"How does one tell if someone, not diagnosed, is an alcoholic?"
Maybe this was a rhetorical question, but I wonder about this question of diagnosis.
My thought is that one is an alcoholic when one can't or won't stop drinking despite the negative consequences of said drinking. But in my experience an alcoholic doesn't always see or acknowledge the negative consequences of their drinking on themselves and/or the people around them.
In any case, one can self-diagnose as an alcoholic and still be unwilling to stop drinking for whatever reason.
Likewise, one can believe that one is not an alcoholic and yet be willing to stop drinking for whatever reason.
In the end, I don't think diagnosis is the most important thing when it comes to changing the behavior.
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Maybe this was a rhetorical question, but I wonder about this question of diagnosis.
My thought is that one is an alcoholic when one can't or won't stop drinking despite the negative consequences of said drinking. But in my experience an alcoholic doesn't always see or acknowledge the negative consequences of their drinking on themselves and/or the people around them.
In any case, one can self-diagnose as an alcoholic and still be unwilling to stop drinking for whatever reason.
Likewise, one can believe that one is not an alcoholic and yet be willing to stop drinking for whatever reason.
In the end, I don't think diagnosis is the most important thing when it comes to changing the behavior.
Anyway, you may want to check out Al-Anon.
http://al-anon.org/
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