Why We Should Stop Using the Term ‘Alcoholic’
What comes to mind when you think of the term 'alcoholic'? Homelessness, drinking out of a paper bag, shaking hands reaching for a drink every morning and shadowy, shameful addiction meetings in the basement of a church?
That’s what most people think about the term alcoholic.
Look deeper and we see a different picture of a modern day dependent alcohol user and it’s far from this stereotype. They are usually middle-aged, professional and middle-class people who are highly functioning on the outside, but slowly crumble on the inside.
The term ‘alcoholic’ keeps people stuck
This out-dated stereotype and the shame associated with the term ‘alcoholic’ is what keeps many people stuck in a cycle of alcohol abuse and prevents them from reaching for help when they need it most. We now know there’s a spectrum when it comes to alcohol use disorder. It’s not as black and white as being an 'alcoholic' - or not. There are distinct grey areas, even if we don’t drink every day, we can still have a problematic relationship with alcohol. But until we talk more openly about this, we are left with a situation where people only believe they need to change their drinking habits if they are physically dependent on alcohol.
How this plays out in real time…
One of my clients was recently turned away from a drug and alcoholic rehabilitation facility because she wasn’t drinking enough. To put this in perspective, she was drinking a bottle of wine a night, which equates to 70 units a week (the recommended government guideline is 10 units a week). Yet this wasn’t deemed ‘serious’ enough for her to be offered medical assistance. Surely I’m not the only one who sees how warped this is, am I?
It’s not about control
The other problem with using the term ‘alcoholic’ is that it places the onus on the person for not being able to control their alcohol use. We take the emphasis off alcohol as the culprit (and let’s not forget alcohol is a class one carcinogen that kills thousands of Australians each year) and we put the blame and therefore the shame on the person for developing an addiction to what is a highly addictive substance.
A UK liver specialist recently stated that only a third of the patients they treat with alcohol-related cirrhosis have a severe alcohol dependency. The remaining two-thirds are heavy social drinkers. Meaning 66 per cent of those who end up with liver cirrhosis are not classified as addicted to alcohol.
Some of the side effects of grey area drinking include anxiety, depression, weight gain, poor sleep, lack of energy, hormone imbalance, an increased risk of cancer and heart disease and low self-esteem. Yet there’s little or no help available until someone falls into the ‘alcoholic’ category. And even then it depends how deep your pockets are and how long you can wait for support.
I believe it’s time we changed the narrative around alcohol use and perhaps by doing so, we can change the old-fashioned stigma that prevents people from asking for help, and subsequently save lives.
You don’t have to be an alcoholic to decide to stop drinking! Why not join my 30-Day Alcohol Free Challenge and see for yourself all the benefits that come from a month off alcohol.
If you’d like support and more information, you can read about Grey Area Drinking HERE or join my online community of wonderful, supportive women over at The Women’s Wellbeing Collective.
Xx Sarah
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