Don't assume that the rest of the world is as up tight as the US. Europe doesn't even have a drinking age, and in Aus people are already starting to learn to drink at 16 - after all, it's a bit late if they hit 18 and have open slather with no idea of their limits.Zeithri said:
Re OP:
It depends on whether or not she is capable of dealing with her overdrinking herself. Contrary to alcoholics anonymous, most people who have drinking problems in their early 20s can and do learn how to drink responsibly. In Australia, most university students have a phase around 18-19 when there are no longer any legal restrictions upon their drinking, but they haven't been drinking long enough to get a grip on their limits. Almost all of the people I knew at uni had a period of acting like that, but learnt the hard way, realised how unattractive and dangerous it was, and started to take self-responsibility. But not everyone can or does. Some people are just really poorly equipped to deal with intoxicants in a sensible manner, just like some people can't stop themselves from gambling.
The first thing you need to do is make sure she knows she has a problem. That you're not just criticising social drinking, but rather that she is taking it too far. Most people who overdrink at that age think that they aren't doing things any differently to anyone else - after all, in your early 20s you do have quite a few social functions where people end up drunk to the point of vomitting. The difference is, that people like your sister think it's normal to do that (a) deliberately/recklessly, and (b) all the time. In Australia, we'd also be thinking that she should have grown out of routine binge drinking by 22, as she's been drinking for a good 6-7 years by then (4 years legally) and she should have learnt the consequences by now. If you're in the US with that absurdly high drinking age, then I can see how someone might still be acting like that at 22 - otherwise, her first problem is immaturity.
She might not listen to you, as her younger sibling. Talk to her friends about it - they must have started to notice by now. Get a few of you together, so that she knows that it isn't just you being overly conservative, and tell her that she is overdrinking. Be precise - tell her what she is doing, how it is unreasonable, and how it differs from the behaviour of others. She'll be pissed off, but when she calms down she'll be able to process it.
For some people, that won't be enough - they'll need actual help to get their life under control. Avoid religious-based groups unless you have a commitment to that religion - groups like AA work well for members of christianity, but are less successful for people who don't share the cultural/religious value base. I'm not sure how things are in the US - the impression we get here is that religion seems to permeate your public policies, but over here there are lots of medically-driven research-tested and government funded drug and alcohol services. If she wants to stop binging, but finds she can't (it will take her several attempts and crashes to get to that point, so don't expect it to be a quick journey), she should get an appointment with a clinical (the 'clinical' part is vital) psychologist with extensive experience dealing with alcoholism. The clin psych will refer her to a suitable support program.
If she is one of those many many people who are just immature in their dealings with alcohol, or who don't realise the extent of their behaviour, she may well be able to scale her drinking back to a sensible level. However, if she is someone who cannot control her drinking through her own willpower, then it is likely that she'll need to quit alcohol altogether. In that event, you'll need to avoid drinking, or even having alcohol around her, for quite some time if you're serious about helping her.
