Originally Posted by
AAPJ 
There are folks who suffer fewer consequences. They stopped in time.
On a semi related note I recall someone commenting that one of the problems he had with AA meetings is that folks who were asked to lead the meetings had crazy drinking stories. He figured that the "crazy" stories with lots of bad consequences were the most popular to listen to so that's what dominated. For me hearing stories of folks who had fewer consequences but still realized it was time to stop drinking is very helpful. Thanks.
I've heard someone describe themselves as a "high bottom drunk," meaning that they hadn't wrecked their lives as much as they could have before they began recovery. We often talk about hitting our bottom, as if it's a goal: "You haven't hit your bottom yet." But why wait for that?
What we identify as the bottom is really just where we changed the direction of our fall. Does anyone ever really hit their bottom? Do you hit bottom when you die from alcohol abuse, or does death just interrupt your downward spiral? I think it's the latter.
And no matter how far down you might fall, someone else can always outdo you with an even lower bottom story. Sometimes it seems like a competition. Who has the most horrific hitting bottom story? But maybe the lucky ones... the real winners, are the first to quit. Duh?!