Sober Students

April 16, 2024 24SF 341 Views Ann Arbor, Mental Health, Student Life, U-M

How U-M’s Collegiate Recovery Program uplifts students in recovery

—By Sam Farber

When you think of someone recovering from drug or alcohol addiction, the first image that pops into your mind is probably not a college student at the University of Michigan. But, maybe to your surprise, there are students on campus who have overcome addiction and put in an effort every day to maintain their sobriety. At the University of Michigan, there is a support group for students in recovery. The Collegiate Recovery Program (CRP) is a place for students to come together and share their experiences with drug and alcohol addiction while navigating life in Ann Arbor. CRP is led by Matt Statman, a man whom students in the program look to for guidance in their recovery and their lives in general.

Following the 12th tradition of Alcoholics Anonymous and recovery groups in general to respect anonymity, the names of all interviewees, except for Matt Statman and Dr. Jefferey Desmond, in this article have been altered.

Party culture at U of M and college campuses nation-wide

The University of Michigan may not be considered a “party school” due to its high academic standards, but a large part of student life in Ann Arbor revolves around drinking and drug use. Binge drinking is prevalent on campus before and during Michigan football games at the Big House. While the Wolverines play, EMT crews surround the entrances waiting to respond to calls of heavily intoxicated people who need to be escorted out. In the student section, a sober fan might be in the minority. An article from MLive titled “As Football Fans Drink Up, Hospital Beds Fill Up on Gameday” details how additional medical crews are hired just to work on game days in Ann Arbor. Dr. Jeffrey Desmond, interim chief medical officer at U-M’s hospital, said that in 2013 during a nighttime football game against Notre Dame, “57 people were transported to the ER, drunk.”

For students who have built their lives and identities around using substances, making an effort to live a sober lifestyle can be challenging. A foundational part of building friendships for some students comes through drinking or doing drugs with others. The culture on college campuses feeds into this, as students work hard on their classwork all week and then go out to party on the weekends. Of course, this does not apply to everyone, as some students can form friendships and relationships with others without the assistance of drugs and alcohol.

According to an article written by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, “Around 15% of full-time college students ages 18 to 22 meet the criteria for past-year alcohol use disorder.” It is possible that many students in this category may not consider themselves to be alcoholic or have alcoholic tendencies. Culture on college campuses has normalized binge drinking as many students don’t think twice about the dangers of drinking excessively. When asked about his past drinking behaviors, Albert W, a student in CRP said, “I used to get f**king hammered before Michigan football games with my friends. Waking up at 7 am to start drinking for a noon kickoff. It’s crazy to me how I saw this as normal behavior, and having my friends do it with me didn’t help me to realize that it wasn’t normal to drink that way.”

Another aspect of the party culture at U of M for undergraduate students is Greek life. According to U of M’s student life page, as of winter 2024, 21% of women and 11% of men on campus are affiliated with a Greek life organization. Alcohol is inherently tied to participation in events hosted by fraternities and sororities. An article from addictioncenter.com states that, Greek life “members are much more likely to abuse alcohol and drugs than their non-Greek affiliated peers.”

No matter what a student’s affiliations are, it can be hard to escape the culture of drinking and drug use at U of M. For a student in recovery, seeing others using substances can be triggering. Forming connections with others in CRP lets students know that they are not alone.

What is recovery?

A case study conducted by Dory Hoffman of the University of South Carolina titled “The Experiences of College Students in Addiction Recovery” defines recovery “as a process by which an individual decreases the use of a substance, eventually quits using the substance altogether, and sees noteworthy improvements in terms of healthy functioning and quality of life.”

Many people in recovery benefit from regularly attending 12-step meetings like Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.), Narcotics Anonymous (N.A.), and Marijuana Anonymous (M.A.). An article published by Stanford Medicine in 2020 states that “A.A. was nearly always found to be more effective than psychotherapy in achieving abstinence.” Those dealing with substance abuse disorders may seek professional help at first, but continuously attending 12-step meetings is key to sustaining sobriety in the long term. Building relationships with others who are also recovering from their addictions is foundational to the program. The 1st tradition of A.A. states, “Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. unity.”

Seeking help as a student

It is common for students who have developed addictions to substances to continue to live a manageable life. These students can get all of their work done and care for themselves in all aspects other than when it comes to substance use. It can be difficult for students like these to admit that they have a problem and need help. Since they have not suffered major consequences resulting from their addiction, many students like this convince themselves that they do not require help, and some of them may not need help.

Will P, a student at U of M, decided to get sober during his sophomore year of undergraduate studies. He said, “I kind of knew I was an addict even before going to college. I developed a pretty intense drinking habit during high school, but I convinced myself it wasn’t that bad, as I had good enough grades to get into Michigan. When living in Ann Arbor as a student, I ended up withdrawing from multiple classes during my freshman and sophomore years as my drinking and drug use took over my life. I was getting drunk or high every day.”

It is much easier for students who have faced the consequences of their addiction to seek help. In this case, most people seek professional help from rehab or therapy/counseling services. According to a study done in 2015 by the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 486 students in 29 different collegiate recovery programs, 82.5% of students in CRP programs reported having received addiction treatment at some point in their lives.

In Ann Arbor, there are plenty of resources for addiction treatment for students who need professional support. Rehabilitation centers like Dawn Farm and Spera are places where people who have hit a bottom can go for in-patient care. People at these rehab centers are often desperate enough to get sober that they are willing to stay there for months at a time, working to stabilize themselves while detoxing from drugs and alcohol, but also to learn how to live in sobriety while they remain in treatment and once they get out.

Students’ mental health is becoming increasingly prioritized by U of M, but many students and faculty are unaware that CRP exists. There is a reason why it is a lesser-known resource in the community, as CRP is meant to be a last-ditch effort for students to seek help with their addiction.

What is the Collegiate Recovery Program (CRP)?

The University of Michigan has its own Collegiate Recovery Program, which started in 2012 to assist students in recovery. Michigan’s CRP is not the first program of its kind, and there are now over 160 CRP programs at Universities in the United States, according to a website with CRP information by the Association of Recovery in Higher Education.

At U of M, CRP is a group of about 50 students who are recovering from addiction. Students in CRP are encouraged to come together twice a week to discuss issues in their own lives and how they manage to stay sober while dealing with the stress of being a student. The bi-weekly meetings of CRP function much like A.A. and other 12-step meetings, but are more informal, and give everyone the chance to speak. CRP members are welcome to talk about whatever may be going on in their lives, what they are doing for themselves and their recovery, and what they are grateful for.

Much like A.A., the foundation of CRP is built on sober students forming relationships with each other. Finding other students who are sober from drugs and alcohol and listening to how they deal with life while being sober is central to the program. There are plenty of students on campus who abstain from drugs and alcohol, but very few who do so after being addicted for years of their lives.

When asked about his role as the leader of CRP, Statman said, “The overall goal is to help students in recovery maintain their recoveries. We do this in a lot of ways primarily by helping them build pro-sober social support (growth-affirming relationships) with other students in recovery.”

Students in recovery from all areas of U of M are welcome to join CRP if they are dedicated to living in complete sobriety. The group is primarily composed of graduate students who were already in recovery prior to coming to the University of Michigan, but there are undergraduate students who either have gotten sober during their time in Ann Arbor or who have taken time off to go to a rehabilitation center and returned to campus to continue their studies. Statman said, “Many students who contact me are not looking for the kind of support that we provide (abstinence-based recovery support) and are actually looking for moderation management or harm reduction support. Those students are typically referred to other people in Wolverine Wellness to help them achieve their personal goals.”

Statman does not permit students looking to cut down on their substance use into CRP; it’s all or nothing. Only students who formerly struggled with addiction and who have committed themselves to complete sobriety are welcomed into the group.

Relapse (using drugs or alcohol after being sober for some time) is never fully preventable for an addict in recovery. CRP does help to keep students sober, but relapse does happen for some individuals in the group. Statman said, “Students who come to us in recovery typically stay in recovery. Recovery is often a nonlinear process and it’s not uncommon for a student to be engaged for a few months, disengage for a period of months or even years and then return and eventually graduate.”

In addition to providing a space for students in recovery to meet twice a week, CRP also hosts events throughout the year for its members to have fun when not doing schoolwork. This year, CRP hosted a sober tailgate for a football game, a bowling night, and a sober skating event at Yost Ice Arena. Will P, a member of CRP, said, “The sober tailgate has been one of my favorite CRP events. It’s cool to have an alternative to those big drinking events. I feel like the university goes out of its way to make us feel special.”

For students in recovery, being in CRP does not cost them anything. Statman said, “The Collegiate Recovery Program is funded through a variety of sources. We receive a significant amount of our budget from the University through the student health fee and Wolverine Wellness. The University funding covers mostly staffing and material support. The majority of our day-to-day program expenses are funded through donations.” The university’s dedication to providing a place for students in recovery to meet and discuss issues they are facing is something that students are hugely thankful for. Peter G, a student in CRP, said, “When I joined CRP, I was surprised at how many resources go into it. We have a lounge space that is just for CRP members and we can access the lounge whenever we want.”

The Jake Goldberg Collegiate Recovery Program Scholarship Fund is another way that students in recovery at the university are supported. Scholarship money is given to students in CRP to uplift them and decrease the financial burden that some students in recovery face.

Student experience in CRP

Many students in CRP do not limit their recovery outreach to just U of M’s program itself. Amy C, a student in CRP, shared how she cares for herself and her recovery outside of CRP, saying, “I go to individual therapy weekly where we focus on both mental health and recovery things, I attend weekly A.A. and M.A. (Marijuana Anonymous) meetings, and I talk to my sponsor every day and meet with her once a week.”

Peter G said, “I need to go to AA meetings. It’s so important to me to hear others share their experience, strength, and hope. No matter what people share, I tend to feel better after leaving an AA meeting. The free coffee and candy that most meetings provide is pretty good too.”

Albert W emphasized the importance of the connections he has made with other students in CRP, saying, “The closest friends I have are pretty much all CRP members. There is something special about relationships with other people your age who are also in recovery. I feel like I can talk openly about literally anything with them and be listened to without any judgment at all. Most importantly, we can all joke about when things go wrong, and my friends are comfortable with that.”

A central part of the student experience in CRP is building a relationship with its leadership core. CRP is led by Statman and Natalie Christian, two people who students in the program go to for individual support. When asked about their relationship with Statman, Albert W said, “God, I f**king love that dude. Matt helped me get sober.”

When asked about his experience with CRP, Will P said, “Eventually, I reached the point of desperation. I knew I had to either get sober or drop out of school. I looked online for drug addiction help at U of M and got in contact with Matt Statman. That was over a year ago, and I have somehow stayed sober since then. My life has improved beyond what I could have ever imagined. I went from being in the darkest period of my life to having hope that I could turn my life around. I’m so grateful for Matt and the other students I have met in the collegiate recovery program here.”

From hopelessness to hopefulness

CRP hosts an annual graduation ceremony each year at the end of the winter semester to celebrate the accomplishments of students in recovery during their time at the university. All members of CRP are encouraged to attend, even if they are not graduating.

Statman said that CRP “graduation is a celebration of not only overcoming the challenges of addiction but also achieving an amazing goal (earning a degree). A big part of it is sharing that experience with their families, community, and support system who they may have harmed during their active addiction and without whom they would not likely be able to succeed in recovery or academically. It’s a truly cathartic experience.”

For students in CRP who are still working toward their degrees, attending this event gives them hope and understanding that they can graduate. Peter G said, “I went to the graduation ceremony last year in the spring when I was fairly new to CRP and recovery in general. I wasn’t sure at the time if I was capable of staying in school. Attending the graduation event changed my thought process. It gave me hope for myself and my capabilities as a student in recovery.”

List of resources for students seeking help

Feature Photo: Matt Statman; photo taken by CRP group member