3 ms·

Alcohol is not physically addictive in the same way opiates or cocaine is addictive. It's silly to be scared of becoming "addicted" to alcohol. After many year

by CoryG89 10y ago

Alcohol is not physically addictive in the same way opiates or cocaine is addictive. It's silly to be scared of becoming "addicted" to alcohol. After many years of abuse, alcoholics can get to the point that their bodies dont function properly without some alcohol, but they already have to have a problem for many years to get to that point.

Nursie 10y ago
Alcohol is considered one of the more addictive drugs, when compared to LSD, cannabis, ketamine, ecstasy and all sorts of other recreational substances. It just pales in comparison to heroin and cocaine. And meth.
- CoryG89 10y ago
  I agree with you there. Although, I don't really think LSD, cannabis, ketamine, or ecstasy are addictive at all, other than being potentially habit forming, which just about anything can be. I would just put alcohol more in the habit forming category though, maybe a bit more potential than cannabis over the very long term. Opiates, cocaine, amphetamines, meth, benzos, and even Ambien are in another league.
Nursie 10y ago
Also, alcohol is very habit forming, regardless of physical addiction. What's silly to me is that alcohol somehow gets excused from its acute effects (overdose deaths, accidents) and its chronic effects (cirrhosis, premature aging, weight gain, cancer and all sorts of other stuff, because it's just a beer... but drugs, nooo, drugs are evil, the big bad boogeyman. Like alcohol some how isn't a drug!
btmorex 10y ago
Wow, you're absolutely wrong. Alcohol is one of the few drugs where withdrawal can kill you. That's about as physically addictive as it comes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_tremens https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_tremens
dragonwriter 10y ago
> Alcohol is not physically addictive in the same way opiates or cocaine is addictive. That's true; of the basic axes by which things are typically labeled "more" or "less" addictive (all of this IIRC) alcohol is high on habituation (which is sometimes not considered "physical", as if any behavior could exist without a physiological bases) and withdrawal, fairly low on tolerance and reverse tolerance. Cocaine has a dangerous combination of featuring tolerance and reverse tolerance, is moderately high on habituation (though perhaps not as strongly habituating as alcohol), and fairly low on withdrawal. Opiates are strongly habituating, feature significant tolerance effects, and have serious withdrawal (on average more severe than alcohol, but, less often fatal by itself than alcohol withdrawal.) So, alcohol, while definitely physically addictive, and in some respects as much or moreso than cocaine or opiates, is, truly, not physically addictive like cocaine or opiates.

by CoryG89 10y ago

Nursie 10y ago

Alcohol is considered one of the more addictive drugs, when compared to LSD, cannabis, ketamine, ecstasy and all sorts of other recreational substances. It just pales in comparison to heroin and cocaine. And meth.

CoryG89 10y ago
I agree with you there. Although, I don't really think LSD, cannabis, ketamine, or ecstasy are addictive at all, other than being potentially habit forming, which just about anything can be. I would just put alcohol more in the habit forming category though, maybe a bit more potential than cannabis over the very long term. Opiates, cocaine, amphetamines, meth, benzos, and even Ambien are in another league.

Nursie 10y ago

Also, alcohol is very habit forming, regardless of physical addiction. What's silly to me is that alcohol somehow gets excused from its acute effects (overdose deaths, accidents) and its chronic effects (cirrhosis, premature aging, weight gain, cancer and all sorts of other stuff, because it's just a beer... but drugs, nooo, drugs are evil, the big bad boogeyman. Like alcohol some how isn't a drug!

btmorex 10y ago

Wow, you're absolutely wrong. Alcohol is one of the few drugs where withdrawal can kill you. That's about as physically addictive as it comes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_tremens https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_tremens

dragonwriter 10y ago

> Alcohol is not physically addictive in the same way opiates or cocaine is addictive. That's true; of the basic axes by which things are typically labeled "more" or "less" addictive (all of this IIRC) alcohol is high on habituation (which is sometimes not considered "physical", as if any behavior could exist without a physiological bases) and withdrawal, fairly low on tolerance and reverse tolerance. Cocaine has a dangerous combination of featuring tolerance and reverse tolerance, is moderately high on habituation (though perhaps not as strongly habituating as alcohol), and fairly low on withdrawal. Opiates are strongly habituating, feature significant tolerance effects, and have serious withdrawal (on average more severe than alcohol, but, less often fatal by itself than alcohol withdrawal.) So, alcohol, while definitely physically addictive, and in some respects as much or moreso than cocaine or opiates, is, truly, not physically addictive like cocaine or opiates.