I think what hurt me, and still does to some extent, wasn't the fact that I didn't care about my friends but that I realised THEY didn't care about ME.
My dear alcoholic friend who for many years was a sort of mother figure to me, and saw me over some dark times popped in to see me at work a couple of months ago. I invited her over to my house over the summer while I was off. She looked horrified...'but Jen, what would we DO now you're not drinking?!' I suggested a few things and she smiled and hugged me, but we both knew she felt there was little point in her coming over if there was no alcohol involved.
I accept her for who she is, still love her a lot, but I can't pretend that I didn't feel a sense of loss with her in particular. My other drinking crowd were easier to let go, but I thought this relationship ran a lot deeper than a shared bottle of vodka. Apparently not.