Brad Pitt Says He's Drinking Alcohol Again After Seven Years Sober

Brad Pitt says his seven-year run of sobriety is over ... he's drinking again, though he insists he's learned he still needs to keep a tight leash on things.

The actor opened up in a wide-ranging interview with Esquire ... saying, "I was sober for seven years. And then I got back off the wagon" -- quickly adding he's drinking "in a more restrained manner."

Brad admitted he got overconfident a couple of times and quickly realized drinking in large quantities still isn't good for him.

He says he can have a few glasses of wine ... but not too many, explaining, "I have to be professional about it."

As we previously reported ... Brad previously credited Bradley Cooper with helping him get sober after his split from Angelina Jolie. He also spent more than a year attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings during that period.

The conversation took a much darker turn ... as Brad reflected on a painful period involving what he would only describe as "family stuff."

Brad said suicide generally wasn't in his makeup ... but acknowledged there was one period when the pain became so "oppressive" he understood how someone could view death as relief. He stressed he never planned to act on those thoughts, and said his survival instincts quickly kicked in.

When the interviewer asked whether the period involved his children, Brad declined to elaborate ... repeating, "Family stuff. We could leave it at that."

As Brad put it ... "This s*** ain't easy" -- even for a guy who says he "won the lottery."