If anyone can drink responsibly every time, they are usually not considered an alcoholic. Non alcoholics only get drunk maybe once or twice in their lives. When they drink and start to feel it, they stop. When an alcoholic drinks and starts to feel it, they do not stop. It is that simple.

I tend to disagree, Crusty. I believe there are at least the three catagories nicky mentioned.

nicky,

AA itself has supported that opinion since day one. From the BB, pp. 20 21:

"Now these are commonplace observations on drinkers which we hear all the time. Back of them is a world of ignorance and misunderstanding. We see that these expressions refer to people whose reactions are very different from ours.

"Moderate drinkers have little trouble in giving up liquor entirely if they have good reason for it. They can take it or leave it alone.

"Then we have a certain type of hard drinker. He may have the habit badly enough to gradually impair him physically and mentally. It may cause him to die a few years before his time. If a sufficiently strong reason ill health, falling in love, change of environment, or the warning of a doctor becomes operative, this man can also stop or moderate, although he may find it difficult and troublesome and may even need medical attention."

Link to text here:

http://anonpress.org/bb/Page_20.htm

Classifying drunks is for Aclohol Assessments, and people who want to collect on insurance. The solution is the same, don't take the first drink, and go to meetings.

There is different solutions, depending on what type of drinker you are, on page 20 it talks about it in the big book. We probably have 3 different type's of drinker's that come in here, according to the bb. So who knows, all I know is what I need to do to stay sober. I don't know what anyone else needs to do.When I post I am just saying what I have done to stay sober, it's not meant for anything but to keep me sober. But if you are the real alcoholic, AA is still the best bet for you, bar none.But then again this disease is wierd, you can be lieing to yourself,I thought I was fine for many years of drinking, which in fact I was far from fine.This disease is a bitch and will try and drive a wedge between us all, so that it can work on you. Any old timer in
AA will tell you if they are honest, they don't know what it will take for you to see the light and stay sober. All we can do is share our stories and if you see similarities with someone find out what they did to stay sober.Take care.

spongeB - how do we know that we need to go to meetings if we dont classify whether we are alcoholic or not?

For me, my highschool reunion tell me. We all partied hard and most were what you could call problem drinkers when we were young (maybe one or two full fledged alkis). The ones who remained hard drinkers, and got worse like me were alcoholics.

I could spot em (my fellow alkis) a mile away at the reunion. We were the ones who could never leave the party.

there is some fabulous feedback here. i like what mike said. really it all boils down to me, i know i am an alcoholic. my hat goes off to anyone who could drink like normal men or even take it or leave it. i know i am not one of them. thanks nicky for putting this out there to begin with.

I was these things:
A drinker.
A drinker.
A drinker who started to drink a bit more.
A drinker who started to drink a bit more than that. Recognized it.
A drinker that continued to drink but was not an alkie.
When I turned into an alkie was when I added vodka to the equation for about a year. Stopped that and all of a sudden I was getting sick.
Cut drastically down on the beer and was still getting sick everyday.
This process took from 18 - 39.
38 or 39 I turned into an alkie.
My body NEEDED it.
It was a very sad and rude awakening.
I could abuse beer but I NEVER woke up NEEDing alcohol. Not once.
Not until I turned into an alkie.
There are many levels of abuse.
But when your body is frickin you over cuz you're not drinking....I would say you are a full-pledged alkie.
Unfortunately.
Life has never been the same for me.

There are members of my family....step brother, cousins and others that can drink all they want.... they can also stop and know when they had enough..... Yet they have told me that they have seen the problem with me........i wouldn't stop...... even when it got to the point where i would just pass out.......They saw the difference,... and all along i thought i was like them. I accept that i am an alcoholic, they don't admitt to that........or even think it...... good post

full-pledged? LOL
I come up with some of the silliest things.

i was an alcoholic since 16 yrs of age. i started in a big way, and there was no option except to stop. it took 16 yrs for the realisation to set in. i stopped at 32 yrs.

I can give 4 examples.
My lovely Dad who was a heavy drinker, I just thought all families were like that, he is now 83 and has his 2 whiskys before bed,
NOT an alcoholic.

My friend who is a could be alcoholic, but keeps herself in check (dont know how she does it)

Another friend who enjoys a drink but stops when she gets a metalic taste in her mouth, thats her body telling her.

Then there is me!! who could never stop just wanted more and more
DEFINITELY alcoholic

Hard/problem drinkers may still have some semblance of control over their drinking.If it gets in the way of their life,they can cut it back.I couldn't control it.If I woke with a hangover,I knew what it took to make me feel better.It didn't matter if it got in the way of anything,I wouldn't give up my booze,I had to have it.An alcoholic seldom drinks for enjoyment.

The difference between problem drinkers, heavy drinkers and an alcoholic is a semantic debate only. It makes no difference. If I drink, I get drunker than I mean to. I cannot moderate my consumption, even when I know there will be police officers looking for drunk drivers who might see me on my drive home. Often the best solution for all types is to not drink.

I love chinese food. However, I have no trouble not going into a chinese restaruant, I have not trouble stopping eating it when I start to feel full, I really don't remember when I had it most recently, and I have no compulsion to rush out and gobble some down. I am reasonably happy without it. That is pretty much the same way non alcoholics feel about alcohol and when a person feels that way about alcohol, then no meetings are needed and there is no problem stopping eating chinese food. Alcoholics and problem drinkers are the only people I know who expect applause after they say they have gone a day without drinking.