Lotta Dann

It feels like just such a hard time right now and I am very unsettled by all the emotions and sadness and pain. And of course I feel very connected with my feelings which is actually super lovely. I know now from 7 1/2 years of sobriety that tough emotions are there for a reason and simply feeling them fully and not seeking to numb or avoid them makes them easier to manage. But for now, despite all my self-care techniques I'm still incredibly watery with tears popping up at unexpected times.

He's been going to his new school for 3 days but today is the first day that all of the school year groups are in attendance (all those much bigger boys! ) .But I'm up for it, and so grateful that I'm entering these years as a sober woman, not a boozy disconnected lush. and I'm going to handle things badly at times and have motherly guilt and regret. But right now.. having waved my grumpy boy off ("a wet PE top is better than a stinky one! "), and written this post, I think I'm going to crawl back into bed with a book.

I used to be a boozy housewife. Now I'm not

I've really embraced concerts since I quit drinking because I realised early on it's one of the best ways to get a big natural endorphin rush. Since becoming sober I've been to concerts in small venues like Ladyhawke and Elbow, and I've been to bigger shows like The Arctic Monkeys, Elton John, Sting and Paul Simon together, Coldplay, Rhianna, and then last week ... Me the sober, alive, heightened, appreciative, happy woman in Section C4 Seat S19.I love sober concerts precisely because I am sober. I'm still riding on a post-Adele high 5 days later, feeling so grateful for her performance and so happy to have spent really lovely and enriching time with my mum and sisters.