I'm not a doctor, either, and this is my own experience--but I am bipolar and probably had been from middle school. I was undiagnosed until I was 38. From youth I always enjoyed getting into "altered states," but i never got into a serious alcohol problem till I was over 40.
I found the meds I was on for my bipolar disorder left me feeling really dead and extremely bored. So I drank to pass the day away.
I quit drinking for good (Lord willing) last November. Since August of 2012 I have been taking classes online to occupy my brain. I post on SR a lot.
Recently I got off of a med I'd been on for 16 years and have replaced it with a newer one. I feel great.
I think it's not only wrong but damaging for those people to think that you're "not sober" if you take necessary psych meds. You are not getting high from them. They are fixing a malfunction in your brain.
Do those people think that you're "not sober" if you take a cold medicine for a cold?