Jane’s Testimonial

I contacted Harrogate Sanctuary in the middle of the night as I had hit rock bottom with my drinking, and I was feeling both physically and mentally exhausted.  On average I was drinking two bottle of wine a night, seven nights a week.  Every morning I would wake up and say to myself I would not consume any wine that night.  However, by the afternoon I had deluded myself and so “one more night isn’t going to hurt” became a never ending cycle which I could not break.  With this came shame the next morning that I had given in yet again to alcohol.

Sarah contacted me the very next morning, and after an insightful ice breaker meeting I booked a start date for  the Six Week programme began.  She was the first person I have been truly honest with about my drinking and the effect it was having on family life.  She showed real empathy and was not judgemental in the least.  By opening up to Sarah it felt a huge weight had been taken from my shoulders.  She gave me practical ways to deal with the alcohol cravings so I would not give in to alcohol and she was always on the end of the phone if I needed her.

Sarah is passionate about helping women who need help with their drinking habits. She has a wealth of knowledge on how alcohol is so devastating for you and your family.  No matter what I asked her she always had the answer for me.  She has become a friend rather than a counsellor and I will be forever grateful to her.

 I have tried every kind of counselling and therapy out there to help me with my alcohol consumption and was pleading for help from my GP as I could see I was in a spiral of self-destruction.  None of them could help me!  Sarah did, and still does on our maintenance programme, a safety net in these early days of sobriety, which is such a bonus.

I am in a much better place both mentally and physically without alcohol.  I no longer get to that time in the night where I see wine as a reward, quite the opposite, as I am more productive, which means I worry less about the things I have not got done on my “To Do” list.  I sleep like a baby every night and my physical exercise has improved as I now have the energy to get out there and do my daily 10,000 steps if not more, and there is no more procrastination.

I highly recommend Sarah for anyone who are struggling with alcohol.  She has been my saviour.

Jane