Being an alcoholic is the best thing that ever happened to me

It might seem counterintuitive but spending almost 20 years battling a crippling addiction has been the greatest gift from the universe.

I am still an alcoholic. I don’t drink but that part of me never goes away. I will always be one drink away from falling into the quicksand of pain and despair that drinking brings, each step dragging me further and further down. Deeper into the abyss.

But each trip to jail, every visit to rehab, and all the hours spent sweating and aching in the throes of detox taught me more about myself. Taught me that none of us can make it alone. Taught me that no amount of toughness or intellect can overpower biology and psychology. It taught me that, sometimes, we just have to accept our flaws in order to move past them.

Today my life is better than ever. I never think it’s not fair that I can’t drink. I never look at life as how it should be or how I wish it was. I accept the moment as it is and if I don’t like something I do what I can to change it. In my little corner of the universe.

Will you look back and appreciate the challenges you’ve faced or will you instead lament on how life is not fair?