Originally Posted by
onlythetruth 
One of the things that puzzles me is why one person will get to that decision after a few hard knocks, while another person never gets there, even after losing everything.
Me too. The only thing I can think of is being able to (being forced to) face reality as opposed to clinging to delusion. I was
unfortunate to not have lost much while drinking. I ended up with a Masters degree, a career, home, tons of stuff, and a couple of really great kids. It was easy to delude myself into thinking I was OK, functional. It took physical illness to make me realize how bad alcohol was for me.
I kept drinking till I was forced to face the fact that if I drank even a sip I lost control of my drinking and the drinking would escalate till I made myself sick. I would feel ill for two or more days. That was reality and I couldn't deny it. I finally decided that drinking wasn't worth the after-effects. Now I take Antabuse so that even a sip would immediately make me deathly ill. I would need to stop taking it for 12 days in order to drink without the effect. It's a way for me short circuit the stupid urges and cravings. I won't say I'm not tempted at times but I have to remember the evidence - I simply cannot drink anymore without serious discomfort.