Binge drinker / Alcoholic?

Question

Same thing, different label?

Answer 1

For me it's the same thing. I'm an alcoholic. I started with years of binge drinking which led to 2 years of drinking on a daily basis. I was able to kick the daily drinking but I went back to binge drinking. What it's come down to with me is that I am still an alcoholic even though I was able to keep my drinking down to about once a month for the past 3 or 4 years. There is no such thing as 'having one drink' to me. I CANNOT stop drinking until I am wasted. I have no control. The problem isn't that I get drunk once and awhile, it's that I get drunk EVERY time I drink even when I don't want to. My binges are not planned. I always tell myself I'm only going to have 2 drinks and then I'm going home. Next thing you know, it's 10 drinks later and a blackout.

It took me years to figure out that I'm an alcoholic. I thought I didn't have a problem anymore when I stopped drinking every day. I thought it was 'controlled' if I spaced it out and only drank once and awhile. What I know now is that I never have 'control' since I can't walk away from a drink until I pass out.

Not every binge drinker is an alcoholic. But if you find that every time you pick up a beer it turns into a night of unplanned or unwanted binge drinking then there's most likely a problem to a degree.

Answer 2

If you go to an AA meeting and listen, you will find that alcoholics fall into several usage patterns. Weekend onlies, everyday ones and periodics (what normies call binge drinking)

Some will only drink once a year. It's not the frequency that matters, it's the effect once under the influence. If there is any loss of control on how much they are drinking, blackouts, or behavior that is illegal/wrong...those are red flags for alcoholism.

Current medical estimates are that a minimum of 10% of the population of the US are alcoholics and don't know it...other more realistic estimates are 30%.

Answer 3

It is possible to be an alcoholic and only "binge drink." Medical definition for an alcoholic relies on tolerance and withdrawal. It is possible to have both symptoms and drink sporadically.

Most "normal drinkers" don't have to ask this question. Think about that.

Answer 4

A binge drinker is someone who drinks alcohol to excess in a relatively short period of time.. They are unlikely in any accepted sense to be classified as an alcoholic...but they are clearly susceptible to becoming an alcoholic either sooner or later.

An Alcoholic is not a specific kind of personality or individual belonging to a specific social group.

The easiest way to look at this is...if a person drinks alcohol to an extent that it has a detrimental effect on their finances, their job, their mental health or their interpersonal relationships...then they are in any useful analysis...an alcoholic.

Hope that helps.

Answer 5

Binge drinkers seem to be young alcoholics and alcoholic are older people so yeah same thing

Answer 6

no a binge drinker just can drink alot and handle it.. an alcoholic NEEDS the alcohol in their mind to be happy and content and cant live without it

Answer 7

A binge drinker is someone who drinks too much in one go.An alcoholic is someone whos life revolves around drink and who carnt live a day without one.

Answer 8

In the US a binge drinker (according to the 5/4 definition), is a man who consumes five or more alcoholic drinks on an occasion of unspecified duration and is a woman who consumes four or more drinks on an occasion of unspecified length.

The International Center for Alcohol Policies says that diverse definitions of binge drinking exist. "Within the field of epidemiology, for example, there is disparity regarding the amount of alcohol that needs to be consumed in order to qualify as a 'binge'. One of the commonly used thresholds for 'binge' drinking is 5 or more drinks for men and 4 or more for women per occasion. This definition has gained a foothold within the social sciences literature and has influenced media reporting of drinking behavior."

It explains that "the clinical definition of a binge, as the other hand, is characterized by the consumption of alcohol to intoxication, usually a solitary and self-destructive activity lasting up to several days and involving a loss of control. Epidemiological definitions generally refer to much shorter drinking episodes but do not quantify binge drinking adequately."

"Alcoholic" or someone who suffers from alcoholism is accurately called "alcohol dependent."

According to the DSM-IV, an alcoholism diagnosis is: ...maladaptive alcohol use with clinically significant impairment as manifested by at least three of the following within any one-year period: tolerance; withdrawal; taken in greater amounts or over longer time course than intended; desire or unsuccessful attempts to cut down or control use; great deal of time spent obtaining, using, or recovering from use; social, occupational, or recreational activities given up or reduced; continued use despite knowledge of physical or psychological sequelae.

Answer 9

A binge drinker occasionally goes on a binge. An alcoholic is on a never ending binge.

Answer 10

No, binge drinkers have spurts of drinking say for example as soon as they finish work on Friday at 5.00pm and then stop Saturday night. Alcoholics drink as soon as they wake up in the morning till they conk out every day. Well thats my understanding.