I had a dream...
If you're happy and you know it clap your hands. (clap-clap)
Why I quit drinking... Because I needed to. Because I wanted to - for a long time. Because, because, because.
Over my life of drinking I experienced sad times, times of joy, times of happiness... basically, just life. BUT, drinking had taken over my life. And the final straw was an event that changed my life. I needed to remove drinking so that it would never have an impact on my life, the decisions I made, or how I functioned in general. Quitting drinking had no influence on being happier, sadder or anything else for that matter. All it did was take away the influence of alcohol on the many emotions I experienced. When I was sad, I drank, and became sadder. When I was happy, I drank, and became happier. We are all different and alcohol affects us in different ways - the happy drunk or the drunk who puts on the boxing gloves when he is drunk, and the list goes on.
To expect our outlook to change just because we remove alcohol from the equation is going to cause disappointment in many. Sure it may change one's demeanor, but 9 out of 10 times it is the person who must change regardless of alcohol or not.
But that's not why I came here to post. I started reading the synopsis of the book from the original post - the 'moderation' part, then quit reading. My AV went into overdrive. And it followed me to sleep. I had a dream last night. I don't recall having many drinking dreams since I sobered up, one or two tops. But last night I dreamed I had some drinks at an event. I went to get the car and as I was driving very slowly in the parking lot I misjudged and swiped a parked car. I thought nothing of it, just a little bump, but didn't stop because I was 'drinking'. I later examined my car, the exact one I own, and the side was heavily damaged and black paint from the parked car was all over my car. I woke up in a panic! It was only a dream. But it was so real and vivid - it's now a memory ingrained in my mind. Terrifying! I though of going to jail and worse... Guess I better put that thought about 'moderation' right out of my head. My subconscious mind gave me a lesson in reality last night.