Something very sad - a cautionary note
 

Hi everyone, and thank you for all the meaningful, thoughtful posts I have the privilege of reading on here. I just wanted to share an experience I had that deeply saddened me, but served as a kind of wake-up call.

I met a young woman recently who had been severely affected by her years of alcohol abuse. She was only 36, and when I met her she had bright yellow eyes, sallow skin, and walked like a zombie due to nerve damage. She explained that she couldn't feel her feet, and it made it very difficult to wear shoes. She used to wear heels and all kinds of stylish pairs, but now she has to wear orthopedic shoes at only 36. She also had a very low attention span and had a difficult time expressing herself clearly, though she was very sweet. It was very tragic for me to see this.

For many of us, we've managed to slip by with few or no long-term health problems. For a long time I focused mostly on the mental agony it gave me, and thought of hangovers as a mere nuisance. This is just a reminder of how damaging this poison is, and regardless of how many active alcoholics are skating by unscathed, it is a very harsh reality.

Stay sober all!!!

That's very tragic. I have heard of one two many in the fellowship and through rehab that have lost their life's at such young ages to the horrible illness of addiction and alcoholism. Truly is poison those of us who have this illness. Scary and real x

"There, but for the grace of God, go I".

Wow, that's really scary. Thank you for sharing! :boggled:

I guy I know (who has no idea I'm an alcoholic) was telling me about his father who has late stage liver disease due to years of alcohol abuse.

His father has less then two weeks to live. He has a lot of fluid accumulation and swelling is his abdomen and legs and he can't walk well, has memory loss and confusion, has bleeding gums when he tries to eat, has irregular breathing, a racing heartbeat, and a few other things.

His dad is 58, so his years of heavy drinking probably knocked a couple of decades off of his life.

I was definitely headed there, VN. Thank you for your sad but helpful post. Glad to have you part of us.

I was terrified when I was told I had elevated liver enzymes while I was in treatment. Now, I am trying to exercise daily, drink plenty of water and eat healthy.

I plan on getting my enzymes tested again fairly soon.

VERY HARSH. ONE SELDOM LIETENED TO...I watched my bro die from booze- same yellow look, when he was 42. I woke up in the same ICU bed years later- nearly dying from booze. The 'big book' makes me cringe sometimes- but one word rings true..insanity.

My wife went to a service on Friday for relative of hers who died from drinking at age 46.

There's a story to put my stupid negative mind back into perspective - thanks for sharing

This is such a very strong and controlling addiction that has taken and consumed and destroyed so many lives.

Prayers for all who have lost someone, and prayers for all of us who chose to fight and win.❤️

My cousin died from liver failure 2 years ago in his 30s and his brother from a drunken suicide just a few years before at 26.