Ulrika Jonsson has opened up on her devastating alcohol problem and the moment she realised she needed to quit.
The 57-year-old presenter revealed how she would drink at times until she would black out, leaving her unable to remember anything. She would be so drunk that she would make no sense and friends of the star became concerned about her.
The Scandinavian show host told how she would use alcohol to mask her feelings of anxiety. But now, the Mirror reports that she has been sober for four months and is thrilled by the benefits she has already noticed.
The broadcaster, who became known as her role as a weather host in the 1980s, said that she had to reach a point where she wanted to find help herself as one concerned friend had already tried to tell her she had a problem. She is now sharing her story in the hope of helping others.
Speaking to The Sun, she said: “Drink quelled my anxiety. It transported me to another place where I felt at peace — where the problems of the world couldn’t reach me and, most importantly, where I felt numb. I drank to kill my feelings of anxiety and my fears of everything.
“I was a highly functioning binge-drinker. I never woke up dishevelled in a pool of sick. But the number of times I would black out and not recall the night before when I had been drinking alone, were increasing.”
Ulrika said that a friend bluntly confronted her about her alcohol problem. She phoned her one weekend and told her that they had spoken over the phone the night prior. However, due to being black-out drunk, the former Gladiators host was nonsensical. Her friend urged her to seek help but it wasn’t until another friend, who was already sober themselves, gave her the support she needed that she decided to ditch booze.
Ulrika recalled: “I was hungover again some days later and I had nothing but shame running through my veins. My head just knew that this was the end of life as I knew it then. I reached out to a friend who hasn’t had a drink for five years and said, ‘I can’t do this any more’. I had the gift of desperation. And that was my first sober day. I haven’t touched a drink since that day and I haven’t wanted to.”
Ulrika now says that she has been booze free for 121 days and she feels “calm and clear” now her head is always free of hangovers and drunkenness. Recent statistics have suggested over 600,000 adults in the UK are alcohol dependent.
Last month, the government sparked a backlash when it was suggested plans are being considered to force pubs and bars to call last orders at 10pm in order to target harmful drinking. However, the move has been blasted by some who fear such a move would tip the UK into having a nanny state.
If you are struggling with alcohol abuse or addiction, advice and support can be found at alcoholchange.org.uk