I knew that I had to do something about my drinking for a while, just did not know what to do or how to do it. Quitting alcohol forever was not something I was interested in - to be honest, I still cannot fully grasp the idea that I should not drink ever again. That's why I tell myself that I will not drink today, and we will see about tomorrow when it comes...
I have IBS as well, and I used to drink wine only which is so acidic, I had constant stomach pain, like my stomach was burning non-stop. It was unbearable. I had to cut down my drinking so that my stomach would go back to normal, but I could NOT cut down. It was either all the way to being completely wasted, blacked out, don't know what I'm doing or saying - OR sobriety. I started having these random bruises and red spots all over my legs and arms, they literally would appear out of nowhere and looked scary. I think it had to do with my veins. I just came to the point where I would wake up and want to immediately start drinking, I could not function without alcohol. It was a nightmare.
I know that I CANNOT drink like a normal person and moderate my drinking, I am simply not able to control how much I am going to drink or what's going to happen to me if I drink. It is a really scary thought.