It’s hard to pinpoint when I first started drinking. Alcohol was everywhere; it was normal, and when I started university in the late 80s, alcohol was front and centre of any social event. In my group of friends, women always matched men drink for drink, and we felt proud of that.
From 17 onwards, my pattern was boozing at the weekend and on a night out, often to the point of blacking out, although I never intended to. I’d been an anxious teenager, and I lacked confidence in my appearance and academically. In my last year at university, I started having panic attacks, and the only time I felt I could switch off from worrying about passing my exams and getting a job was when I had a drink.
