Am I Still an Alcoholic or Addict After Years Sober? The Label Question

Do you have to call yourself an addict to stay sober? Here's what the label means to me.

A listener sent me a DM that stuck with me: after years sober, calling herself an addict felt like it was keeping her stuck in a victim mindset. Did the label matter in my healing? Do I still need it?

So this episode is about identity and the words we use — addict, alcoholic, in recovery, person with a substance use disorder, or nothing at all.

I share the first time I said "I'm an addict" out loud (and why I mostly did it to fit in), why a relapse after years of sobriety ended my negotiation with the word, and why "alcoholic" can be true and still be the least interesting thing about you.

In this episode:

• The difference between saying the label out loud and actually accepting it
• "I'm an alcoholic" vs. "I'm alcoholic" — a small word shift that helps some people
• Choosing where the label belongs: a recovery room vs. an HR office or a medical chart
• A name you claim vs. a name that gets thrown at you
• What a national US survey found about people who resolved alcohol and drug problems — and how many never identified as "in recovery"
• The social identity model of recovery: why the people you belong to matter more than the word
• Two things to try this week: the "and" sentence, and mapping your groups

This is my lived experience, not professional advice. I'm not here to tell anyone what to call themselves. The label is a tool, not a verdict — own it where it helps you heal, and don't let anyone else pick it for you.

Research mentioned:

• Kelly, Abry, Milligan, Bergman & Hoeppner (2018). On being "in recovery": A national study of prevalence and correlates of adopting or not adopting a recovery identity among individuals resolving drug and alcohol problems. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.
• Best et al. (2016). Overcoming alcohol and other drug addiction as a process of social identity transition: The social identity model of recovery (SIMOR). Addiction Research & Theory, 24(2).
• Buckingham, Frings & Albery (2013). Group membership and social identity in addiction recovery. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 27(4).

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Recovery is simple, not easy.