FreeOwl

How many times have you almost committed unwitting suicide?

How many times have you almost killed another human being?

Another entire family?

Your OWN family? Your children?

How many times have you narrowly missed running over a child?

Do you even know?

A few recent posts have had me thinking honestly about these questions.

In at least two significant DUIs and an almost-DUI that I 'got off' from, I can say without question that I was incredibly lucky not to kill anyone.

Those were just the ones I was caught for.

I can't even count the number of other times I got lucky and didn't kill someone or go off the road and do myself in.

Can you?

Yet another reason I'm grateful for sobriety.

Dropsie

Good post. Something we all need to be grateful for.

least

I always drank at home alone so thought I was "ok". Forgetting about the many times I drove to get more wine. I was blessed to never get stopped.

Venecia

Good post, Free Owl.

I'm ashamed to say I did drive while under the influence. As I have said before on SR, I wasn't the lucky one because I didn't get caught.

The lucky ones were the others on the road who remained safe, despite me and my irresponsible, dangerous decision.

Anecdotally, it does feel as though there's been an uptick lately in fellow journeyers talking about recent situations in which they've driven drunk.

A concern: There is great remorse expressed after these incidents, as well there should be. But we've all learned from the experiences here on SR that remorse, no matter how intensely it's felt after a regrettable incident, is an emotion that subsides like others.

Remorse alone is not enough to sustain sobriety.

I hope those who are reading this can think about how best to transition negative emotions -- remorse, anger, regret -- into something bigger and build the foundations of sobriety.

PurpleKnight

Sobriety is definitely a much safer way to live life for anyone who has a problem with alcohol!!

JamesfrmEngland

Very nearly, it doesn't take much to make a wrong move while drinking, a lad in our rehab murdered his uncle.

BBQBOY

I belong to an outpatient therapy center and attend a weekly support group. One of our regular members missed a couple weeks during the holidays without calling in....always a red flag. Last week there was a story in the local media detailing an accident involving a local high school teacher. This group member was a high school teacher. The single car accident occurred at 7:30 AM and the driver was charged with DUI. A picture was also posted, it was the member from my group....he was on his way to work!
Our group leader tried to contact him before this accident, but he did not respond. He had much support from this group and still the addictive voice won out.
Just a cautionary tale....makes me think "it could have been me" many times. His life is a mess right now....I hope to see him back at our meeting tonight so me can give him some support.

IronPhoenix

Too many times to count and have been extremely lucky. You can only roll the dice so many times before you crap out. I hope that all of us don't have to find that out and can stick to our plans for staying sober.

MIRecovery

Yup, yup and yup. For some strange reason the memory of being on a second floor roof with a fifth of vodka in my coat stringing Christmas tree lights is one of those memories that makes my stomach churn every time. Killing myself in reality was the least of my insanity

Scram

This is a really hard one for me. I find myself feeling a mixture of gratitude and utter shame. Obviously thankful I never got caught (somehow) but also a pretty heavy sense of self loathing. I caused serious damage to three cars, all in accidents only involving myself thank god.

And lastly this makes me kind of scared. I have had a number of relapses, one very recently. While those accidents happened years ago and I'd like to think it's all in my past, I don't trust the drunk version of myself. It's such a strange feeling to be scared of yourself...