Laura,
Hello again! I didn't really start drinking until I was 21. I didn't drink every day, I had good jobs, a nice car, friends. I never lost a job because of drinking. I didn't go to the ER or get arrested.
I would get weeks, months even years between binges. It was the relationship I had with alcohol. I liked getting drunk. That's the bottom line for me. I mostly drank alone.
About the smell: I can smell alcohol on someone fairly easily. It has a strong smell to me. When I was hung over, I couldn't smell it on anyone else.
AA isn't the only way to get sober. I know you've been here before and have read a lot of the posts. The Twelve Steps to me are a business plan for getting sober. I think the principles are a good way to live.
What method spoke to me the best was Rational Recovery. It works for me.
Love,
Lenina