Alex Scott has spoken out about her struggles with mental health in the past, and while she’s touched upon the effect this has on her relationship with alcohol, she hasn’t gone into too much detail.
In a new interview with Women's Health, though, the former Strictly Come Dancing star shares exactly what it was that meant she turned to alcohol for comfort, and how she changed her habits to get back on track with her health.
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It came down to social media trolls. “Being an athlete, you’re used to criticism, and I could always take that as a footballer in terms of: ‘I don’t think you’ve had a good game.’ But trolling – it’s not related to what I can improve. I went from being on screen doing a job I love to thinking: ‘I know what’s going to happen as soon as I step off this chair’. Do I carry on? Is it even worth it?”
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Keeping these struggles to herself made it even harder. “I was in a dark place,” she added. “And I’ve spoken about turning to drink.” She added that she would drink a bottle of wine a nigh to herself, in order to fall asleep.
Alex Scott took part in Strictly in 2019
“I was lonely. I’d go home and it felt like I was all on my own. I’d think, I’ve got no one to talk to, no one knows what I’m experiencing or going through. Until, eventually, the only thing I could do was tell everyone. That was my, ‘I can’t take it anymore, I need to tell you all what I’m going through’ moment.”
That marked the first step of Alex turning a corner. From there, she started therapy, through a mental health service called Sporting Chance Clinic, founded by former England and Arsenal men’s captain Tony Adams, specifically for athletes. “Going to therapy was the most enlightening thing I’ve ever done in my life. I love it. I will never stop.”
The upshot? If ever you’re feeling alone, talk about it – a problem shared is a problem halved, after all.
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