You might know some heavy drinkers, and you may know some alcoholics. Some of your family members or friends might fall into one of these categories. Maybe one of these definitions could apply to you as well.
You might want to learn about the benefits of IOP treatment if you’re dealing with an alcohol issue or know someone else who’s afflicted with this problem. Treatment might be necessary for a problem drinker to get their life back on track.
You should also realize, though, that heavy drinking is not the same as alcoholism. Sometimes, that distinction comes into play when someone is figuring out whether they need to change their life or whether a treatment program is warranted.
We’ll discuss the difference between heavy drinking and alcoholism right now.
What is Heavy Drinking?
It’s a little difficult to define heavy drinking. What one person feels correctly defines this term may not match what someone else thinks of when they call it to mind.
However, to give it as precise of a definition as possible, we’ll say that the designation heavy drinker applies to someone who drinks a lot. They consume alcohol more than normal. They might drink every day, and they may have multiple drinks every day.
This definition of heavy drinking is not the same as alcoholism, though. You can be a heavy drinker and also be an alcoholic, but that is not always necessarily the case.
What is Alcoholism?
The difference between heavy drinking and alcoholism is that an alcoholic doesn’t just drink more than the average person does. They also have a physical alcohol dependence.
That is how you can differentiate between a heavy drinker or a problem drinker and someone who’s a genuine alcoholic. The heavy drinker might like drinking every day and have the urge to do it, but if they happen to go a couple of days without drinking, they won’t go into physical withdrawal. An alcoholic will, and that’s the clinical definition.
When Do You Know Someone Needs Help?
While you can differentiate between a heavy drinker and an alcoholic based on whether they are physically addicted to alcohol or not, that can become a technicality some problem drinkers use to their advantage. Say you have someone in your immediate family who you feel has a drinking problem. You want them to seek help, but they won’t do it because they tell you they’re not actually an addict. They don’t experience withdrawal symptoms if they go for a couple of days without alcohol.
Even though this person is not technically an alcoholic, that doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t have a drinking problem. It’s splitting hairs if you have someone who regularly drinks so much they pass out or are verbally or physically abusive. Maybe they don’t fit the clinical definition of an alcoholic, but their drinking still hurts those around them.
In these situations, it becomes incumbent upon the problem drinker to seek treatment, even if they don’t fit the recognized alcoholic definition.
