Anyone can abuse substances and make poor or uninformed choices that yield negative, even deadly, consequences. This doesn’t make them addicts. However, in the face of a DUI, repeated arrests, or the threat of losing one’s spouse or children, an abuser can put down the drug or the bottle and walk away. Part of what distinguishes an addict from an abuser is his or her inability to do this. The addict has become literally powerless over the drug.
