Once a week I sit in a room with other people who share about how alcohol is interfering with their own happiness. They share how they no longer ask for the drinkers to stop drinking, they share how they have detached from the alcoholic’s high and low tide attitudes. They share how THIS TIME the drinker is acting different isn’t stumbling or falling down or passing out at the dinner table. They share their own reasons on why they stay and they share their remorse about the life they wanted for their children but were unable to provide that because of the hurdle of alcoholism they all had to learn to jump over, crawl under and go around or avoid all together.
There are so many who all are going through “this time” and second, third, fourth, fifth, 10th, 15th changes.
They have adjusted to the cycle as alcohol continues to interfere with their life happiness and the talk is more like a prison sentence – just doing their time UNTIL????
No one can tell you what action to take, only you can figure out what you are willing to tolerate and for how long. Maybe you should set an internal clock for yourself and set a boundary like – I am going to give him 2 weeks, 30 days or 3 months – whatever you decide – to see if he actually does take positive action not just abstaining like he’s done before which only leads right back to him drinking. See if HE reaches out and goes to AA and actually begins to work the program or calls a counselor and actually goes to the sessions.
It’s always actions not just words.
Maybe this time is the time for YOU to do something different, get yourself involved in a program like al-anon, maybe seek counseling for yourself on this matter and keep posting.
Usually we stop seeking help when they stop drinking thinking the problem is over but it never is because alcoholism is a life long disease. A disease that progresses even when they are not drinking.