This story contains references to drugs.
You're more likely to see Sam* with a joint in her hand than a beer.
The Sydney millennial has cut back on alcohol substantially, as have many other young Australians. But not all of them have given up illicit drugs. Experts warn there are no health benefits to using these drugs instead of alcohol.
"I know that I am a better, healthier and happier person when I am sober. I work better, exercise better, and am nicer to my partner," she told The Feed.
"I've done the completely sober thing a few times, but now am just working on significantly cutting down."
She said she hasn't stopped socialising just because she's not drinking, but said for her to attend a party, cannabis or psychedelics are a "necessity".
Around two-thirds of younger Australians say they don't like to let hangovers ruin their day. Source: Getty / Andrew Gregory
Data shows young people have been ditching alcohol - 76 per cent of 18-24-year-old Australians like to socialise in ways that do not involve drinking alcohol, according to 2023 research from DrinkWise, a not-for-profit organisation that receives voluntary contributions from the alcohol industry and campaigns for a safer drinking culture.
Source: SBS
According to Australian Bureau of Statistics data from 2022, nearly 40 per cent of 25-34-year-olds (significantly more than any other age group) reported drinking less alcohol compared to the previous 12 months.
Sam said she was drinking the same amount as most other people she knew, but eventually realised it was "a lot".
She said cutting alcohol right back has been: "both more and less challenging than I thought it would be".
"More challenging in the way that socially, when you're not drinking (or only drinking a very small amount), it is usually taken to 'mean' something."
She said once she got rolling and realised the benefits, it became easier to keep going.
Drug use steady
At the same time, Australians are using record amounts of illicit drugs, according to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), which does not separate data into age groups.
based on ACIC wastewater analysis from mid-2023, while marijuana is by far the most popular illicit drug amongst Australians.
It's the first time the use of marijuana has been measured by the report so it's difficult to gauge its use over time, but cocaine, MDMA, MDA, fentanyl and ketamine had increased in both capital city and regional sites in 2022.
In Australia, older people drink more, but younger people are riskier binge drinkers.
'Long-term risky drinking,' defined as more than four Australian standard drinks per day or 10 a week, increased most amongst 40-65 year olds between 2000 and 2019, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare's 2019 National Drug Strategy Household Survey.
The same report showed people aged 18 to 24 were more likely than other age groups to consume 11 or more standard drinks on one occasion at least once a month.
What is 'California Sober'?
Singer Demi Lovato brought the term California Sober into public consciousness when they released a song of the same name in 2021.
It refers to people who don't drink alcohol but use cannabis or occasionally psychedelics. It's also known as being 'sober lite', as singer Abel Makkonen Tesfaye — aka The Weeknd — describes himself.
For his 90th birthday, US country music legend and marijuana entrepreneur Willie Nelson released a track of the same name in 2023.
One reason people drink less is because the cost of alcohol has risen, Steve* told the Feed.
"There are definitely economic reasons for our generation limiting drinking," he said.
"The pressures of saving for a home deposit in Sydney hangs like Damocles' sword over our collective generations’ head.
"Jugs of beer can now cost $25, which can make it a serious cost for anyone wanting to drink and have a good time."
He said he still dabbles with illicit drugs and has cut down on drinking, from "binge drinking most Fridays and Saturdays," to now only having "a big night once a month".
"Having just turned 30, I think I realised how much an impact drinking has on my overall energy levels, happiness and ability to engage with the world. If I have a big weekend on say a Saturday, if it’s often not until the next Thursday that I feel 100 per cent again."
An increase of sobriety-focused podcasts and content creators have tackled the topic of drugs, with some TikTokers and YouTubers mocking the idea.
Co-host of the Sober Awkward podcast Victoria Vanstone said the question of drug use comes up a lot in the community around the podcast and is a common question sent in.
In the podcast's Drugs episode, Vanstone admitted to using party drugs in the past and felt more nervous talking about it than alcohol abuse.
"For me, 100 per cent sobriety from everything is key to keeping me on track and I believe in being fully present and authentic all the time," she told The Feed.
"I guess because I have a tendency to over do everything I put in my body, smoking weed would be another slippery slope into addiction.
"But that's not the case for everyone."
The health impacts
Swapping alcohol for illicit drugs is not the "safe" option, Dr Nicole Lee, adjunct professor at the National Drug Research Institute at Curtin University, told The Feed.
"The problem with illicit drugs is because they're illegal, they're unregulated, completely unregulated. So there's no controls over who manufactures them, how they're manufactured or how they're sold."
People put "whatever they like" in the mix when cutting illicit drugs, she said.
"With cannabis, we know that if you're vulnerable to a mental health condition, it's best not to use cannabis because it can trigger off a mental health condition."
While some psychedelics users report having "a bad trip", meaning a trying time psychologically, potentially involving hallucinations, not much is known about the experience scientifically, Lee said.
Alcohol is one of the most harmful drugs, not least because it increases people's likelihood of taking risks, she said.
Rashid* said one of the main reasons he cut alcohol was the negative health impacts, including impacted sleep, poor gut health, and reduced cognitive mental function.
He said he slowly started realising although alcohol may have temporarily "taken the edge off", it didn’t really help in any way, in fact it made things worse.
"After even only one or two drinks I’d feel sloppy, demotivated, and just not as functional. It would slow me down and I’d find it harder to participate in conversation sometimes as I’d be cloudy headed."
He said it feels good to not succumb to endless pressure to drink and he has participated in nights with drugs but no booze, although he felt going out and asking for non-alcoholic drinks was "awkward".
*Names have been changed.
