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There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane (2011)

Old 02-14-2019, 05:11 PM
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There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane (2011)

Has anyone seen this? It popped up on my YouTube feed and I put it on without really knowing the story of Diane Schuler who killed herself and seven other people - including five kids - with a 1.9 BAC and THC in her system.

It's fascinating because of the levels of denial the family rises to, insisting the autopsy was wrong and theorizing she might have had a stroke due to an absessed tooth... never accepting she might have drank and smoked to kill the pain OF the absessed tooth and might have gone overboard. Vodka bottle in the back of the van? No explanation. Her sister-in-law insists she wasn't like that again and again... then lights a cigarette and confides, "Nobody in the family knows I do this."

I've been sober two-and-a-half years but vodka was my drink of choice because people couldn't smell it on my breath (or not as much.) I drank in the morning often to combat depression and mental anguish. I hid the extent of my drinking for a very long time until finally hitting rock bottom. This made me think a lot about both my drinking career and the reactions of my family and friends during that time. Not to that extent, but I think there was heavy denial there, as well.

I thank God every day I never killed anyone driving drunk. I very easily could have many, many times.
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Old 02-14-2019, 05:28 PM
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Originally Posted by Anustart View Post
Has anyone seen this? It popped up on my YouTube feed and I put it on without really knowing the story of Diane Schuler who killed herself and seven other people - including five kids - with a 1.9 BAC and THC in her system.

It's fascinating because of the levels of denial the family rises to, insisting the autopsy was wrong and theorizing she might have had a stroke due to an absessed tooth... never accepting she might have drank and smoked to kill the pain OF the absessed tooth and might have gone overboard. Vodka bottle in the back of the van? No explanation. Her sister-in-law insists she wasn't like that again and again... then lights a cigarette and confides, "Nobody in the family knows I do this."

I've been sober two-and-a-half years but vodka was my drink of choice because people couldn't smell it on my breath (or not as much.) I drank in the morning often to combat depression and mental anguish. I hid the extent of my drinking for a very long time until finally hitting rock bottom. This made me think a lot about both my drinking career and the reactions of my family and friends during that time. Not to that extent, but I think there was heavy denial there, as well.

I thank God every day I never killed anyone driving drunk. I very easily could have many, many times.
I remember watching this and your description brought it all back. The entire documentary was basically the family trying to convince the viewers that Diane wouldn't have got behind the wheel of her car whilst knowingly drunk and high. There was something not quite right with that family. Like there was some weird family secret or something. You could put 10,000 addicts in a room and they would have less collectibe denial than the Schuler family.

They even hired an independent investigator to clear Diane's name. It must have been a kick in the teeth for them when he came up with exactly the same results as the police and the medical examiner. Bottom line is people died because that lady made a bad decision.

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Old 02-14-2019, 07:10 PM
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I watched this a couple of years ago . A chilling, hideous, tragic documentary. **SPOILER ALERT** the photos of her dead body at the end were so spine chilling and I am a blood/gore horror lover.

The confusion and terror her neices must have felt that day is horrible and the fear their parents must have had when they got that phone call...."there's something wrong with Aunt Diane" sends shivers down my spine. I was still in active alcoholism when I watched that and I am going to watch it again in recovery now and know that as long as I keep doing what I am doing that situation will never because of me. Thank God 🙏
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Old 02-14-2019, 07:40 PM
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Yeah, very, very sad documentary. I think it just goes to show, when you have a family who is in that much denial, it enables the user. Think she was probably sneaking around and drinking for a long time.
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Old 02-15-2019, 12:44 AM
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Thanks for posting. Just going to watch it now xx
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Old 04-18-2019, 07:29 PM
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I’m going to watch it again. It on one of my apps on my tv 📺
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Old 04-18-2019, 08:49 PM
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I read about this case, https://www.addiction.com/3425/aunt-diane/

very scary and sad 😔
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Old 04-18-2019, 11:04 PM
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i had seen the movie on one of my apps just yesterday, and didn’t watch it but saw this post and decided to watch. Just finished it.

How harrowing. That family is in complete denial. And I am grateful to be sober.
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Old 04-18-2019, 11:25 PM
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Thanks for posting. I will watch it at the weekend, sounds harrowing but the truth of what can happen is always a good reminder and a leveller of the perils of out of control drinking.
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Old 04-19-2019, 12:19 AM
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Yeah I definitely need to re-watch it. When I first did I seem to recall being ambivalent about what I thought happened. Anyway great username. You deserve to go see a Star War.
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Old 04-19-2019, 01:52 AM
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Originally Posted by Tetrax View Post
Yeah I definitely need to re-watch it. When I first did I seem to recall being ambivalent about what I thought happened. Anyway great username. You deserve to go see a Star War.
Wow. Just almost finished re-watching it. 'Maybe she had a stroke and thought [the vodka] was water', is said. Unbelievable stuff. To me it's now a very clear case of high-functioning alcoholism. A textbook case, you might say. Now I'm a bit more informed (via my drinking 'career') it seems clearer the only way forward for any possible good to come out of this awful, awful case would have to be better education on the subject we all know too well about.
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Old 04-19-2019, 06:44 AM
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I haven't seen the documentary, and didn't know about this case, but I just read the article Mariposa posted and now I want to see it. Tragic. And a stark reminder. I had 3 DUI's. My second one, my BAC was .34. I should have been passed out somewhere, or dead. I remember everything that happened. So yeah, my tolerance was really high. Did that make me stop? No. It took another one to finally kick my butt enough that I declared enough was enough. I thank the universe every day that no one ever got hurt while I was taking those chances. Never again.
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Old 04-19-2019, 07:08 AM
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The denial of the family, in light of scientific medical tests, was shocking. I read about this story at the time it happened and it's so horrific.
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Old 04-19-2019, 07:20 AM
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I’m glad I have this group to discuss this with. It is a HUGE reminder of the horrors of alcohol. I watched years ago and didn’t quite get that the whole family really is in denial. I didn’t know people could be so intoxicated and appear so normal. My experience is opposite, I drink it’s very obvious. The article I read was accurate. I feel traumatized a bit from the reality of the documentary. If you drink and drive this is what the result could be. Those beautiful little girls, so sad. I couldn’t imagine losing all of them, especially due to a bottle of absolute.

Another show that really “scared me” straight was Quicksand on Netflix. Not a true story but I related to the show because the girl tries to save a man while in a downward spiral of alcohol and drugs. She loses so much as well.
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Old 04-19-2019, 12:13 PM
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Originally Posted by mariposa View Post


Another show that really “scared me” straight was Quicksand on Netflix. Not a true story but I related to the show because the girl tries to save a man while in a downward spiral of alcohol and drugs. She loses so much as well.
Now I know what to watch tonight; thanks!
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Old 04-19-2019, 02:09 PM
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Bexxed , please let me know what you think of Quick sand. I watched all six episodes last Friday and was crying in the end, and I don’t cry about movies unless an animal gets hurt. I’d like another perspective on the show.
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Old 04-20-2019, 09:25 AM
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I just watched the documentary, its absolutely harrowing. I'm not even sure what I think, clearly she drank for some reason on that final journey, was she an alcoholic? Really not sure she was...

Heartbreaking.
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Old 04-20-2019, 03:01 PM
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It is chilling.
I backed into a parking lot post once when I had been drinking.
No harm done, except to my car, but I was so scared and ashamed that I never, ever drove under the influence again.
What if it had been a person?
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Old 04-20-2019, 03:19 PM
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This is so bizarre.

Id honestly like to know the whole truth about what happened with her that day.

Something is just fishy.
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Old 04-20-2019, 03:46 PM
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I read the book by the mother of the 3 little girls. It was more about her story and how she and her husband coped with the death of all their children rather than about blaming Diane, though of course there were parts on that too.

A horrifying story and one that hits me right to my core.

I am so thankful to be sober.
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