Thank you everyone for your responses, I appreciate you taking the time.
I think that it is mainly around validation, why I would like my therapist to confirm what I experienced.

Healingme4me, what you said about labels resonated with me and has helped me to see things from a different perspective.
My ex was always a bit of a binge drinker, but I think it morphed into being a coping mechanism to deal with an unhappy marriage. It (alcoholism) is gradually destroying his life now - he has lost just about everything.