Actually, not necessarily. I may have a margarita on a hot summer's day because I enjoy a margarita on a hot summer's day; it isn't always an attempt to self medicate.

However, it is important to be honest with yourself about why you drink when you drink. If, in fact, you are trying to numb out or whatever, then yes, that would be more along the line of self-medicating and it is not a wise way to go about dealing with whatever ails you.

And . . . those of us on psychiatric medications do have a responsibility to be careful about mixing our meds with additional substances that might interact with and alter how those meds work. Personally, I almost never drink while I'm on psych meds. I find mixing the two to be irresponsible and careless. And when I do drink while on psych meds, knowing it could have stronger effects than usual, then yes, I'm choosing to drink in order to alter my mood which is a poor idea and I personally choose not to model that kind of behavior for my children.