Stepping into my local pub, I looked around for the handsome stranger I’d been chatting to online. Spotting Dave, then 36, I smiled nervously, and we both headed to the bar to order a drink. It was September 2018, and just a year earlier, I no doubt would have ordered something strong to quell my nerves, but today, nine months into my challenge to go sober for a year, I ordered a peppermint tea instead. I’d always used alcohol to give me confidence, but today, as the conversation between me and Dave flowed, it turned out to be one of the best dates I’d ever had, Dave sipping tea opposite.
Throughout most of my adult life, I’d loved to drink. My 20s passed me by in a haze of midweek sessions on the booze, hungover work meetings, Saturdays in the pub and Sundays spent in bed.
I worked as a radio producer for BBC Scotland, and my colleagues and I were all young, carefree and single. Birthdays, leaving dos, promotions and bank holidays were celebrated in the pub. I was always the first person to get the sambuca shots in, and I was always the last to leave.
But what goes up must come down. The morning after a big night out, I’d always find myself consumed by anxiety and fear about conversations I’d had the night before, drunken arguments I’d witnessed, and toiling over things I might have said that I probably shouldn’t.
As I reached my early 30s, drinking didn’t feel as much fun as it used to.
Beer goggles
My hangovers could linger for days, and I found myself putting off important tasks at work just because my head felt hazy from the night before. I’d been single for a while, but I’d become disillusioned with meeting men in bars.
This story is from the June 15, 2020 edition of WOMAN - UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 15, 2020 edition of WOMAN - UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Fast&fresh DINNERS
Healthy meals to keep you satisfied on busy weeknights.
Health checks that could SAVE YOUR LIFE
We service our cars and boilers to make sure they run smoothly, so why not our bodies?
FEEL SEXIER in 60 seconds
Try these instant tricks to lift your libido and get turned on fast
Destination SWAPS
Change your favourite resorts for these great-value, lesser-known places
5 steps to the PERFECT HALLWAY
Try these makeover musts to transform the often-overlooked space into an entrance you can be proud of ai
The secrets WE KEEP
Two women explain why they realised it was finally time to speak up
Our split made us STRONGER!
Bernie Jones loves her husband more after their break-up 4
Can our beloved NHS BE SAVED?
With waiting lists for surgery reaching new highs, we investigate the lengths patients are going to in order to receive treatment
WANT TO SEE BEHIND THE CASTLE GATES?
It’s an interesting development that King Charles has increased public access to Buckingham Palace and opened up Balmoral Castle for the first time.
'The divorce SPEAKS FOR ITSELF"
Singer-turned-actor Billie Piper on her turbulent past and becoming the woman she is today