Social Drinker or Alcoholic? Signs that Your Drinking Buddy Has a Drinking Problem

Maybe he's asked you to cover his tab because he's "strapped for cash" once too often. Or maybe you can't remember the last time you saw her when she wasn't - at the very least - slightly buzzed. But whatever your reason for suddenly being suspicious of your friend's drinking habits, there's a good chance that your gut is on to something (Read Alcoholism: What Are the Signs?).

Is my friend an alcoholic?

Alcoholism is a complicated disorder that can be caused or exacerbated by numerous factors (Read Fact or Fiction: Test Your Addiction IQ). If a few of the following are true, your friend might have a drinking problem.

• Family history – Has your friend ever mentioned that a relative was an alcoholic? A genetic predisposition for alcoholism puts them at a higher risk for developing it themselves (Read Addiction and Genetics).
• Frequent blackouts – Does your friend seldom recall what happened or things that you told them when you last went out drinking? Fragmentary and en bloc blackouts are more common among alcoholics (Read Blackouts: Why They Happen and What They Mean).
• Always "between jobs" – Although some alcoholics can remain relatively functional in the workplace, others have difficulty maintaining a job, especially the longer the problem goes on (Read Executive Rehab: What to Expect and Working Under the Influence: Substance Abuse in the Workplace).
• Never has money – Does the person frequently ask to borrow money or seem to have trouble paying their bills on time?  Alcoholics often spend much of their money on maintaining their addiction.
• Physical symptoms – A person who is chronically drunk will have corresponding impairments in motor skills, speech, and memory.  If the alcoholism is advanced, the person may appear jaundiced (yellowed eyes or skin) and flushed; they may bruise easily and have swelling in various places from water retention.
• Drinking in the morning – Did everyone pass out at your place one night and the next morning your friend had to have a drink to take the edge off?  If your friend has alcohol after waking up, it might mean he or she is dependent on it and needs it to avoid withdrawal (Read Withdrawal and Detox: Get the Facts).
• Trauma in their past or present – Some people use alcohol to blur horrible memories from their past or to escape from an intolerable current life situation (Read Substance Abuse: Causing and Coping with Domestic Violence and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: When the Past Affects the Present).
• Volatile interpersonal relationships – Does your friend go through girlfriends like most people go through coffee filters? Continuous drama in romantic, familial, and other relationships is common among alcoholics because they often prioritize alcohol over the needs of others (Read Al-Anon: Support for Loved Ones of Addicts).
• A real "heavyweight" – Do they need twice the number of drinks that you've had to get sloppy even though they are the same sex and body type? Although there is some variability in the way individuals respond to alcohol, tolerance (i.e., needing more than before to get the same effect) can signal addiction (Read Talk the Talk: Medical Terminology Defined and Response to Substances: Why it Varies by Person).