This is what made Pete Hamill stop drinking. After decades of hard drinking, he realized he had always been putting on an act. In fact, he inadvertently started

This is what made Pete Hamill stop drinking. After decades of hard drinking, he realized he had always been putting on an act. In fact, he inadvertently started to step out of himself to watch himself not be himself. That realization bothered him so much, he just quit. I've given away the ending, but his book ("This Drinking Life") is well worth reading. (As a biography, not as a guide to help anyone quit drinking).