'I gave up alcohol and CHANGED MY LIFE'

A health check result shocked Claire Spencer, 42, into huge life changes

- ASHLEIGH PAGE

Throwing my bag down and kicking off my shoes at the front door, I made my way to the kitchen. Opening the fridge I pulled out a bottle of wine, got a glass, filled it to the brim before taking a huge gulp.

It was September 2021 and a busy mum running my own successful business, there was nothing better than a large glass of wine at the end of a busy week. But it wasn’t just weekends that I found myself reaching for the bottle. Thursday became the new Friday and a drink on Monday night eased me into the week.

And I didn’t just drink to de-stress. I toasted any win with a glass of bubbles, I drowned my sorrows with a vodka and coke whenever I had bad news and date night with my husband was always accompanied by a few tipples. I never saw it as a problem, and I convinced myself that I could easily stop drinking if I wanted to. Besides, all mums sipped on a glass of wine after putting the kids to bed, didn’t they?

It wasn’t just my drinking I struggled with – my diet was also poor. Slim in my 20s, I carried on partying and eating until I found myself at aged 40, 17st and a size 18.