Cleopatra1

former,, thats exactly what i say,, and fandy ,, thanks for the reassurance,, means a lot,,, xxx cleo xxx

wpainterw

My take on this is that to admit that I'm an "alcoholic" reminds me that simple honesty with myself and others kept me from really getting into recovery for many many years. When I was able to say that in a group of people something changed and I found myself on a long road upwards and the sun began to shine again. Maybe what you're feeling is the result of all the conditioning which society does about alcoholics, that they are "bad" or "funny" or that they are "losers", "weak", etc. etc. The list goes on and on. So if we have been conditioned to think of alcoholics this way then when we have to say that we are one of these we feel like it's a slap in the face.
So I can identify with how a person feels by saying in a group that he or she is an "alcoholic". I felt like that too. But it's usually only a group of other recovering alcoholics , it's usually anonymous and confidential and I really think it helps a person take an honest look at the situation, that it's an illness and you have to admit in a very serious way that you have it so you can do something about it.
Anyway, despite all the lingering misunderstandings about alcoholism in society, and the prejudice which many have against those who suffer from this illness, I think that you'll find that when a person is able to say, "Yes I'm an alcoholic but I haven't had a drink for a long long time", many, perhaps most folks will say, "Wow! You did that! Congratulations! My hat's off to you". Why do they do that? I think they do that because they know that you've won the hardest war of all, the war against yourself. You've come back from hell itself. It's tough at first but later on it's sort of a battle ribbon.

W.

Fandy

Except in the real world workplace. Or mine specifically. Do you really feel comfortable in the OR (while havingsurgery) with someone in charge who makes that honest declaration?
or do you want the non-recovering never was an alcoholic running the show?
My health is private information, i dont need anyone to oooh and ahhh over my recovery.

Rosiepetal

I was a drug addict.
And now I'm not a drug addict.
Helps me to see how far I've come.

Zebra1275

The only time I use the word alcoholic is when I'm at an AA meeting. It seems appropriate in that setting and frankly, I'm among my peers.

Outside of an AA meeting I almost never refer to myself using that term. But I would tell someone "in a hearbeat" if they were struggling and I felt that my disclosure would help them seek treatment.

choublak

Exactly. Why would it even be relevant elsewhere?

soberlicious

It's not relevant to me at all. I prefer not to identify myself, ad nauseum, by a behavior that has long since been changed. That's just my personal preference.
I know full well what will happen should I choose to drink again. I don't need an adjective or label to remind me of anything. I will never drink again. Game over. What I call myself is completely irrelevant.

RobbyRobot

Exactly. Its far more ideal to be ourselves, and its really about personal choices. Whatever works is the best choice for any of us.

I prefer identification. No big deal except that it works for me. Being me is what I quit drinking to become in the first place, lol.

There is much more than just one rigid path leading us home is my experience.