Originally Posted by
ScottFromWI 
Out of curiosity ( and I understand completely if you don't want to respond due to a personal nature ), what kind of things happened later in your sobriety ( after the first few years ) that you never expected or considered? Granted many of us haven't come close to multiple years of sobriety, but it would be interesting to know what kinds of things might happen years from now that we wouldn't even have considered.
A lot of the things are too complex to get into right now, I'm at work... But quickly and most importantly I guess is that somewhere around the 10 year mark, sobriety for a period of time started to lose its importance to me. It dropped bigtime on the ol priority list. A few friends of mine decided they wanted to drink again, and were doing so successfully for a while (they wound up back in AA). I was playing a lot of music, dating, succeeding and moving forward in a lot of ways. I drifted away from AA, and started thinking on occasion that it wouldn't be all that big a deal if had some drinks now and then. Still having some connections in the program, I was convinced into getting my butt back into meetings, and I recommitted.
The other more complex stuff has to do with hitting a major sober bottom at around the 20 year mark. I got hit with some life events I wasnt ready to handle, and without AAs support I feel I would have just said screw this. I didn't have a compulsion to drink I believe only because of my involvement with the steps and AA, but this was a period of my life where I didn't care much about anything. While not really suicidal, I'd have welcomed death. I grew through that. I'm happy today.
There are countless other occasions where I believe I would have drank if not for the AA voices in my head, and other investments I have in my sobriety. I've written about many of them in other posts here. A time I was with a beautiful woman holding a drink to my lips where my refusal meant I was going home alone... And I really didn't want to go home alone. The time I picked up the wrong drink and after taking a sip could have easily just finished the job. The time I was in Russia and the band I was with was being toasted by some big industry people who absolutely insisted I drink. To not drink was insulting them, so I faked it.
AA gave me tools for situations like that. Gave me tools to function without alcohol as a crutch, or pacifier. I could go on and on and on... I'm grateful for all AA has given me and haven't a single regret for ever declaring myself a member.