The Quiet Crisis: Rethinking Rock Bottom

Recovery culture celebrates deep "rock bottom" stories such as lost jobs, broken relationships. But this overlooks a subtler crisis: high-functioning individuals who maintain careers and relationships while ignoring problematic alcohol use.

Drinking problems aren’t always about dramatic failures. They often exist in high achievers who rely on alcohol to cope. For many "grey area" drinkers, the most dangerous relationship with alcohol is consuming just enough to blur the edges. It’s a personality editor and stress buffer, making you feel funnier, braver, more relaxed.

Red Flags to Consider

• Spending mental energy negotiating when, where, and how much you’ll drink?

• Feeling relief or excitement at the thought of your next drink?

• Blacked out more than once?

• Family members who are or were heavy drinkers?

• Raised in a culture or family that normalized drinking?

• Started drinking early, pre-teen years?

• Consistent drinking pattern, even small amounts (e.g., nightly wine or beer)?

• Uncomfortable skipping your usual drink?

• Associate alcohol with specific occasions: Fridays, holidays, dinners? Can you socialize multiple nights without drinking?

• Feel alcohol makes you more relaxed or sociable?

• Believe alcohol makes you funnier or wittier?

• Rely on alcohol for important decisions?

The Spectrum

Drinking habits aren’t black and white. They live on a spectrum between "totally fine" and "total mess." Only you can map where you land. Often, the first clue is that voice asking, “Am I drinking too much?”

The Challenge

Try two months of sobriety. Then reassess. You owe yourself the chance to see who you are without alcohol.

The bravest decision might be admitting the life you’ve built relies on drinking to navigate.

Stay sober and cool, 

Your High Sobriety Club