Brendan was at a party when a friend asked, “How come you’re not drinking?” Brendan said, “Feb 4th would be a year and then I’ll reconsider.” His wife Connie overheard this and was angry. Despite infidelity in their relationship, Connie felt Brendan’s drinking is what would bring down their marriage.
Connie thought Brendan was as an alcoholic and could never drink again. Brendan wasn’t quite convinced. He knows that he abused alcohol in the past, including black outs, drinking and driving and his personality changing when drinking. However, since he was sober for almost a year, he thought he might be able to control his drinking.
Connie didn’t trust that Brendan could control his drinking. Efforts to do so in the past were unsuccessful. Connie couldn’t imagine enduring Brendan’s out-of-control drinking episodes again.
Brendan heard this. He was committed to restoring his marriage. They were just getting through his recent affair and he didn’t want drinking to derail the marriage he was working so hard to repair. He said that he would “suspend drinking indefinitely.” As long as Connie wouldn’t accept his even having one drink, his marriage was way too valuable to risk it.