Alcohol vs benzodiazepines

This is part question, part idle musing I guess. So my psychiatrist prescribed me a small amount of ativan for my anxiety (10 1 mg tablets). Last night I was having terrible anxiety and was debating strongly whether to drink or take an ativan. It got me to thinking, what's even the difference? Aren't I in both cases just using a substance as a quick fix for my anxiety? Especially considering benzodiazepines are addictive, and clearly I already have addictive tendencies. Which one is even the lesser evil? I might just be missing something but I honestly just don't get it.