I can't tell you the exact moment I decided to stop drinking. But alcohol has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. In my teenage years, I drank pictures, shared countless beers with friends, and participated in Champagne toasts on special occasions.

I didn't drink excessively. Not often. I can count the number of messy nights on one hand. But I definitely noticed how alcohol crept into my routine, becoming punctuation for each day, good or bad. A stressful work meeting? Pour a glass. A celebration? Drinks all around.

At first, I thought I was alone. But the numbers tell a different story. According to Alcohol Change UK, 27% of drinkers in England get drunk on their heaviest drinking days.

Similar numbers worldwide. For example, in the United States, there are over 178,000 deaths each year due to excessive alcohol use, according to the National Institutes of Health, making alcohol one of the leading causes of death. So one night, I held a beer can up to the light and asked myself a question I had avoided for years: Why?