EternalQ

Which of these situations were final straws for you, or were key elements leading you to recovery?

Coldfusion

It was 10 am on a Tuesday morning--we had already had three bottles of wine, but I was about to climb the walls if we did no go out and buy more. So, I asked my wife to take me to the hospital, and we started making phone calls to work things out. After that, detox, then 90 meetings in 90 days.

edit--Oh, this is a poll--I didn't see that. It was a medical thing, but not really "acute" -- just plain old alcohol withdrawal, and I knew I (we) couldn't handle it at home.

Xune

Mine isn't on there and I'm pretty sure it's a common one.

Realization that I was drinking too much, that I couldn't control my consumption and that it was slowly destroying my life.

nomis

Another brilliant poll with our resident pollster, Eternal Q. However, like previous polls it's difficult to choose just one thing.

For me, it was realizing the impact it was having on my wife. She had just started a new job and when she came home, I was passed out on the couch. As well, I called in sick the next morning. And then I just thought, I don't want to live like this anymore. I want to be a better person than that. I have to be a better person than that or I will drive myself insane.

Great question Q.

YouRmySunshine

The further I go in recovery I bet at some point I could check all of the above. I was truly living a distructive life! and destroying everything around me & thought I was above any consequences! But addictive thinking doesn't work forever...

Learning more every day.

scottydee1946

"Stopping drinking is easy - I've done it lots of times" as the old joke goes. This time is for real because I want to live. And live a happy, full-filled life.

Pixienottipsy

I was well on my way to losing my daughter and everything else. I would say a spiritual crisis, because loving my daughter could never have stopped me. As sick as that sounds. However, ultimately it was the negative impact on my family. I am dealing with fear, guilt and shame, but I am working on letting that go and giving it to my Higher Power. I can only work on today in order to make things better for the future.

Natom

I pretty much had a complete psychotic breakdown but there was no poll option for that lol.

Natom.

Fallow

I told myself if I blacked out ever again I was done. After blacking out in extreme fashion I realized Id better give up or die. So I gave it up.

Fallow

I cant see the poll on the iphone app

OCDDan

none of the above

kizzy40

Ideally would have been a 50/50 between the first and second choice, but my family is what swung it for me to quit truth be told.

avocado

not really a 'spiritual crisis' - more like an existential crisis, that my life had not been going in a direction I wanted it to go and it was totally and completely my fault.

Like2Hike

* 4 friends died from alcohol and/or drug abuse in the last 3 years. 3 were very close friends. It still devastates me knowing they didn't have to die.
* I can't stand the thought of one more hour of my life being wasted by being a stupid drunk or hungover.
* I admitted to myself that I will never be able to stop at 1 drink so my only choice is none.

Louise82

Thanks for this poll/thread and all your other great threads, EternalQ.

My life is such a mess that it's difficult to choose but I eventually went for "Complications with alcohol and mental health / illness", because when I was drinking, I wasn't taking my antidepressants. Of course, the combination of alcohol and no meds just made my depression worse than I could have ever imagined, which in turn exacerbated all the other issues mentioned in the poll.

auden67

Great poll, EternalQ! We had been drinking all day, and I argued with my boyfriend about wanting to go over to our friends' for dinner. He correctly accused me of only wanting to continue drinking. I drove drunk over to their house, hung out for a while, and came home with my tail between my legs. I didn't want to lose him or continue ruining my life. That was my last night of drinking. I ponied through the next day of work, but took the day after off to deal with the insomnia and anxiety. It's not always smooth sailing, but it's totally worth it. Our relationship is stronger than ever.

LadyinBC

Even though I didnt want to admit it, I knew my drinking was having a very negative impact on my daughter even though she wasn't living with me. I knew I had to do something or I would lose out on so much.

courage2

It was probably when I called a depression hotline to talk to someone about my suicidal thinking and they hung up on me because I was drunk. I don't know which category to put that in.

Thanks for the poll, tho. I always like your polls, EQ.

LadyinBC

Are you serious???? I don't even know what to say to that! That is horrible!

Lionhearted1

all of the above and some more.. but above all the underlying will to live thats in all of us!!