Jessie Hallett, a 29-year-old woman from Cardiff, recently announced that she quit drinking for good after an 18-hour bender that ended at 9 am. The beer fear and anxiety that came with her drinking habits became too much for her to handle, so she knew she had to make a change. After more than a decade of binge drinking, she realised that she had a problem. According to latest figures provided by DrinkAware, 89% of drinkers in Wales use at least one technique to moderate their drinking. Jessie was a part of this group, but now she has decided to give up drinking entirely.
Previously, Jessie would go weeks without being sober, and she realised that she may not make it to Christmas if she didn’t quit drinking. Through her sobriety journey, she lost 5 stone, found a passion for fitness, and has set herself up as a role model for anyone struggling with similar issues. She now runs her own social media company, which is ironic because 90% of her clients are involved with alcohol.
Jessie drank socially from a young age, but her drinking habits changed when she started working in hospitality. When the pandemic hit, her mental health took a turn for the worse, and she was having panic attacks and anxiety. The only thing that could mask this was alcohol and drugs – this, in turn, led to an increase in her drinking habits.
New figures indicate a rise in 18 to 34 year olds who never binge drink, with more individuals in the Generation Z age group opting for “intermittent sobriety,” where they try to give up drinking for at least periods of time. The My Drink, My Choice campaign, run by FOR Cardiff in partnership with Chris Evans of Aberaeron, Ceredigion, is trying to promote alternatives to evening activities that centre around drinking. These events are becoming more popular in the UK, particularly with students.
Dr Will Mackintosh, who is based in St Clears, Carmarthenshire, believes that younger individuals have better insight into how alcohol and binge drinking can affect them. Traditionally, older people thought of alcohol abuse in terms of liver disease, but younger people are becoming more aware of the various harms alcohol can pose, such as impulsive behaviour and taking risks. For those who want to go sober, Hallett suggests decluttering social media, filling the feed up with those who inspire you, and taking things one day at a time
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