The Difference Between Alcoholism and Heavy Drinking

Alcoholismis widely misunderstood because it functions differently than most diseases.People with Type-2 Diabetes, for example, are asked at a minimum to removeproblematic foods from their diets. When they do this, they get better.

Thecure for alcoholism isn’t as simple as “stopping the drinking.” With realalcoholism, removing alcohol from a person’s life can actually make thesymptoms worse.

There’sanother complicating factor with alcoholism, and it’s that it doesn’t come withthe same stigma as drug use. As a society, we clearly understand that a personwho uses intravenous drugs is suffering from addiction. But how do we know if aperson using alcohol has an alcohol addiction?

What Happens When a “Heavy Drinker” Stops Drinking?

Witha Heavy Drinker, drinking is the problem. Once they stop drinking, their lifegets better because they’re no longer experiencing consequences related toalcohol.

That’s not to say that Heavy Drinkers don’t suffer serious consequences as a result of their alcohol abuse. Oftentimes, a DUI, a health scare, an ultimatum from a loved one is what causes them to stop using alcohol.

What makes a Heavy Drinker different from someone with alcohol dependence is that they have the ability to stop on their own with little or no support. They are able to let their negative experiences or consequences related to alcohol change them. And because of this, they can make the decision to stop drinking and follow through.

What Happens With Alcohol Addiction?

Alcoholuse is dangerous because it’s socially accepted and much easier to disguisethan illegal drug use. Over a period of time, people cross the invisible linefrom weekend recreation use to daily drinking. They then develop a chroniccompulsion. Eventually, they find themselves in full-on, soul-depriving alcoholdependence.

Whensomeone who is suffering from alcoholism stops drinking, their life may getbetter for a time -- but eventually, things get worse. Why? Drinking isn’t theproblem; it’s actually their solution to their problems.

Forthis reason, someone struggling with alcoholism may stop drinking for a timedue to the pain or shame of consequences related to alcohol, but without theproper support, they will eventually return to drinking. On their own, they donot have the ability to follow through. They make a promise to stop drinkingand are resolved. Then some time passes, and they break that promise tothemselves. They minimize, rationalize, and justify their drinking history, andthen they drink again.

This constant returning to drinking, even after solid evidence that it’s harmful or even destructive, is a big difference between a hard or problem drinker and a real alcoholic. Their brains and bodies have developed a relationship with alcohol that makes it virtually impossible for them to stop their own.

My Recovery from Alcoholism

Likemost people with alcohol addiction, I knew I had a problem because of the way Ifelt when I would try to get sober. It felt like I had a spiritual relationshipwith alcohol, and when it was taken away, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Itgave my life meaning and purpose.

The consequences I experienced as a result of my alcohol dependence weren’t enough to make me stop. That's because I didn't fully experience alcoholism through my consequences. I only experienced it when I would try to stop. And on my own, I couldn’t. Without alcohol, I would obsess and become afraid, anxious, and irritable. Drinking solved those problems for me and gave me relief -- at least temporarily.

Luckily,I received the help I needed to begin my lifelong recovery at a young age. Ichose treatment at a quality facility. I accepted placement in a suitable soberliving environment. I engaged in a recovery process through a fellowship thatempathized the importance of having a spiritual practice, which included livingby principles and serving others.

Theseevents happened how they needed to for me. I’m proud to say that I have createda powerful recovery for myself. I am living a life that has been enriched bythe help of so many others.

My journey of recovery is one of the main reasons I now work as a Recovery Coach for Feinberg Consulting, a case management company that helps individuals and families navigate the addiction, mental health, and recovery process from start to finish and for all the steps in between.

The Goal of Sobriety Is Recovery

The type of support that helps people with alcoholism get sober and eventually enter long-term recovery is different for every person. It’s based on a variety of individual circumstances, but the overall goal is changing the relationship with alcohol or another drug.

That’s why we have to make sure that people suffering from alcoholism and drug addiction are able to address their real problem or problems – they can be physical, spiritual, mental, emotional, or relationship-based – with new skills and healthy behaviors and that do not involve alcohol or other drugs. Otherwise, the internal elements that caused them to drink or use drugs will still be there. They will return to seek relief through destructive behaviors.

The powerful and effective thing about recovery from drugs or alcohol is that by nature, it’s a practice that brings meaning and purpose to life just like alcohol and drugs once did. We remove the unnatural connection to substances and replace it with something much bigger and more real. By doing this, we become in service to ourselves by pursuing meaningful goals. At first, that means simply “getting sober,” but as we move deeper into recovery our goals deepen as well.

By being in service to others and living a life of principles, we are giving ourselves a better direction and orientation. Where does a new direction and orientation take us? To a place where anything is possible. Because as an alcoholic in recovery, we give up one thing so we can gain access to everything.

Thatcher Shivley

Director of Community Relations | Recovery Coach