There are a lot of terms in the realm of our understanding of substance use that get used interchangeably. Alcoholism and alcohol abuse are two of those. While there are relationships between the concepts, they’re not the same.
Alcoholism, or alcohol use disorder, as it’s also known, is a chronic disease, while alcohol abuse can be more of a gray area that eventually progresses to an addiction.
Understanding the red flags of alcohol abuse or problematic alcohol use can be an essential way to get help for yourself or someone you love proactively.
Alcohol addiction is progressive, and without treatment, it gets worse over time, but if you see potentially problematic things, you can get help.
What Is Alcohol Abuse?
If you abuse alcohol, you have patterns of drinking that lead to impairment or cause you distress, but these don’t necessarily meet the criteria for dependence or addiction. You can abuse alcohol but not be dependent on it. However, your drinking habits may cause you problems in different parts of your life.
Some signs of alcohol abuse that might start occurring in your life include:
- You’re drinking regularly. This might mean you drink more than what’s considered safe regularly, or you binge drink and have a lot of alcohol in a short window of time.
- Prioritizing alcohol over other obligations is a problematic red flag. For example, maybe you don’t go to the gym like you used to because you’d instead go home at the end of the day and drink.
- If you’ve experienced legal issues because of drinking, like driving under the influence, you may have a problem.
- There are often growing conflicts in relationships that start arising with increased alcohol use.
- If you’re often dealing with hangovers or you’re experiencing other physical health problems related to alcohol use, it’s a sign of abuse.
- Alcohol can contribute to mental health problems like increased depression or anxiety.
- Maybe you always intend to have one or two drinks, but that never happens.
- You could engage in risky behaviors while you’re drinking.
There’s a term often used, which is problematic drinking. Problematic drinking means you’re showing patterns of alcohol consumption that are creating negative consequences, but you don’t yet meet the criteria for alcoholism.
Problematic drinking or alcohol abuse typically will escalate over time if unchecked, and that can evolve into alcoholism.
What is Alcoholism?
Alcoholism or alcohol use disorder is a chronic, severe form of problematic drinking. You’re physically and psychologically dependent on alcohol, and your drinking is compulsive and out of your control.
Physical dependence is one differentiator between abuse and addiction. You develop a tolerance to alcohol over time, and then that requires you to increase the amount you drink to get the desired effects.
When you’re dependent on alcohol, if you reduce how much you drink or stop, you have withdrawal symptoms.
Other signs of alcoholism include:
- Cravings and an obsession with drinking. Alcohol becomes your primary focus, and you’re preoccupied with it to the detriment of everything else.
- You continue to drink even though it adversely affects most, if not all, other aspects of your life. It may significantly impair your quality of life, including your social functioning, mental well-being, and physical health.
- Your responsibilities, such as family obligations or your job, are suffering, and your performance is declining.
Alcohol abuse or problematic drinking happens on a continuum or spectrum. Alcoholism is on the end of the spectrum, but recognizing the signs early on and getting help for problematic drinking can stop the progression.
The Progression from Alcohol Abuse to Addiction
There’s no set way that alcohol abuse progresses to addiction that’s the same for every person. Factors influencing the progression include genetics, environmental influences, psychological factors, and your unique circumstances.
Not everyone who abuses alcohol develops an addiction, but prolonged and chronic abuse of alcohol raises the risk.
Typically, the path can look something like this:
- Initial use and experimentation: The progression toward addiction starts with experimenting, which may come with social drinking, peer pressure, curiosity or using alcohol as a coping tool.
- Regular use: You might start drinking more regularly over time. Maybe you’re drinking to alleviate stress and relax, to cope with difficult or negative emotions or to socialize. As you develop a tolerance, you drink more.
- Problematic patterns: As your alcohol use intensifies, you might start to show patterns like heavy drinking, binge drinking or drinking in risky situations.
- Dependence: Prolonged alcohol abuse can lead to both psychological and physical dependence.
- Loss of control: You lose control over your drinking and can’t stop or limit it even though you’ve repeatedly tried to. Drinking overshadows almost everything else in your life.
- Cravings: Addiction includes intense cravings, and drinking dominates your thoughts and influences your behaviors. The cycle becomes cravings, consumption, temporary relief, and guilt or remorse.
- Continued use with consequences: By this point in the progression, you’re experiencing negative consequences in most or all areas of your life, but you continue compulsively drinking.
- Isolation: As an addiction progresses, you may become more isolated and withdraw from friends and family, as well as activities you enjoy.
- Escalation of risky behaviors: For some people, addiction leads to escalating alcohol use and engaging in dangerous behaviors like unsafe sex practices or criminal activities.
- Deteriorating physical health: Long-term alcohol addiction can lead to physical health concerns like liver disease, neurological impairment, and heart problems. Mental health also deteriorates.
The progression of addiction occurs because of changes in your brain chemistry, behavior patterns, and psychological factors.
The Benefits of Early Intervention
If you seek help for alcohol abuse as early as possible, benefits include:
- You can prevent a progression to addiction. With early intervention, you have a better chance of changing your drinking behavior and avoiding dependence.
- Alcohol use carries with it significant health risks, and getting early help can prevent long-term damage.
- Problematic drinking habits strain relationships, but getting help before it becomes an addiction can help repair and preserve them.
- Getting help can facilitate access to mental health support and treatment to help your overall well-being.
- If you notice red flags about your drinking, getting help improves your productivity and functionality, such as at work.
- You can improve your quality of life because alcohol abuse can cause you to feel shame, guilt, and stress. When you get help, it empowers you to regain control over your life and pursue things that are meaningful to you.
- Early intervention improves treatment outcomes by addressing issues before they’re entrenched.
At San Diego Detox, we understand challenges that stem from both alcohol abuse and addiction. We provide evidence-based treatment and support to help you no matter where you are currently. We can help you take the first step toward a healthier, happier life. Contact us today.
