Let me start this off by saying I\u2019m Harry, and I\u2019m an alcoholic that\u2019s described on Page 21 of our Big Book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Saturday morning I shared my personal opinion that the word allergy is sometimes confusing \u2014 and I used the example that when I drink alcohol, my reaction is literally euphoric, while that of the non-alcoholic is more in line with what you\u2019d expect from a true allergic reaction: an uneasy feeling, a desire to stop, and if they drink more, they get headaches, nausea, and an overwhelming sense of \u201cthis isn\u2019t for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although I didn\u2019t fully go into this during the meeting (mostly because I didn\u2019t want to invite cross-talk \u2014 which followed anyway), the truth is: there is no actual allergy between alcoholics and alcohol<\/strong>, at least not by any medical standard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AA borrowed that word \u2014 allergy \u2014 to dumb it down and make it stick.<\/strong> It was a 1930s metaphor, not a diagnosis. It\u2019s not a histamine response, it\u2019s not immune-related, and it doesn\u2019t cause rashes or swelling. In fact, it\u2019s the opposite: the alcoholic\u2019s body welcomes alcohol \u2014 almost too well.<\/strong> It lights us up. It brings relief. It makes us feel confident, calm, energized, \u201cnormal,\u201d or just not haunted. That\u2019s not an allergic reaction \u2014 that\u2019s a neurological overreaction<\/strong>. A dopamine flood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If anything, the non-alcoholic is the one who reacts with discomfort, fatigue, or nausea. They don\u2019t chase the next drink. They don\u2019t start rearranging their lives to make sure alcohol is always within reach. That\u2019s the key difference. The Big Book framed it as an allergy, but today we know it\u2019s closer to a malfunction of the brain\u2019s reward system<\/strong> \u2014 a pathological craving loop, not an immune issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s a better way to think about it:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Some people can eat a piece of cake and stop. Others eat sugar and can\u2019t \u2014 they want another cookie, then a third, then the whole pint of ice cream. Sugar doesn\u2019t cause a rash, but for certain people, it hijacks their dopamine system and demands more.<\/strong> That\u2019s not an allergy. That\u2019s addiction. And it\u2019s no different than what alcohol does to me. So calling alcoholism an \u201callergy\u201d is like saying a sugar addict has a frosting allergy \u2014 come on. That\u2019s not an allergy. That\u2019s a body screaming, \u201cMore of that \u2014 now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now here\u2019s the twist:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I actually do have a real allergic reaction \u2014 but not to alcohol. I break out in red blotches, especially on my face, whenever I used to drink Southern Comfort, even in tiny amounts. But that\u2019s not alcohol doing that \u2014 it\u2019s something inside Southern Comfort. Could be one of the flavorings, colorants, or proprietary additives. Southern Comfort isn\u2019t pure whiskey \u2014 it\u2019s a liqueur with added sugars, spices, and fruit extracts. Some batches include artificial coloring like FD&C Red No. 40 or propyl gallate as a preservative, which can cause histamine-type responses in sensitive people. That\u2019s an actual allergy. But it\u2019s not to alcohol itself \u2014 I could drink vodka, gin, or tequila and never break out. It\u2019s specific to something in that one bottle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So when we throw around the word allergy in meetings, it\u2019s worth remembering that our bodies aren\u2019t rejecting alcohol \u2014 they\u2019re craving it. The problem isn\u2019t hives or swelling \u2014 it\u2019s obsession, compulsion, and the inability to stop once we start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n AA needed a word to help people accept powerlessness and stop trying to drink like \u201cnormal people.\u201d Allergy worked. It got people\u2019s attention. It explained why one drink was too many and a thousand were never enough. But if we\u2019re being honest \u2014 and this program demands honesty \u2014 the euphoria I got from alcohol was nothing like an allergy. It was everything like a disease of craving that started the moment the alcohol hit my system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In today\u2019s language, it\u2019s not an allergy. It\u2019s a dopamine disorder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And for me, that\u2019s enough to never want to pick up again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because here\u2019s the reality:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n When I consume alcohol, it doesn\u2019t end with a little buzz or a bad hangover \u2014 I never got hangovers. And in a strange way, I wish I had. If anyone has an allergic reaction to alcohol, it\u2019s the non-alcoholic.<\/strong> They get flushed, dizzy, nauseous. They stop after one or two because their body rejects it. I used to envy that. I used to wish I had a reaction like peanuts or poison ivy \u2014 something so immediate and obvious that it would force me to stop. But I didn\u2019t. For me, alcohol didn\u2019t trigger a physical allergy \u2014 it activated something much darker. Drinking leads to 10 to 14 days of total isolation \u2014 no lights, no food, no contact with the outside world. Just darkness. That\u2019s not an allergic reaction. That\u2019s the full grip of a three-pronged disease: physical, mental, and spiritual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And let me be clear \u2014 there\u2019s no Benadryl in the world that\u2019s ever going to cure my alcoholism.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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