This years’ theme for Alcohol Awareness Week is Alcohol and Me, asking: how could alcohol be impacting us, and what could we do to change that?
Our client Ashlee shared her experience of noticing a shift in her relationship with alcohol and choosing to take action early.
Ashlee began to notice changes a few months after settling into life in the UK. With her husband travelling regularly for work, evenings at home alone became more frequent. What started as a glass of wine gradually became more. “At first I told myself it was fine,” she says, “but when it turned into finishing two bottles over a couple of nights, I realised it wasn’t where I wanted to be.”
Ashlee could go long periods without drinking, but noticed that when she did have a drink, she found it difficult to stop. In the privacy of her own home, Ashlee could downplay her drinking – “it’s easy to think, I’m not going to harm anyone”, but she quickly found that not to be true. “It does affect you and it does affect the people around you.”
With a young daughter at home and a family history of problematic alcohol use, Ashlee felt a growing sense of concern. She noticed the impact on her daily life. She felt withdrawn, struggled to keep up with routines, and found herself becoming more isolated. “The turning point was realising my daughter was noticing,” she explains. “That was hard, but it helped me see clearly that I needed to do something.”
Ashlee chose to speak to her GP, who introduced her to treatment options. Through NRN, she accessed both medication and one to one support. “I didn’t want to wait until things got worse. I wanted to understand what was happening and have something in place to help me change,” she says.
Through regular sessions, Ashlee worked with a clinician to identify her triggers and build new habits. They identified that when alcohol wasn’t in the house, Ashlee thought about it a lot less, so developed practical strategies at other points. Reframing decisions when shopping at the supermarket and using simple tools to pause and reflect made a huge difference.
She also found that naltrexone, a medication to help manage alcohol cravings, reduced the urge to keep drinking once she had started. “It gave me space to choose,” she explains. “That was a game changer.”
Ashlee also drew on support from her family, particularly during times when she might have previously felt most vulnerable. “Being honest at first felt embarrassing,” she says, “but people were far more supportive than I expected.”
Her relationship with alcohol now feels very different. “It’s no longer something that controls my evenings,” she reflects. “It could be there or it could not, and that feels really freeing.” A real win was going to watch Eurovision for the first time with a friend. Ashlee had two small glasses of wine, but her experience was completely different. “I didn’t have the dopamine rush that I did before, and I could put it down when I was done.” Not only was she able to feel more in control around alcohol, she was able to be present, enjoy the conversation, and not be distracted by thinking about her next drink.
“It gave me hope, like, this is okay. I can overcome this thing. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing.”
One of the biggest barriers for Ashlee was the belief that others might need support more than she did. Looking back, she sees this differently. She now knows that everyone deserves access to care and support, regardless of how big or small their concerns may seem. For her, recognising that it was okay to ask for help when she wanted it, without comparing herself to anyone else, was a turning point in itself.
As she continues to build a life in a new country, Ashlee feels proud of taking that first step. “This process has helped me understand myself better” she adds. “And choosing what I want my future to look like.”
Ashlee’s story is a testament to self-awareness and asking for help. At NRN, we will support anyone to look at their relationship with alcohol and help them to change that in any way they wish.
