Hi again eyem,
I'm not sure of the stages - but I was drinking all day everyday I could for several years and was seriously looking at dying before I stopped and turned it around, so I, for one, don't believe it's ever too late.
It took me a while to feel anything like 'normal' too tho - I figured I'd drank heavily for 20 years so it would probably take more than a week or two
It was probably 3 months before I felt consistently good - your time might be less, I dunno.
I struggled a lot with apathy and depression the first few months as well...its good you've seen your Dr...if you find you're sleeping more than anything else you might want to go back and ask about that?
With the thinking you can't function w/out a drink - I felt the same way. I did everything with a drink in my hand so it took some mental readjustments.
I just accepted that I couldn't drink anymore, no matter what, and trusted that feeling would fade in time, and with the more things I accomplished sober.
I was right
It's not easy staying sober eyem, but its a lot easier than living drunk
Are you working any programme like AA, LifeRing, SMART?
D