Is there an accurate portrait of what an alcoholic looks like? In other words is there such a thing as a typical alcoholic or not? Popular myths might like to portray an alcoholic as a person who is falling down drunk all of the time and as a person who is constantly carrying around a bottle and sneaking drinks whenever he can. This portrait might also include a person who drinks as soon as he awakens in the morning because he cannot function properly throughout the workday without having a drink (or many drinks). While this may describe some alcoholics, it certainly does not describe them all.

Alcoholics do not really confirm to any strict stereotypes. An alcoholic can be a down and out person who has lost his job and has drank all of his money away to the point where he has lost his home and family and must survive on the streets. On the other hand many upstanding, professional members of the community also have problems with alcohol, even if they are able to hide it better.

There is a great deal of difference between what is deemed social drinking as opposed to problem drinking and that of alcoholism. Social drinking is classified as being mild to moderate drinking (such as for example one to three drinks at a time) which is done for the purposes of simply unwinding or relaxing at a social get together with family members or friends. In the case of social drinking, the drinking is kept in check- there is no impaired judgement, no loss of control and no loss of any level of responsibility on the individual's part.

Problem drinking on the other hand is drinking that takes place on a continual basis despite the fact that a host of problems arises because of it. These problems could involve social problems, legal problems, physical problems or occupational related problems that are directly caused by drinking or else are made worst by consuming alcohol. An example of this might be a college student who goes on a drinking binge every second or third weekend and then misses a day or two of classes at the start of the school week in order to recuperate. This person shows no other noticeable symptoms that his drinking has developed into a problem.

Alcoholism is most definitely problem drinking that is taken to the next dangerous level. There are the added factors inherent in alcoholism such as a total preoccupation with the consumption of it as well as the compulsion to always have it, as well as tolerance (requiring higher and higher quantities to get the same high feeling) and a multitude of symptoms of withdrawal. The state of withdrawal makes reference to uncomfortable physical kinds of symptoms that occur after a great deal of alcohol has been consumed. A person may experience many of these or only a few. Examples of withdrawal symptoms include nausea, headaches, trembling, uncontrollable thirst for liquids, and a feeling of being edgy or antsy. Once a person has been identified as being an alcoholic, they are then considered to have a medical condition or disease and it is believed that the disease of alcoholism can develop as a result of a number of different factors such as genetic factors, environmental factors and psychosocial factors.