How Society Makes Women Regret Drinking More Than Men
“As a woman, you grow up being taught to be polite and respectful. To behave a particular way, listen as much as you talk and act a certain way in conversation. But alcohol does not abide by those rules. It totally uproots those norms.”
Emma Tilley is a 25-year-old student and hospitality worker from Brighton. We’re chatting on Messenger about recent research released by Global Drug Survey which found that women ‘regret’ drunkenness around a third more than men. Thirty-nine percent of female respondents rued getting drunk over the last year, compared to 29.6% of males. Women also reported 39% more regret over an alcohol-induced sexual episode and 17% more next-day anxiety.
“Blame is the name of the game,” says Emma of her bleary hangover horrors. “I blame myself for every interaction I had. I blame myself as I think that’s what other people expect of me.”
2016 research published in the online journal BMJ Open found that women, globally, now drink nearly the same amount as men. But why are they more vulnerable to shame and regret after a night of drinking alcohol?
According to historian David W. Gutzke, 70% of British women claimed to abstain from alcohol in 1960. It wasn’t until the 1990s that — with the rise of dance music and the UK…
