gramphil

There's probably already a thread on this topic, but I wasn't able to find it. Would anyone share their experience of what drove them to stop drinking (or at least try)? For me, it was two things:

1. My older, and only, brother was an alcoholic who had no intention of stopping. He sold his car, gave up driving, and devoted himself to alcohol b/c he said it was the only thing he wanted to do. Well, a while back he died in his sleep at just 62. I could see something like that (or worse) happening to me.

2. A couple of weeks ago, I was carrying my dying little dog down the outside stone steps one night while drunk, I lost by balance at the top step, and fell all the way down. Managed to protect the dog with my body, but I was bruised and scraped from my shoulders to my shins. Used the healing time to ponder my life and future.

These are the reasons I'm here now.

freshstart57

Those are excellent reasons to quit drinking. May I suggest that you find reasons to stay sober too, as I think they are completely different. Some of those reasons for me were overcoming depression, shame, guilt and anxiety, regaining self respect, regaining my physical health, regaining interest in my pastimes and hobbies, and having fun again. Happiness, having just a little happiness once in a while is nice too.

PurpleKnight

Welcome to the Forum!!

My reason was concerns about health, the hangovers were getting worse and my digestive system was in pieces, also I knew fresher mornings would make work and life in general much better, though I knew this long before making the decision to be sober and yet still kept drinking and having the hangovers!

ippochick

it was sobriety or death. i lost almost everything, and if i hadn't quit when i did it would have been absolutely everything.

i have to remember that if i wasn't committed to being sober, i would have drunk myself to death by now.

SnowDawg

Welcome! Hope you're all healing up and the dog. For me it was the unbearable hangovers and insomnia. I'd stopped eating. Could no longer write legibly. Shakes!
Good luck. Stick around!

mfanch

It was quit or die. I am young with two kids. I couldn't do that to them, so I decided to quit.

hokey

Many reasons to quit but my "bottom" was a trip to emerg in an ambulance because I swallowed a bottle of sleeping pills while in the depression exacerbated by many beers. I knew I had to change my life.

Mikie9

I had lost all control over my emotions and how internally i dealt with things. I was tired of wasting every night drinking alone, ashamed. I knew that life was going to be the best it was going to get, and at some point it was going to start going downhill. I wanted options in life. I wanted my time back. I wanted a chance...

And here I am, trying to take it all in one moment at a time.

LindaLou

I used to be a fun drunk. Over time, I turned into a verbally mean and nasty drunk. The last time I drank, I became violent toward the one I love most. That was the end of it, right there. No one deserves what I put him through, and I refuse to touch another drop.

hayley86

I stopped drinking after i ended up in hospital again. I realized that every time i drank it was getting much worse. I knew if i didn't quit i would end up dead. I desperately wanted to turn my life around. Best wishes.

Cathryn2001

I realized that alcohol was negatively impacting the following things: my relationships, my intelligence, my judgement, my self-esteem, my health, my weight, and my appearance.

KateL

I almost lost my children to the authorities and was killing myself.

MemphisBlues

Alcohol stopped working.

Iluvdisney

Ditto!!!

Johnston

Self preservation

neferkamichael

My next step down was squalid poverty.

cementhead

I have just recently quit AGAIN. My biggest reason is for my sanity. The booze was making all my decisions for me, and they were all the wrong ones. I am one of the lucky ones who realized I have a problem before I lost everything that matters to me. I still have a great job, my family is still with me and supports me, my health is still o.k. Everybody has their own reasons, and your reasons are the most important ones you need to worry about. Remember that you need to do it for you, not everybody else. Take care of yourself first, and I believe everything will fall into place after. Good luck, my friend!!

lillyknitting

Imagine if you had killed your little dog, how you would have felt? A similar thing happened to me, when I came home drunk one night: we were having replacement doors fitted to some rooms in the house and in my drunk state I managed to bash into a door which crashed to the floor. My husband had to remind me if it had landed on one of my dogs it would kill them instantly. It was a wake up call. I can honestly say I would have been so bereft I wouldn't know what to do. My doggies are my world!

In answer to your question though, it was this sort of thing happening and I just couldn't stand the life any more. Sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. Sobriety gets better and better.

geiser

It literally makes me sick my liver enzymes were bouncing all over the place been sick on and off for months have slipped one to many times think I can moderate then hit a crisis and overinduldge again. Its hard cause my boyfriend drinks but can control I just reached a point where I couldn't control it at all. Had many ahha moments but allowed myself to do it again. . .one turns into 7 or 8. Was in good shape 6 months ago going to the gym eating healthy and one family crisis and I'm back popping beer gained 5 pounds. Been through other tough times but had to realize I just could not do it anymore. It will kill me. Lost a friend last year probably from alcohol abuse my best friend just lost her boyfriend to alcohol. Tryed to rationalize that I could handle it that everyone does it. Wrong. Still dealing with the guilt and shame of so many bad decisions. Lost money lost relationships missing so many things cause either I was sick hungover withdrawing or drunk.

James18

Hangovers are getting really bad and my insides are really beginning to suffer from the abuse I've given them. My behaviour and moods have also altered over the years and I don't like myself drunk. I do silly or dangerous things and my attitude stinks. My brain seems to feel constantly foggy too. I can't appreciate things like I used to and need to find out if it's the booze or something else.