Dave W.
Well Known Member
Hello. I'm a HRO (having blown 125). Between the offence and the court appearance I contracted a solicitor who told me that because the reading was so high, there was a risk of a custodial sentence. At the age of 65, this scared me witless. Desperate to change and desperate to show the court that I could change and avoid prison, I decided to go into rehab. I could only afford a fortnight (and it wasn't that expensive compared to some). I managed 12 days there, but in the end, and despite some very positive and useful stuff, the fact that everyone else there was under thirty just got to be too much and I checked out. With a fortnight left to the court appearance, I started getting very, very stressed and went to my doctor who prescribed some sort of anti depressant (sorry, can't remember what it was precisely). My sentence was a ban (reduced if I did the Drink Awareness course, which I have) and community service (which I've also completed), a two-year supervision order which resulted in loads of AA meetings which didn't help at all and no prison. Never has the air outside that magistrates court tasted so sweet. A week afterwards because their effect was so unpleasant and with the stress levels massively diminished I stopped taking the pills. I still drink, but not to the extent that I did then - I.e.. I don't binge and don't believe I'm an alcoholic. Two years on, my question is: as the time to reapply for my license approaches, and looking at the medical questionnaire, am I duty bound to mention the rehab period and AA attendance in the 'treatment for dependency' bit and the stress/pills in the 'mental health' bit? Any thoughts gratefully received, as this isn't something easily shared as I know you know.