identifying as an addict is important to me because it is a small reminder of what life holds for me if i decide that i can use again. Sure , my life is big now [16 yrs clean] but i have been around long enough to see others who have decided that they can/should use/drink again. So far the results have been ugly/deadly. So i'll keep using that i.d. 'trick' as another reinforcement ...
I also see enough obsessive /compulsive behavior - and i can't say its necessarily my "addict" - but its still a bit unnerving. So its kinda comforting to throw that "addict thinking" label on it - means i 'm gonna have to look at that area of my life too. [sigh]
What i HAVE seen happen - folk get caught up in a 'junkie pride' mode [yes, yours truly as well] might be from wanting to be a Part of Something ... might be leftover 'drug ritual ' thinking. and it could have a lot to do with the romance of the outlaw life... So yeah- many of us grow out of that stage.