Clint is quite right. Alcohol is classified as a drug. The only difference is somebody decided a long time ago to make it legal so the government could control it and make billions of dollars from selling it. Alcohol is simply a socially accepted, commercially profitable drug. Heroin is not socially accepted. It's highly profitable for criminals.
my father was also an alcoholic and used to beat my mother when I was a kid.
Alcohol is a VERY common factor of physical abuse. This is a prime, but not sole, example of what I meant by "physical suffering" from alcohol abuse. Being a "mean drunk" if often a sign of alcoholism.
I honestly wouldn't consider him an alcoholic, just a really mean drunk.
Whether one is or is not an alcoholic is not exactly up to personal interpretation. Alcoholism has been studied by medical professionals for decades and there is a pretty clear cut definition of what that means. Being an alcoholic does not necessarily mean one binges or drinks every day or even gets drunk every time they drink. An alcoholic isn't a shady, unshaven bum who stays drunk all the time. An alcoholic is your best friend, your pastor, your Senator, your neighbor, your brother, your daughter, your boyfriend. It cuts through race, religion, age, culture. It's insidious. "Functioning alcoholics" can pass under the radar.
but if you're not a weak individual, you just exert some control on yourself.
Another myth about alcoholism-the belief that an alcoholic is just weak and needs to "get a grip." Alcohol is an addictive drug. Weak and strong alike can become addicted. Addiction is
not a sign of personal weakness.
Alcohol use has been studied every which way til Sunday over many decades. Studies have proven that alcoholism does have a genetic link. If you have family members who are alcoholics, it doesn't mean you
will be one. It does mean you have higher risk factor for alcohol abuse. Studies show that sons of alcoholic fathers have the highest risk and daughters of alcoholic mothers have the lowest risk. Those are only "tendencies" and does not mean its a guarantee either way. If alcoholism is in your family...you should be especially thoughtful of deciding whether to drink or not. Truly, you can live well without it.
Odds are...there are alcoholics on this forum who will read this and think "That's not me. I just like the taste." or "That's not me...I just like to have a good time!"
But...speaking of pipes....I saw a Cops episode where a LEO busted some kids in a car. When they searched the car they found the most awesome glass pipe I've ever seen! It was a HUGE (probably 2-feet around) ornate glass-blown pipe. The officers were all wowing over it and one asked "How much did that set you back?". Kid said $400! $400 for a pipe that could shatter into a thousand pieces. (And it got confiscated). lol I think that was the pipe of all pipes.