re: What constitutes alcohol addiction

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I’m 47 and drank mostly beer since I was 19. Would always drink heavy when at parties, get togethers etc. About 4 years ago I discovered Vodka. Worst thing I could have done. On beer I would get drunk but not passed out drunk like with the vodka.

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All of the textbook alkies I've known in my life, this was the turning point from functional to non-functional.

They were all fine with beer, then went to vodka or whiskey, and it was over.

I drink alot of beer, to the point I'm sometimes ashamed to take out my recycling on Thursday mornings....but I will never drink liquor because I've seen the drastic turn of events this has caused with multiple loved ones.

physical dependency IMO

Arguably some sort of mental/emotional coping could rise to that level, but it's subjective. I have some friends who cope by drinking in a dangerous way that I don't think rises to a physical dependency.

We got trashed in college 4+ nights a week. But I never had any trouble going 2 weeks without a drink if the situation arose. What we were doing was probably pretty close to the damage an alcoholic would do, but I don't think it was alcoholism.

Now, I situationally depend on alcohol - I want to hurry up and get a drink at a social event or wedding reception, I crave a beer when the weather is nice or a game is getting good on a weeknight. But that isn't some overwhelming urge like alcoholics deal with in their dependency and I assume those social dependencies and patterns are experienced by everyone.