The why has to do with the fears and anxieties building up, and the quantities getting out of control, so that it was getting hard to get to work with all the drinking I had to fit into my day.
The how was a little odd. I couldn't quit, though I wanted and tried to every day for weeks, so I painted myself into a corner, deliberately. I told my wife how much I was drinking (I was a hider, so I knew she'd be shocked). I told her how I snuck it into the house and when; I showed her where I stashed it. I asked her to come with me to the doctor so that I would be forced to tell the truth. I haven't had a drink since that appointment - 15 days - so it worked, so far. I feel great. Quitting, by the way, is more frightening in prospect than it is as an experience. The long term staying quit is the hard part, so they tell me in meetings.