I'm a recovering alcoholic (been sober for years), but am pretty convinced that alcohol (& marijuana) were attempts at self-medication...I started hitting the booze HARD as a teen, before I was diagnosed. Unfortunately, heredity is also an issue & my family has a history of alcoholism, so I would probably have been an alcoholic anyways. The BP definitely added fuel to the fire, though, IMO.

UpDownAround mentioned jonesing for opiods after shoulder surgery. I'm going to have rotator cuff surgery November 17th. I've heard that recovery is a real bear...a whole world of hurt. Knowing myself as I do, it would be easy to develop a taste for opioids. While reputable docs are probably watching what they prescribe much more closely since the publicity about the opioid epidemic (my docs are associated with a Big Ten university & they operate on all the jocks), I'm going to have to be very careful to use only as prescribed...but I'm a substance abuser by nature!