I want to draw your attention to the way in which the authors use the third person. If I read about myself in the third person, it’s not as assaulting on my ego.

Who is the fellow who’s been puzzling me when I’m actively addicted?

WAIT! I’M the guy puzzling me!! But I always convince myself that it’s somewhere out there. Or happening to some other person. The authors wrote the book so I could safely self-discover while I’m focused on the guy in the book. And the authors are helping me to safely face my delusion. Does that make sense? Remember, this guy was a stock analyst. He sold million-dollar deals to people. He knew what he was doing. We don’t need to change the testimony of this story. Just read the book. He lays out the case. This guy is brilliant.

Have any of experienced a little personality change while under the influence? “I drank a lot, but I’m never drunk.” Any of you ever drive yourself to the detox and when they took your blood alcohol content were told, “Dude, you should be hospitalized.” To which you may have replied something like, “Hence, my arrival. Pretty sure I kept the car in the lines.” As alcoholics we tend to respond in ways that are outside the realm of reasonable. We can be calm in the face of calamity yet go off the rails over tiny things.