'I thought my heavy drinking was fine because it was after 6pm. It wasn't'
manchestereveningnews.co.ukLouise Westhead watched the clock as she patiently waited for it to strike 6pm. Just a few minutes past the hour, she reached for her bottle of wine. “It’s fine,” she tried to reassure herself. “I don’t wake up shaking and needing a drink like alcoholics do.” But the mum-of-two knew she was lying to herself.
Louise, who lives in the Hindley area of Wigan, first started drinking heavily at the age of 40. She turned to alcohol to numb the pain of her childhood trauma. Join our WhatsApp Top Stories and Breaking News group by clicking this link She hid her secret for decades until she finally opened up to her husband.
However, the brave admission left the mum struggling to cope with feelings she’d kept locked away for years. Louise tried to seek help through counselling but found the service wasn’t able to ease her spiralling mental health.
Instead, she started drinking. What started out as the odd glass of wine every night turned into two bottles and strong lager.
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