According to the 2023 United States National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 48.5 million (or about 17% of) Americans aged 12 and older battled a substance use disorder in the past year. 10% had an alcohol use disorder, 10% had a drug use disorder, and 3% struggled with both.

Addiction impacts all aspects of life, including physical health, mental health, personal relationships, and career. It wrecks lives not only of those who succumb to it, but also the people around them.

But it’s possible to ruin everything even without taking a sip or a hit. Reddit user Think_County_5850 asked the online community to share stories of people making life-changing mistakes while sober. Here are the most memorable ones we found among the thousands of replies.

I had more credit card debt than I could rea

See Full Page