It's time to ask: 'Is alcohol causing me problems?' If the answer is yes, you NEED to take action says expert MILLIE GOOCH - I stopped my destructive drinking with these nine steps

Sliding into a giant ball pit at an adult playground to celebrate my recent 33rd birthday, I was overcome with joy. Seven months after she quit drinking, Millie launched the Sober Girl Society, a community for alcohol-free women, and became an ambassador for charity Alcohol Change UK When I announced to friends I was never drinking again, most said: ‘Yeah right.’ I’m not sure I believed it myself. Here’s how... DON’T TELL YOURSELF IT’S ‘NOT THAT BAD’ When I first stopped drinking, a number of people told me I was ‘not that bad’ and ‘didn’t have a drinking problem’ – despite the fact I was putting myself in dangerous situations, and my mental health was at an all-time low. You can also draw a ‘wheel of drinking’ – a circle divided into eight sections to represent your mental and physical health, finances, career, friendships, personal growth, surroundings and romantic relationships. Writing a ‘break-up’ letter to alcohol, outlining the good parts as well as the bad and explaining why you’ve had enough, can remind you how toxic your drinking has become.