“I grew up in a drinking culture, and I couldn’t question the routines surrounding alcohol. Fridays to Sundays was ‘party time,’ when drinking was unlimited. You just had to ‘understand how to drink.’ Life looks great in this culture; drinking times are full of fun and social interactions.
After going through so many of these weekends, I learned that what I was doing was pretty bad for me. I always imagined myself as being fun, witty, cool, and having enjoyable moments with my friends. The reality was that after the first two to three drinks, I couldn’t manage what happened next. My hangovers became more frequent and lasted longer and I felt bad about myself and my choices. Nothing happy at all.
At first I blamed the situation and the people I was with. But then I realized that I was the one idealizing alcohol. What I was looking forward to wasn’t actually real. How can a moment be perfect when you and everyone else there aren’t at 100 percent? I realized that I could actually ruin my life if I ignored the fallacies of this ‘anticipation.’ Why drink alcohol to have fun when we know that alcohol has ruined millions of lives? My life could be the next one, if I don’t change.” —Theresa
Lamberghini-West, A., & Karlen Triplett, P. (2025). Tipsy: A Woman’s Self-Guided Method for Managing Alcohol. US: Aysen Wellness.