Originally Posted by
LaFemme 
Everyone is on a scale starting at grandma who has never had a drink in her life at 1 ending with a late stage alcoholic in the ER dying of liver failure at 100. I would put "normal drinkers on that scale between 30-60...after 60 you start to get into murky waters and the further along you go the higher your number would be...I would put myself at about 78. Looking at it this way instead of thinking about labels helps me see that even someone in the high 50's is headed in the wrong direction.
Although there is no medical research on this, I believe this to be true and quite like the take on it. The problem with society in general is that "labeling" seems to be so black and white. Society likes to say well you are above 60 so therefore you are an alcoholic and need help... I'd like to think if we can take this a step further, we can truly help people BEFORE they reach "60" (to use your unscientific scale as a measure).
IMO, I'd like to recognize the potential of people who could be heading in that bad direction and stop them in their tracks - like myself, before anything bad happens. Not for religious reasons, or for anything else but simply preventative maintenance. I never realized that sobriety was so much fun, and maybe one day this site will be the place people need to come to when the warning signs start. I truly feel that the people on here have helped me to understand the decision I am making is undoubtedly the best.
Sobriety is smart, and surprisingly empowering.