Denise Welch celebrated 13 years of sobriety and recalled shocking details from her last ever ‘shameful’ alcohol binge in a poignant Instagram post on Friday.
The Loose Women star, 66, said she woke up hung over with no recollection of the night before to find she’d pulled a bathroom door off its hinges and thrown a lamp on the floor.
Denise said the incident occurred in then boyfriend – now husband – Lincoln Townley’s flat after he himself had stopped drinking two months previously.
Alongside a beaming snap of her today and a throwback from the height of her addiction, the actress said the thought of losing Lincoln forced her to get sober.
Adding that sons, actor Louis, 24, and The 1975 lead singer, Matty Healy, 36, being proud of her, is the greatest gift since turning her life around over a decade ago.
Denise, who shares her sons with ex Tim Healey, penned: ’13 years ago today I had my last alcoholic drink. I had woken up, as often happened, with no memory of the night before’.
‘I was in the middle of a huge theatre tour and was faced with the thought of a long car journey to Richmond and 2 shows!! Then I looked around and realised that my husband, then boyfriend, was watching me and he threw a newspaper on the bed’.
Denise Welch celebrated 13 years of sobriety and recalled shocking details from her last ever ‘shameful’ alcohol binge in a poignant Instagram post on Friday
The Loose Women star, said she woke up in now husband Lincoln Townley’s flat to find she’d pulled a bathroom door off its hinges and thrown a lamp on the floor (pictured 2003)
‘It was me. Papped. Leaning over the bonnet of a car shouting at someone and pointing. No recollection. The bathroom door of his flat had been pulled of its hinges and a lamp lay on the floor’.
Denise continued: ‘Lincoln had stopped drinking 2 months before. I had told him I didn’t have as big of a problem. I did. A huge one. He told me he loved me but he couldn’t live like this’.
‘The thought of losing him terrified me. I was depressed, anxious, scared, embarrassed, appalled at my behaviour and full of shame.I gave up drinking that night. It is the best decision I have ever made’.
‘Not just because I now have an amazing marriage to the love of my life, but because our 3 children [the artist also has a son from a previous relationship] can live their lives knowing that we’re safe and happy. Their lives aren’t led never knowing what or where we’ll end up’.
Denise’s post went on: My husband is now a successful international artist and I’m still working on television and on stage. The ripple effect on our families is what I’m most proud of. The look of love and respect from those who love us is something I cherish every day’.
‘If alcohol is making you and the people you love unhappy it’s time to stop. There is help and support out there. I still suffer from episodes of clinical depression but they are not compounded by alcohol and drugs so my recovery is quicker’.
Before adding: ‘I self medicated my illness for many years and became an alcoholic. I’m grateful for every day I wake up sober and I regained the respect I had lost. My children are proud of me and that’s the greatest gift of all. Thank you to @lincolntownley for being by my side every step of the way’.
Fans and famous friends were quick to congratulate Denise as she marked the milestone with Lisa Snowdon writing: ‘Amazing Denise. Huge achievement and look at you, absolutely glowing’.
Alongside a beaming snap of her today and a throwback from the height of her addiction, the actress said the thought of losing Lincoln Townley forced her to get sober.
Adding that sons, actor Louis, 24, (L) and The 1975 lead singer, Matty Healy, 36, (R) being proud of her, is the greatest gift since turning her life around over a decade ago.
Denise, who shares her sons with ex Tim Healey, penned: ’13 years ago today I had my last alcoholic drink. I had woken up, as often happened, with no memory of the night before’
Fans and famous friends were quick to congratulate Denise as she marked the milestone
X Factor’s Sam Bailey: Well done Denise!!! The best decision ever made, my brother is 11 years sober and I’m so proud of him! To see such a change for good in him is everything to me and makes me so proud!’.
While Loose Women’s Nadia Sawalha husband Mark Adderley wrote: ‘Congratulations!!! ONE DAY AT A TIME Denise!!! Such an achievement in this ADDICTED world’.
Denise married Lincoln, 52, in 2013, he’s a renowned artist and together share celeb pals like Sir Michael Caine, 92.
The actress previously revealed she used to drink as a way to ‘take away the pain’ as she struggled with depression.
In her 2020 book The Unwelcome Visitor: Depression and How I Survive It Denise admitted she tried to fight her loneliness with alcohol but said it left her in ‘a dead zone.’
The TV star claimed her depression got so bad at one stage while she was filming Coronation Street that she would hide in her dressing room or pretend to be asleep so that she wouldn’t have to interact with others.
Denise wrote: ‘Because of my mental illness, there were times I didn’t know if I was going to make it through.
The actress previously revealed she used to drink as a way to ‘take away the pain’ as she struggled with depression (pictured 2011)
The TV star claimed her depression got so bad at one stage while she was filming Coronation Street that she would hide in her dressing room or pretend to be asleep so that she wouldn’t have to interact with others (pictured on the show in 1998)
‘Alcohol made things worse. I drank a lot, reaching for anything to take away the pain and keep me going… to lift the isolation and loneliness. It put me into kind of a dead zone.
‘For the two or three hours I was actually consuming alcohol, it obliterated my illness. That is why so many people with depression drink.’
Denise was diagnosed with clinical depression after her first son, Matty, was born in 1989, she went on say she wasn’t sure whether her alcoholism caused her depression or vice versa, as she claimed one problem feeds off the other.
The actress also explained that Princess Diana’s death in 1997 impacted her very deeply, causing her to ‘start wailing in grief’ and see everything as ‘red’ as she became consumed by terror.
