’t like that definition because it implies that everything before that is totally fine. I consider people ‘wasted’ when they can no longer focus through their own sentences. That’s the real key to watch out for to know that you’ve had too much to drink and will soon either fall asleep or stop being able to retain memories from the night. If you can’t remember, what’s the point?
What to do about it
The line between Drunk and Wasted is so, so thin and easy to cross on accident. So, what do you do when you’ve had too much to drink? Well, it’s time to Sober Up! Check out our next post for tips on sobering up! This can help if you’re too drunk and need to be less drunk as fast as possible, or if you’re thinking about tomorrow and want to get ahead of the damage.
That’s it for us today! If you want to learn more, check out the blog posts below or head over to Patreon for exclusive content and the ability to send me questions and ideas for posts! Keep an eye out for How to Be 21, to be published in 2027!
