When is someone a drug abuser or an addict?
If someone uses drugs casually and infrequently without significant problems and can take them or leave them, that person might best be called a user, which is still a dangerous situation.
If taking drugs causes significant distress and problems in the person’s life, then abuser might be the best descriptor.
If drugs are in control of a person’s life, or if they can’t stop, or if they do drugs in spite of personal distress and negative consequences, then they might be drug dependent or addicted.
Even people who are not users, abusers, or addicts are very likely to gain from reading this book.
— The Addicted Brain (Michael Kuhar), Loc. 99–104
Update from Sep 30, 2026:
The book turned out to be very good. I think it helped me in many ways.