'They never gave up on me'

MAN OPENS UP ON 30-YEAR ALCOHOL BATTLE AND TEAM 'THAT SAVED MY LIFE'

- By JADE MCELWEE

A TEESSIDE man is recalling the hardest battle he has ever fought with alcohol and encouraging others to quit the "worst addiction", which takes thousands of lives each year.

Mazar Khan is living with a family that loves him for who he is and friends who always look out for him.

But this was not always the scenario for Mazar, who went through a journey that broke him, physically and mentally as he struggled to break free from the shackles of alcohol addiction for more than 30 years.

Aged 14, Mazar picked up a bottle of alcohol for the first time.

He said: "To be completely honest, I am not even sure why I started drinking in the first place."

Something which started as "it's just a pint" quickly spiralled within a year into something that kept Mazar, now 55, on the edge 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Although he liked drinking and enjoyed the occasional pints at first, the last ten years of Mazar's life have been a constant battle with alcohol addiction.

"My last few years of drinking have been nothing but filled with paranoia, fighting with people, losing my business, getting arrested and spending nights at the police station," he said. These years were filled with constant anxiety and distress for not only Mazar but also for his family and friends.