Am I an alcoholic?

[Jabberwocky]

Let’s not get nasty folks. On another note, I have to strongly agree with jdfisse. But to the above post...

I think the point is that there are quite a bit more requirements for addiction than simply someone who drinks on a daily basis. In AA and the DSM, the emphasis is on the effects of the alcohol use, such as whether it is making ones life in unmanageable or continuing to drink despite negative consequences. It’s more about the harm associated with drug use than the mere existence of drug use.

The point Is that drinking or using a drug on a daily basis itself is not nearly enough to qualify one as either an addict or someone with substance use disorder. Many who experience addiction or substance use disorder do use on a daily basis, but by the same token a lot of people can have similarly harmful patterns of substance use qualifying one for addiction/SUD and NOT use on a daily or weekly or even monthly basis (there are plenty of examples of this in the Big Book for instance, as well as plenty of instances if medical literature).

They migh not have said it very kindly, but that is basically the idea. The notion that using a drug alone is enough to qualify one for addiction is a notion that has done an incredibly amount of harm, and not just to people in recovery. That was probably where the vehemence of their post is coming from.

 

[Ds]

I knew I was an alcoholic the second I had my first drink, fucking loved the shit, any form of it. Drank it all, mouthwash, hand sanatizer and food extracts at a very young age, hell my mother used to tell me to spit the mouthwash out, not me, not this guy, i swallowed and drank more before i knew i would be in my room snorting my adderal because i liked the way it made me feel.
If you notice bad things happen when you drink then you might want to take a look at it, it doesn't nesscerly mean you are an alcoholic tho, an alcoholic is someone that cannot controll their drinking once they start,meaning that 6 pack of beer in the fridge turns into another trip to the store to another trip to the store.

 

[aihfl]

How so??

And try to give a longer answer then 6 words

D's explained it pretty well. When I started my drinking career at age 17 I didn't drink every day but when I did I drank until I passed out. Have you not heard of the phrase "functional alcoholic?" I was an alcoholic long before I became a daily drinker. I see your posts in other forums and you seem to favor making misinformed blanket statements about entire populations and this one is no exception.

 

[Fresco]

D's explained it pretty well. When I started my drinking career at age 17 I didn't drink every day but when I did I drank until I passed out

That would make you a binge drinker.

Still, my previous post is correct, someone who drinks every day is an alcoholic. And I suppose I shouldve clarified, someone who drinks a lot every day is an alcoholic. If you drink 1 or 2 glasses of wine before bedtime each day I dont think that qualifies you as an alcie

 

[aihfl]

That would make you a binge drinker.

Still, my previous post is correct, someone who drinks every day is an alcoholic. And I suppose I shouldve clarified, someone who drinks a lot every day is an alcoholic. If you drink 1 or 2 glasses of wine before bedtime each day I dont think that qualifies you as an alcie

Tomato tomahto potato potahto binge drinker alcoholic; it's all alcohol use disorder. Not interested in playing semantic games.

 

[Jabberwocky]

There is a big difference between what people mean when they say alcoholic and alcohol use disorder though. Alcohol use disorder as defined by the DSM can come in varying degrees, but alcoholic (like addict) only truly applies to the extreme end of the spectrum in terms of how most people understand alcoholism/addiction.

While I think most binge drinkers and folks who consume large amount of alcohol in a daily basis are often rightly considered to have a use disorder, even then there is more than just that to accurately diagnose someone as having a use disorder. The presence of drug use alone is not the only indicator for that kind of diagnosis.

This discussion highlights the importance of having a rigorous criteria when it comes to diagnosis. Like I said, defining addiction and SUD too broadly without regard for individual variation is highly problematic, kind of like the pimple on the ass of time when it comes to how we collectively understand addiction.

Notice the difference between the following links. With the first, to a more lay person definition of alcoholism, pay attention to the second definition. And compare to how the DSM defines use disorder, with attention to how it was revised from the last iteration to the present 5th edition.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alcoholism
https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/dsmfactsheet/dsmfact.pdf

 

[Fresco]

There is a big difference between what people mean when they say alcoholic and alcohol use disorder though. Alcohol use disorder as defined by the DSM can come in varying degrees, but alcoholic (like addict) only truly applies to the extreme end of the spectrum in terms of how most people understand alcoholism/addiction.

While I think most binge drinkers and folks who consume large amount of alcohol in a daily basis are often rightly considered to have a use disorder, even then there is more than just that to accurately diagnose someone as having a use disorder. The presence of drug use alone is not the only indicator for that kind of diagnosis.

This discussion highlights the importance of having a rigorous criteria when it comes to diagnosis. Like I said, defining addiction and SUD too broadly without regard for individual variation is highly problematic, kind of like the pimple on the ass of time when it comes to how we collectively understand addiction.

Notice the difference between the following links. With the first, to a more lay person definition of alcoholism, pay attention to the second definition. And compare to how the DSM defines use disorder, with attention to how it was revised from the last iteration to the present 5th edition.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/alcoholism
https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/dsmfactsheet/dsmfact.pdf

All good points.

I still think a true alcoholic is someone who drinks everyday, and who cant stop drinking every day.

But hey, maybe I'm just trying to justify my own binge-drinking........LOL

 

[Jabberwocky]

Generally speaking I’d tend to agree with that, at least insofar as the most severe alcohol use disorders tend to involve daily use. Same with how most people tend to conceptualize alcoholic lifestyles. My point was simply that alcohol use disorder involves more than merely consuming alcohol; your point is far from invalid.

 

[Fresco]

Generally speaking I’d tend to agree with that, at least insofar as the most severe alcohol use disorders tend to involve daily use. Same with how most people tend to conceptualize alcoholic lifestyles. My point was simply that alcohol use disorder involves more than merely consuming alcohol; your point is far from invalid

I think my point is valid, but also incomplete.

I recognize that there's some people who simply cannot stop at one drink and go full overboard.
At the end of the day its an addiction, and I sometimes have to face the fact that I myself am addicted to that lifestyle (to some degree).

It is what it is

 

[PriestTheyCalledHim]

Long story short, it turns out I am not an alcoholic or drug addict, despite how when I was younger as a teenager and young adult I used/abused alcohol and used or experimented with quite a number of other drugs.

No I did not go out and drink alcohol or use any drugs, it's just a realization I had while thinking about people I know who are alcoholics/poly drug addicts, and I once had a lifelong poly-drug addict who I used to drink and sometimes smoke pot with as a teenager/young adult that I would eventually grow out of my drug use.

Now, to anyone who is reading this who is struggling: It's never too late to change, and please get help.

 

[mal3volent]

A couple of things that come to my mind just reading through the thread...

I think it’s pretty normal to go through tough periods of your life when you might lean on some kind of substance to get you through. It is fairly common to engage in certain behaviors when you are in certain environments or around certain people, then fall back to your normal disposition when those factors go away. It’s okay to get a buzz and like it, and to look forward to feeling that way again. Obviously it is perfectly alright to enjoy the taste of beer, wine, or liquor. These are all things people all around the world of all ages deal with.

Growing up all my friends liked to drink, but most of them weren’t thinking about it at 8AM on a Tuesday walking to art class. Drinking was a way to be social and have fun...not a nagging, foreboding, dark obsession that consumed every aspect of their lives. It quickly became this place I was always wanting to go back to no matter how it made me feel or how much it ostracized me. Before long I was watching everyone I cared about moving along with their lives, going to college, building families and careers, etc. And just like that...boom...I had created this huge obstacle for myself that I know now I will never fully outlast.

There are also these backward instincts I have now. For example, I used to be repulsed by nausea and avoid it at all costs. Now it’s like this feeling that I am weirdly attracted to because it is so familiar to me and I associate it with being drunk. I’ve found myself abusing certain substances that have little to no euphoric effect...shit that just makes you delirious and sick. I wake up sometimes, my throat burning and that fluttering feeling in my chest...then I realize it’s not real. I’ve just been dreaming.