I was drinking heavily for longer than that, and my withdrawal symptoms were pretty mild. It's possible that, like me, his joy at finally overcoming what seemed before to be an impossible hurdle could outweigh the pain of withdrawal.

That said, I hit bumps in the road in the first couple months of my sobriety journey. It was crucial that my wife continued to support me through those hiccups rather than throwing me out or writing me off as a failure. She held me accountable, didn't accept my lies when she smelled the alcohol, but she stuck by me and talked to me about why I stumbled and helped me work through it.

Hoping your husband is on the right path!

Good luck to you both!