People ask me why I don’t drink – Harriet Strange
There’s freedom in speaking up and working through this.
There’s freedom in speaking up and working through this.
Death of a parent
I learned to trust no one as the child of an alcohol-dependent mother
For as far back as I can remember, I had a lingering feeling something was terribly wrong.
For as far back as I can remember, I had a lingering feeling something was terribly wrong.
Living with a Jekyll and Hyde character
My Mum was an alcoholic. It’s taken a lot to say that.
My Mum was an alcoholic. It’s taken a lot to say that.
My Dad with PTSD struggled with alcohol
We lived in it together, and I felt that no one else would ever understand.
We lived in it together, and I felt that no one else would ever understand.
Milestones
It’s just over a week after I ran the London Marathon.
It’s just over a week after I ran the London Marathon.
20 years on
I have been reflecting on how her death has shaped me.
I have been reflecting on how her death has shaped me.
There was still a secret
Nothing to see here right?
Nothing to see here right?
The quiet, compliant children are struggling too
My mum suffered from postpartum psychosis and other mental illnesses, and my dad was an alcoholic.
My mum suffered from postpartum psychosis and other mental illnesses, and my dad was an alcoholic.
The Family Secret
If you lie enough you convince yourself that the lie is true, the lie becomes your new distorted reality.
If you lie enough you convince yourself that the lie is true, the lie becomes your new distorted reality.
Not something you could talk about
No-one spoke about it, and we had to keep it a secret. It was like a shame on the family.
No-one spoke about it, and we had to keep it a secret. It was like a shame on the family.
