Originally Posted by mariechi

Hey all,

Since the day I heard myself say "I am an alcoholic," many, much, mucho has happened. All of it good, really. I've had the luxury of doing a lot of soul searching, learning - much of it here at SR. The time is fast coming when I have to take my recovery out into the everyday, work-a-day world and be....

I almost said a functional alcoholic. No, that's what I was.

I didn't know what alcoholism was while I was in full swing. The people in my life don't know what it is, and I don't want to be a person telling everybody about my affliction. That gets OLD. It also detracts from what I want their experience of me to be.

So while I'm not planning on wearing it on a T-shirt, I want to get it straight in my own mind.

I always thought of an alcoholic as a person who's drunk all the time.
An alcoholic is a person who cannot handle alcohol. Nothing wrong with not being able to handle alcohol as long as you don't ingest any. I can't eat watermelon either.

But can't just be an alcoholic. You need a modifier.

Recovering alcoholic? If you can't recover from alcoholism the language doesn't work for me. I can't recover the person who could enjoy an occasional drink.

Non-drinking alcoholic? Better.

I found the one that works for me: alcohol-free alcoholic.

This is probably a silly thread, but maybe if anybody else is having a little bit of an identity - well, not crises, you know -

I'm off to spend the weekend with my folks. I'll check back and see if any ideas occurred.

Be well!