Originally Posted by
sdi9285 
someone bought me a beer. I drank it..
A relapse can be that simple. There is a story exactly like that in the program section of the big book. It is what we mean in AA when we say "at certain times the alcoholic is without defence aganst the first drink". An effective mental defence that is. Sometimes there is a little thought before hand but not always. In my case I found myself drinking without any conscious thought of the consequences. The thoughts that should have come were strangely absent.
Getting a 24/7 defence is the trick. I found I couldn't rely on friends to that extent. They have lives of their own. Unless maybe a 24 hour body guard? Mine came from a Higher Power. It has never let me down.