I arrived at the converted stables with no real idea of what to expect. Around 25 other people were there whom I would spend the next 7 days in total silence. I was there after doing research that showed people found answers and peace after several days in silence. 12…

And it takes complete abstinence to be able to see it. — I’m at the point now where I think people who have had a problem with alcohol to the point they have had to give it up completely are the lucky ones. We are the ones who have escaped. It's the people who drink regularly and don’t think they have a…

#2: Ban all diets The path to sobriety is ultimately brilliant. Your life is about to improve immensely. You will become richer, thinner, happier, more fulfilled and your life will change beyond recognition. This I promise you. But the path is a rocky one with ups and downs, highs and…

2. Lose weight without dieting. — Sobriety really is the gift that keeps giving. If you decide to pursue an alcohol-free life, your life is about to change radically. Although the first 6 months are a bit of a rocky rollercoaster, with highs, lows, and pitfalls to look out for, it is actually a journey of…

Fighting my way back to positive mental health — I honestly thought I was past this. Having an unexplained severe sink into a mental black hole was something that hadn’t happened to me for probably over a decade. But 2022 has been a strange year with family members becoming seriously ill and my son moving out, all culminating in…

Its magic but not in the way we thought. — Magic healing Remember in school, any injury or ailment could be healed with a wet paper towel? Bizarrely it did work and all the teachers knew this. I remember times I had a headache, as soon as I held the wet paper towel on my head, boom, the pain would disappear… and…

I thought I’d finally found a negative about sobriety. — Flying the sober life. After the first 12 months, I was so dizzy lapping up the benefits of sobriety that I would laugh at anyone who asked me if I missed drinking. What?? Miss hanxiety, lost days feeling like death, empty calories, bloated face, dead eyes? That’s all I could think of. All I…

Effective solution or a load of woo-woo nonsense? — How I got ill I was a firefighter for 14 years and at the time I joined my local fire service in 2002, I was in a tiny minority of females. Including myself, there were 6 females, and in excess of 1000 males. Whilst I did have some great times during my career and…

Sobriety is the gift that keeps giving. — Happy Sobriety The benefits of sobriety are like one of those rotating conveyor belts you get in sushi restaurants. Just as I think I’ve settled on a favourite, a new unexpected one will come along from around the corner. When I first gave up alcohol, I was wading through the dark a…