Thank you for the kind and helpful words, wicked!
Yes, she did tell me a LOT of information. Her having an alcoholic parent explains some of her behavior, including her marriage to my ex who is an active alcoholic. On the other hand, her admission about her own alcohol abuse threw me for a complete loop. She kept saying, "You have to have hope," but she should know firsthand from growing up with an alcoholic parent that only "hope" does not cure alcoholism. Recovery takes very hard work...simply cutting back won't help.
I'm still trying to process everything. I must admit, I have a very hard time believing that she truly cares about my son because she was messing around with my ex when I was still pregnant (I didn't find out about her until my son was 1 1/2 years old and yes, she was content being the "other woman" until my ex and I finally broke up). I still need to work through my anger and other emotions. It's really hard and I am struggling.