# So I think I need some help

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-think-i-need-some-help/643600>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [December 10, 2012, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-think-i-need-some-help/643600 "2012-12-10T15:18:21Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 9

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**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-think-i-need-some-help/643600/161 "2013-12-10T14:06:43Z")

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My brother-in-law was hospitalized for alcoholic hepatitis; in his case, it progressed to coughing/vomiting up blood before he did anything about it, and that involved a trip to the ER and months in the ICU due to his liver failing, kidneys shutting down, pneumonia, a small stroke. He was fortunate enough in that it didn’t kill him, his liver slowly started working again, kidneys too, and after months of recovery and a long stay in a physical rehab institute (so he could walk again after being in a hospital bed for so long), he decided that was the wake up call and has been sober about a decade. He still has lingering physical issues and is basically disabled in various ways, but he’s glad to be alive and have a second chance.

**Chefguy** , I hope your son’s experience and commitment to doing an inpatient stay wakes him up enough that he figures out what he needs to do in order to stay sober.

**baileygrrrl** , I’m glad to hear you’re at least moving in the right direction. I hope 2014 will be kind to you.

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**Author:** ![Dr\_Doom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Dr\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Doom)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-think-i-need-some-help/643600/162 "2013-12-10T14:29:32Z")

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**baileygrrrl** , I am so glad to hear you are making positive changes to your life.

Merry Christmas!

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**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-think-i-need-some-help/643600/163 "2013-12-10T15:48:10Z")

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> [@Dangerosa](#):
>
> My sister was there four - maybe five - years ago and has been sober since. Being told she would die if she continued to drink and there was no way an alcoholic was getting a liver off the transplant list was the wakeup call that did it for her. There had been several less successful trips through rehab before that.
> 
> She always thought she didn’t drink “that much.” And apparently, compared to some, she really didn’t - but everyone’s body has a different tolerance for abuse.
> 
> You are in my thoughts.

Thanks. Not to derail the thread, but I’ve also found out that my daughter has been drinking heavily over the past couple of years. The Christmas letter to my four children this year is seven pages long, chronicling the sad and disastrous damage alcohol has done to my family over the past few generations. I hope they take it to heart.

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