31 Shocking Confessions People Made To Their Doctors And Nurses On Their Deathbed

18.

“I was a resident in psychiatry, and I was doing a rotation on a ‘detox’ unit in a general community hospital. All the patients were sad, but one man struck me as different. He was in his mid-fifties and had a kind face, polite manner, and sweet disposition. I liked him a lot, and we hit it off. I spent a lot of time talking to him about his life and life in general. My month-long rotation was ending, and one question remained: What was this kind man’s secret? What was ‘the core’ of this man’s alcohol dependence? So, I asked him.”

“He hesitated, looked out the window, and began to speak: ‘When I was younger, I had a terrible temper. I mostly kept it under control, but it would come out once in a while. I met a woman, and she was beautiful in every way, inside and out. We got married, and I found a great job. We bought a nice house, and life seemed too good to be true.

My wife had a baby, and he was a healthy boy. He was mature for his age, and we lived out in the country. We let him play outside by himself once he turned four years old, and he was fine. He never left the yard, and we never worried.

One day, my wife and I argued about something, and I lost it. To cool off, I jumped in the car, put the transmission in reverse, and stomped on the pedal.

I hit something in the driveway — hard.

I stopped, sick to my stomach, and went to look.

My son was dead in the driveway.

Doctor, I went down to the bar after the funeral — it’s got to be thirty years. I got terribly drunk that day and have been drunk since. I’m detoxing because I’m sick, but I know as soon as I get discharged, I’m going directly to the bar and get drunk again.’

I had no words, of course. I left at the end of the day and when I got home, I hugged and kissed my children with more intensity than they could understand.”

—Michael A., Quora