Glossary

  • Addiction

    Addiction is an uncontrolled compulsion to continue engaging in an activity despite suffering negative personal or professional consequences.

  • AF

    Alcohol-free

  • Alcohol dependency

    Alcohol dependency means that your brain has become accustomed to functioning with a certain amount of alcohol and has subsequently chemically changed and altered in order to accommodate it.

  • Craving

    A craving is a real, physical experience we get when we change our drinking, which the mind interprets as needing a drink.

  • Drinking career

    A concept used by Pep to help describe the different stages of a drinking and drinking addiction.

  • Physical addiction

    Simply defined, you have a physical addiction when you repeatedly use a drug until you become so dependent on it that your body can no longer function without it.

  • Physical dependency

    Physical dependency is when the physical addiction has become so engrained through repeated use that the body finds it difficult to function without the drug resulting in withdrawal symptoms. If you believe you are physically dependent then seek medical advice.

  • Psychological addiction

    The word psychological can be defined as relating to, or arising from the mind or emotions. A psychological addiction then refers to how the individual can become mentally dependent on certain substances or behaviours.

  • Reliance

    Reliance is a term used by Pep when referring to psychological or neural links between alcohol and a perceived benefit, such as joy or support. We use it instead of ‘psychological dependence’ to avoid confusion with the much more serious ‘physical dependence’, which can threaten health and life.

  • Single-minded

    To only do things that relate to one activity, goal or interest. To be simple and focussed on one’s approach.