Originally Posted by
Hopeforme2014 
I keep thinking that If I just abstain then I’ll be fine. But I know there is so much to it than that.
I need to make a plan. [/left]
That's it in a nutshell.
You have already learned more than you ever need to know about how drinking is affecting your life. It's the classic denial of addiction that keeps you drinking.
The key for me was to unconditionally accept that drinking any amount of alcohol is not an option - ever. And I also had to accept that there is no logical reason as to WHY bad things happen when I drink - they just do. And whatever it is that is different about me can never be changed in regards to that.
Once you've done that, you can get started making a plan. It's no different than building a house in concept, really. If you want to build a house would you just show up and start doing it? Most likely you'd have a blueprint, a materials list, the proper tools, people to help you, money to pay for it, etc. AKA - you would plan the whole thing out and then follow the plan. If your plan is just to "not drink" without some kind of framework behind it, then the results will likely be the same, right?