Once the drinker recognizes that his drinking is causing him a problem, he has not one new problem but two. When he is drinking he feels guilty and miserable, and when he is not drinking he feels deprived and miserable. I call this the ‘critical point’ because at one and the same time he is drinking too much and can’t get enough to drink. I couldn’t put it better than AA: ‘It is compounded by an overwhelming craving for the very thing that can only worsen the effects of physical suffering, irrational behaviour and increasing isolation.’
