I started drinking aged 12 & would down 3 bottles of wine a day – I was in denial but now I look better than ever at 45
AN EX-ALCOHOLIC has bravely opened up on her battle with booze and claimed that she began drinking at just 12-years-old.
Erin Devine, now a single mum-of-three, 45, has ditched alcohol for good and wants to raise awareness about when she ‘hit rock bottom’.
The brunette beauty, who now “looks and feels her best” has claimed that she would drink three bottles of wine every day when her addiction was at its peak.
Not only this, but Erin, who has 26,000 followers on TikTok, shared that she would even think about boozing first thing in the morning and would always go to sleep with a glass of wine next to her bed.
Opening up on social media, Erin filmed herself doing her make-up as she said: “Get ready with me while I tell you how much I used to drink in one day.”
She then explained: “So I get this question a lot, I guess the answer really depends because I started drinking at the age of 12.
“I’ve also had three kids and so it’s really varied throughout the years.
“But in the end when I hit rock bottom, I was drinking anywhere from two to three bottles of wine a day.
“During my marriage we would go out drinking really early – for breakfast, I would get a double Bloody Mary, and then I’d get another double Bloody Mary, and then when I’d come home we’d drink wine all day.
“So there I was, easily putting down two bottles of wine plus some Bloody Mary’s, plus whatever my ex-husband was mixing up, not really keeping track.
“I was always in major denial, but when I lived by myself when I hit rock bottom, if I had one bottle of wine, I would be in a panic.
“I would know it would not be enough. I needed at least two so I had the bottle of wine and the cushion of an extra glass.”
Erin, who “heard a lot of criticism” during her alcohol battle, which peaked in 2022, when she was 42-years-old, claimed that “drinking problems are so personal”, as she highlighted: “For me, because I was a mother, I didn’t drink during my pregnancies and I didn’t drink while I was breastfeeding and so that really saved me.
“I was always a ‘responsible’ alcoholic and I would always try to hold off as long as I could.
It was never just one glass. I abused it, and there was no way for me not to abuse it
Erin Devine
“I’d wait until 5pm when my ex-husband would come home.”
Despite this, she admitted: “Most nights, it was at least one to two bottles of wine. Wine was my drink of choice.
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about a good glass of wine, but my problem with drinking is I could never, never stop.
“If I started drinking, I would go to bed with a glass of wine by my bed.
“I would wake up so many mornings with wine spilled all over my nightstand, on the carpet, on the walls, constantly, constantly spilling wine.”
Do you want to give up alcohol?
IF you want to give up alcohol, Sandra Parker, the UK’s number one sober coach has shared her advice.
The founder of ‘Just the Tonic’ advises: “Focus on what you’re noticing yourself. Be honest with yourself about what you’re drinking.
“If you’ve been trying this for a while, you probably need help.
“I always advise people to try to cut down rather than just stop, because if you try to stop, it’s like you’re just ripping the alcohol out and you’re not really working out why you’re drinking.
“Get expert help.”
Now 21 months sober, Erin reflected: “I don’t miss those days, so as much as I miss a wonderful glass/bottle of wine, it was never just one glass.
“I abused it, and there was no way for me not to abuse it.
“I was constantly chasing alcohol, it’s all I could think about, no matter where I was.
“Everything revolved around alcohol – the calories I was ingesting, the meals I was planning, revolved around how much alcohol I was gonna drink that night and it was never ending.”
If I had wine in the house, it was gone. I could not keep wine in the house
Erin Devine
As well as this, the content creator, who went “cold turkey” when quitting alcohol and didn’t go to rehab or get treatment, recognised: “On another note, because we were such wine connoisseurs, or at least I was, I’d always get cases of wine.
“I couldn’t understand how people could keep cases of wine in their home and how it would last them for months.
“If I had wine in the house, it was gone. I could not keep wine in the house.
“I never understood how people could have wine cellars. I would drink through that wine cellar, there was no stopping me.”
Social media users react
The TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @devinedwelling, has clearly left many open-mouthed, as it has quickly amassed 229,000 views in just two days.
Many viewers eagerly flocked to the comments, keen to open up on their own battles with alcohol.
NHS guidelines on drinking alcohol
According to the NHS, regularly drinking more than 14 units of alcohol a week risks damaging your health.
To keep health risks from alcohol to a low level if you drink most weeks:
- men and women are advised not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis
- spread your drinking over 3 or more days if you regularly drink as much as 14 units a week
- if you want to cut down, try to have several drink-free days each week
If you’re pregnant or think you could become pregnant, the safest approach is not to drink alcohol at all to keep risks to your baby to a minimum.
You read more on the NHS website.
One person said: “I can relate so much to this. It’s what I was doing. Gave up cold turkey 12 days ago. Feeling so much better.”
Another added: “This was me exactly. I hit rock bottom on December 2nd and haven’t had a drink since. Today is 101 days and I love the person I am becoming. I am a better mom, a better wife, and loads healthier.”
A third commented: “I was drinking 2-3 bottles of wine after my husband died in 2020. Glad I am not drinking anymore.”
Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme – Sun Club