30 Years on the Binge – And How It Ended

30 Years on the Binge – And How It Ended

In 1996, I’d been married for 13 years and had an eight-year-old daughter. One night, after drinking far too much, I found myself laid outside The Birley with a toilet seat around my neck. My mates called my wife to collect me and, with their help, I got home safely. Looking back, it should have been the wake-up call I needed.

At the time, I was building my self-employed business and enjoying life. I was lucky enough to attend France ’98 and Portugal 2004, and for a while my drinking seemed under control. But it was a false dawn.

Over the following years, there were plenty of warning signs. I ended up outside The Birley again after another all-day drinking session at football. In 2022, I travelled to Portugal with friends for four fantastic days, but my drinking once again left me injured, sitting in a pool of blood and needing stitches before I returned home. Despite the scare, nothing changed.

The real turning point came in 2024. While away in Stockton for football, I drank heavily throughout the day. The pub landlady refused to serve me any more alcohol and watched me head upstairs to bed. I never made it. I fell backwards down the stairs and woke up four hours later in James Cook Hospital in Middlesbrough, not knowing where I was or what day it was. I spent ten days in hospital with a fractured back. It was frightening, but it changed my life. My wife and daughter came to see me, and instead of anger, they showed compassion. The nurses and doctors were outstanding, and despite the pain there were moments of humour. I shared a ward with a man called Andrew, who nicknamed me “the Yorkie” because I’d crossed the border, stolen one of their beds and was eating their tea and custard creams. We still keep in touch today.

When I left hospital, my recovery began. Football was off limits while my back healed, and even walking was difficult. But for the first time in my life, I genuinely wanted to stop drinking.

On 1 May 2026, I reached two years alcohol-free.

Since quitting alcohol, I’ve lost nine stone, embraced healthier eating, thrown myself back into football and given myself a new lease of life. I still live with neuropathy, diabetes-related complications and the effects of two strokes, but my health is far better than it could have been.

The biggest surprise is that I haven’t missed alcohol. I still enjoy football, live music and socialising, but now it’s water, soft drinks or the occasional 0% beer. Recently, I attended a nine-hour music festival and enjoyed every minute with a few alcohol-free drinks, good food and an ice cream.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that change is possible. I used to go days without a drink, then consume a month’s worth of alcohol in one session. Looking back, it makes no sense at all.

If my story helps just one person reconsider their relationship with alcohol, it will have been worth sharing.

Recovery is possible. I’m proof of that.

Anthony Cronshaw