Apple Messages App Draining Battery iOS 11.1.1

Just got a new iPhone X, didn't restore it from a backup instance. I've noticed that Messages drains my battery quite a bit despite my usage pattern not changing from my iPhone 6 on iOS 10. It's almost to the point where WhatsApp might be the better service, which is weird to say since Apple prides itself on optimized software especially for a new release on the current iPhone model. Anyone else experiencing this problem? Any ideas on how to combat it?