Sep 08
Q&A: Can recovered alcoholics drink without still being an alcoholic?
ALCOHOLISM ADDICTION Add comments
Question by Paige Castle: Can recovered alcoholics drink without still being an alcoholic?
My mum was an alcoholic but ive been told that she still drinks sometimes. So i was curious if this still makes her an alcoholic?
Best answer:
Answer by tugar357
That is a question only she can answer. Yes it is possible, but it is harder as the temptation is there.
Give your answer to this question below!
Tags: alcoholic, Alcoholics, being, drink, recovered, still, without
I wouldn’t say it makes her an alcoholic. For the most part though, once you are an alcoholic, you are always an alcoholic, so it can be very dangerous and tempting to even drink a little. If she is in control…then great! But, she should take caution.
I dont think once an alcoholic gets cured that they are ever ment to drink again other wise they could return to their old ways
One is never completely healed from the disease.
once you are you always are, it is a disease that you have to control .
as I was once told , even after 20 years an alcoholic still wants that first drink . If your mom can have one and stop for a week and have another one then she is not a true alcoholic, she just likes to drink.
seeing as alcohol is a legal substance, I shall study this answer as a illegal substance.
If she had been a heroin addict, and decided to take it now and then after being cured of her addiction. She is still an addict.
I’m addicted to smoking, but I can “quit” given the knowledge that I can have one now and then.
Seeing as alcohol’s legal status allows your mother to drink whenever she wants to, there is nothing wrong with her having a drink. But if she is a addicted and is obsessed with having a drink sometimes then she still is an alcoholic.
See if she has more than one drink, she may feel relaxed and have another. Then another.
Before you know it she could ultimatly be back at square one.
But if she has the will power to stop at a certain amount, more power to her.
I’m sure she’ll stay out of drunkeness, but make sure someone keeps an eye on her drinking patterns. Because once someone goes back to it after quitting for a long time they can be worse than before they quit the first time…
Once an alcoholic always an alcoholic. If you quit smoking for years then light up just one your hooked all over again and usually smoke more than you ever did before. same thing for alcoholics.
The term alcoholic is something society uses to define a self-destructive behavior.
I believe the key is whether the drinking is compulsive or not. A person who does not have control of their drinking (smoking, eating, anger, getting high, fill-in-the-blank) has a problem.
An addict is someone who knows the consequences of using, does not want those consequences, but still cannot stop themselves from using. They no longer have control over their choices.
I found the book “The One Thing Holding You Back” by Raphael Cushnir to be very helpful in understanding and releasing the emotional bottlenecks that generate compulsive behavior.
Alcoholism is a chronic and progressive disease. And it has been clinically shown that the body of an alcoholic metabolizes alcohol differently than a non alcoholic. It affects their thinking, their body processes. What makes a person alcoholic is not how much they drink, but what happens when they consume alcohol. Alcohol is a poison to the human body. In small amounts, however, it is a stimulant and a good “social lubricant”. In a normal person, alcohol is fine in these small amounts and they can stop. An alcoholic physically and mentally loses all control once they ingest alcohol and craves more. And sober, they get obsessive thinking about alcohol which starts them on the first drink.
There is also no cure. And different people progress into the disease at different speeds. They NEVER get “better” (regain control) much the same way a diabetic never regains control of their insulin production. Their body never regains control of producing insulin properly without assistance.
If your mum is alcoholic, she may eventually progress to a more chronic state. She may also be a “potential” alcoholic where she is at a stage where she can still stop. But it sounds like either she is not alcoholic, or she is headed for trouble.
It is a myth that recovered alcoholics can never drink again. Some cannot do so without getting into trouble, but others are able to return to moderate drinking. Me personally, I’m a former alcoholic, and I’ve decided that the best choice for me is to simply never drink again. It’s much easier to just keep away from the stuff, and I don’t have to worry about getting into trouble again.