I remember seeing an old guy with wet brain come in when I was in rehab. I thought to myself, "Crap, that's my future. That's me if I don't quit drinking."
As horrifying as that vision was, it did not keep me sober. Neither did a number of familial, social, and legal debacles. For me, the idea of a wake up call that would one day be sufficient to convince me not to drink, was a delusion. A delusion that had to be smashed before I could recover.