How I stopped being a problem drinker
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 6 January 2023
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Like increasing numbers of Brits, columnist Robert Crampton had a guilty secret: he was drinking more, the older he got. Way more. In a brutally honest account, he reveals what finally led him to quit.
Websites and numbers for concerns regarding alcohol addiction:
- Drinkline is the national alcohol helpline. If you're worried about your own or someone else's drinking, you can call this free helpline in complete confidence. 0300 123 1110 (weekdays 9am to 8pm, weekends 11am to 4pm)
- NHS support: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/alcohol-support/
- Drinkaware: https://www.drinkaware.co.uk/
- Alcoholics Anonymous: https://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk/ or 0800 9177650
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Guest: Robert Crampton, Columnist at The Times.
Host: Manveen Rana.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I just went through this really strange emotional low and I was like, I'm going to die, like he's going to kill me. |
| 0:07.0 | On this week's first date's the podcast. |
| 0:09.0 | I'm noticing the abuse that he's giving me, but I'm kind of brushing it to one side because |
| 0:14.0 | he did everything by the book, you know, like the love bombing. |
| 0:18.0 | And it was controlled after control after control. |
| 0:20.0 | From Podomo and 2020, this is First Dates the Podcast. |
| 0:24.0 | Get it wherever you're listening to this or visit ListenToFirstDates.com. |
| 0:30.0 | It's that time of year when the words detox and never again dominate conversations. |
| 0:48.0 | When everyone is either doing dry January or wondering if they should. |
| 0:55.0 | But it's not just the excesses of the festive season that we need to worry about. |
| 1:00.0 | In 2021, a record number of people died in the UK as a result of alcohol consumption. |
| 1:08.0 | According to the Office of National Statistics, there were almost 10,000 of these deaths, |
| 1:14.0 | a figure that's 25% higher than in 2019. |
| 1:19.0 | So, do we have a destructive relationship with alcohol? |
| 1:25.0 | For those of us who are vulnerable to its excesses, it poses as a solution to a problem that itself is causing. |
| 1:36.0 | One time's columnist has spoken to me candidly about his own struggle with alcohol. |
| 1:43.0 | I was a bad husband and father for a few years. I was pretty absent. |
| 1:50.0 | You're listening to Stories of Our Times from The Times and The Sunday Times. I'm Manvin Rano. |
| 1:56.0 | Today. |
| 1:58.0 | How I stopped being a problem drinker. |
| 2:02.0 | So, my name is Robert Krampton. I'm a journalist with The Times. |
| 2:07.0 | I've worked here for 31 years now, principally right columns. |
... |
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