Overdrinking on a Friday night became a habit and I wasn't sure how it became such a fixture in my life... I felt I NEEDED to celebrate the end of the week. I definitely wasn't emotionally available for my children on a Friday evening - I'm so happy things are different now!

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THANK YOU!

Hello, darling heart, and welcome to the drink less, live better podcast. This is the podcast that helps you to see that drinking

less doesn't need to be stressful, lonely, or boring. I'm your host, Sarah Williamson, and I decided to have a year alcohol

free as a little life experiment and haven't looked back. With my experience and training, I now help other women with their

alcohol free or drink less adventures. I'm here to tell you that you can relax, connect, and have fun without alcohol in your

life. Join me here each week to find out how. Today, I'd like to tell you a story about my drinking and my children. When

my children were very small and after I'd stopped breastfeeding, I started using alcohol as a way of celebrating the end of

each week. At the time, I would often happily not drink Sunday through to Thursday, but Friday nights became a ritual of over

drinking. I look back now and wonder how this phase in my life got so out of control. I was lucky to have 2 beautiful children

close in age, a lovely house, fabulous husband, and supportive extended family and friends. I started binge drinking on Friday

night using the reason that it was the end of the week and just needed celebrating. I would get together with a group of girlfriends

who all had children of a similar age. We'd cook the kids' tea and then get stuck into the wine office. We had a giggle. We

chatted about what had gone on during the week, what our weekend plans were, what we wanted our futures to look like, and,

of course, we talked endlessly about our children. We shared stories, experiences, and dreams, and bonded because of the phase

we were in in our lives. Of course, this could have been enough by itself, but it wasn't. We also bonded because we drank

a lot together. Although we were thinking we were having meaningful conversations on a Friday night, they were never ever

remembered the next morning, and we were never able to pick up where we left off and continue. We probably had the same conversation

every Friday night for years. We would crack open a bottle at about 5 o'clock, and husbands would swing by from 7 o'clock

onwards to collect mums and toddlers and take them home. By this time, I would be totally done for. There were many Friday

nights where the children were quickly ushered to bed. I collapsed on the sofa, and I didn't cook dinner for my husband or

I. All of this was done in the name of fun, and at the time, I really did think it was fun. But I look back now and wondered

why none of us questioned what we were doing, or if they did, I didn't hear it. All of this came to a very natural end when

the children got a bit bigger, and Friday night started to involve clubs after school or other activities. Where I had been

one of the instigators of a Friday night fun, I started to offer to host it less and enjoy hangover free mornings more. I've

got to mention that Saturday morning hangovers now, really, a crushing hangover and 2 very early rising toddlers is surely

a special kind of hell. I cannot tell you how many times I watched Thomas the Tank Engine at 6 o'clock on a Saturday morning

wondering if I was going to be sick or pass out. It was not good. When I first decided I'd go alcohol free, I wondered about

the impact my drinking on Friday nights had had on my children. Obviously, I was not emotionally present for them on Friday

evenings once I'd opened that first bottle. Today, I try not to dwell on decisions in my past I would now make differently.

Today, I focus on all the good stuff. I believe that a lot of parenting is about modelling behaviour, and I now know my children

are seeing and hearing about around alcohol that make me feel much more positive, and I hope to pass some of that on to them.

Thank you for listening to this episode. Please listen in again next time. You can sign up to my 5 day drink less experiment

and find out about working with me one to 1, drink less, live better.com. It would make me happier than a Buddhist monk if

you would please subscribe, 5 star review, and leave a lovely comment about this podcast on whatever platform you listen.

Imagine it like the tasting notes on the finest wine I am never going to drink. Thank you, and PS, I believe in you.